On 22 May, the U.S. city of Concord, New Hampshire, kicked off the #Stocktake4ClimateEmergency process by hosting its local stocktake event, opening the door for cities worldwide to contribute to this year’s Global Stocktake before COP28. Concord used the LGMA’s guidebook to bring together representatives from City Council, high school-aged youth, and local businesses to interpret a vision for a climate-just future. City representatives are happy to share their experience with anyone interested in hosting their own event. Register yours using this form.
To advocate that local-level stocktakes remain official contributing events to the Global Stocktake process—turning city halls into annual “mini-COPs”—I was happy to deliver remarks on behalf of the LGMA during GST Informal Consultations held in Bonn on 28 April and further present this as a poster at the upcoming 3rd Technical Dialogue in Bonn.
Our attention can now turn to two milestones on the 2023 advocacy agenda: The UNFCCC Bonn Climate Change Conference (SB58) on 5-15 June and the Second UN-Habitat Assembly on 5-9 June in Nairobi. May this addition of the Bulletin serve to raise the current on these two overlapping events. We are excited to share the LGMA engagement in each below.
Yunus Arikan
ICLEI Director of Global Advocacy
LGMA Focal Point
LGMA Roadmap towards COP28
UNFCCC Bonn Climate Change Conference (SB58)
Also known as the SB 58 and serving as the mid-way point to COP28, the Bonn Climate Conference will be held 5 to 15 June, 2023, with an anticipated agenda and SB Chairs scenario note spanning just transition, implementation means, finance and loss and damage.
Highlights for the LGMA: The LGMA engagement in the first week will focus on SB58 Joint Opening Plenary on 5 June, Global Stocktake 3rd Technical Dialogue, and COP28 President meeting with constituencies on 8 June. The Marrakech Partnership will have two sessions and a virtual dialogue in week.-1 and launch Sharm El Sheikh Adaptation Agenda on 12 June. In the second week, LGMA Leaders Dialogue with UNFCCC Friends of Multilevel Action, with the expected participation of COP28 High Level Champion is scheduled on 11 June Monday. On 12 June Tuesday 2 side events will be held consecutively ICLEI-UN-Habitat at 1145 and UNFCCC Secretariat Innovation Hub side event with GCoM at 13:15. ICLEI is also planning for a press conference on 14 June Wednesday morning.
LGMA Partners are kindly invited to inform LGMA Focal Point their presence in Bonn in order ensure a smooth coordination
2nd UN Habitat Assembly (UNHA2) focuses on a ‘Sustainable Urban Future’
The COP28 thematic days are announced, with ICLEI on behalf of LGMA welcoming "Cities, Regions and Urbanization Day", currently scheduled for 10 December (Week 2), and recommending the day be instead convened closer to World Climate Summit in Week 1. COP28 Presidency also announced its Advisory Committee with a diverse group of stakeholders, but no clear representative to the LGMA, which we will advocate for. We will again apply for the LGMA Multilevel Action Pavilion, in continued collaboration with the Scottish Government and all LGMA partners for the design and management. Submit your interest to host a session.
Sendai Framework holds midterm review
Called for by the UN General Assembly, the Sendai Framework’s review reflected on progress achieving seven targets. Against the backdrop of a global “polycrisis,” delegates called for better governance, investments in resilience, and a focus on disaster prevention. The Final Political Declaration highlighted the need for supporting and enabling all local authorities, including call for participation at the MakingCitiesResilient2030 Campaign.
During the final week of April, the United States Government hosted the first-ever Cities Summit of the Americas, bringing together more than 400 mayors and cities from across the Western Hemisphere in coordination with many LGMA partners. A milestone outcome from the summit is the launch of Cities Forward, an initiative led by ICLEI and the U.S. Department of State with partners Resilient Cities Catalyst and Institute of the Americas.
ICLEI USA provides additional outcomes including that, in his closing remarks, Secretary of State Antony Blinken highlights the initiative and the powerful role of cities in solving global challenges.
Leaders gathered in Japan released the “G7 Hiroshima Leaders’ Communiqué”, which includes the transformative power of cities and references to sub-national governments. Additional outcome documents also reference subnational action. The Urban7 group welcomed this progress in its press release, highlighting the creation of a G7 Roundtable on Subnational Climate Action in collaboration with U7 as an outcome of the 2023 G7 Environment, Climate and Energy Ministerial, which happened earlier this year in Sapporo.
The 7th Summit for Subnational Governments & Cities and dedicated Pavilion constituted an unprecedented global milestone to welcome subnational governments to the Kunming-Montréal Global Biodiversity Framework. The outcomes report covers the advocacy journey of the Local and Subnational Governments Major Group at COP15.
Launched in 2015 at COP21 and coordinated by Regions4, this pioneering initiative brings together leading regions on climate change adaptation. Through data analysis from 32 regions paired with 8 qualitative interviews, the 2021-2022 annual disclosure report gives a comprehensive view on the climate change risks regions are facing globally.
At COP27, the UN High-Level Expert Group on Net Zero launched the report Integrity Matters, to guide adoption and implementation of robust net zero targets by non-state actors. ICLEI joined the Expert Working Group on Cities and Local Governments to help cities and city initiatives and alliances respond to the report's recommendations. We are now seeking stakeholder input on key aspects of net zero, including pledges, targets and climate action plans, by June 13 2023.
We are already starting initial plans for the LGMA Multilevel Action Pavilion at COP28! Are you interested in hosting an event at the pavilion? Let us know!
Harnessing the strengths of in-person and virtual engagement, the re-conceptualized in-person component will gather leaders in conjunction with the UNFCCC SB58. Most sessions are invitation only, but we will be delighted to welcome the LGMA community, especially at the Bonn Dialogue at the GIZ Auditorium on 12 June. Communicate your interest at daring.cities@iclei.org.
22-23 June | Tangier, Morocco
The third edition of the Mediterranean Climate Forum will gather ministries and public organizations, funders, businesses, local governments, and NGOs to address the challenges faced by the Mediterranean under climatic pressure.
20 July, 17:00 CEST | Virtual
ICLEI Cities Biodiversity Centre and its partners will host a series of five webinars linking the Kunming-Montréal GBF Decisions with actions subnational governments and cities can take to meet these goals.
The LGMA’s busy advocacy calendar culminates in November/December with COP28 in Dubai, but is marked by key moments all year long, across three agendas: United Nations and UNFCCC events, events hosted globally or by nations, and those hosted by our own constituency organizations.
Stay informed about multilevel governance and global climate negotiations with our monthly webinars! Register here.
