United Nations Secretary General Climate Summit 2014

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is hosting the Climate Summit on September 23, 2014 in New York City to engage leaders and advance climate action and ambition. The sixth Climate Week NYC will also be convened from September 22-28 in support of the Summit. The WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities and its EMBARQ initiative will be in full force at the Climate Summit 2014 and Climate Week NYC. 

Get involved: While the Summit itself is invite-only, there will be many climate-related events taking place throughout the week of September 22-28. Information on these events can be found at Climate Week.

Contact: Ryan Schleeter, Marketing and Communications Global Coordinator, or Angela Enriquez, Research Analyst and Program Coordinator.

Swift action in cities and transport key to low carbon future

The last half-century has borne witness to unprecedented changes in global climate stemming from urbanization, increased motorization, land degradation, and other human-induced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Cities are the locus of 70% of these emissions globally, and are expected to house an additional 1.3 billion people by 2030. The transport sector accounts for 22% of energy-related GHG emissions and is the fastest growing sector in terms of overall emissions. The cost of adapting to climate change for cities around the world is estimated at US$ 70 – 100 billion per year, and cities in the developing world will bear roughly 80% of that cost. In light of these grand challenges, the decisions leaders make today will determine how billions of urban residents will live over the next century.

Cities can be drivers of growth and catalysts for climate action http://bit.ly/cities-climate-change #TheCityFix #climate2014

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The United Nations Climate Summit 2014 – which takes place on September 23, 2014 in New York City – is a key opportunity to build momentum towards the goal to keep global temperature increases to less than two degrees Celsius. The Summit offers a forum for heads of state to announce actions their countries will take to address climate change and its impacts. Business, city, and civil society leaders are expected to put forward new initiatives to help usher in a low carbon economy, and to help cities curtail their output of greenhouse gases.

Experts from the WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities and its EMBARQ initiative will be in attendance at the Summit negotiations and other Climate Week events relating to city-level greenhouse gas accounting, unlocking finance opportunities for sustainable urban development, and advancing low carbon transport. Stay tuned right here for announcement, updates, and the latest news from the Summit, as well as analysis and thought leadership from WRI experts on cities, transport, and climate.

Follow online

• Twitter: @EMBARQNetwork
• Follow #CitiesWeWant and #climate2014 on Twitter
• Facebook: facebook.com/EMBARQNetwork
• Blog: TheCityFix, and the World Resources Institute's live blog
  • The UN Climate Summit: What's in it for Cities by Holger Dalkmann
  • How cities can save trillions, curb climate change, and improve public health by Wanli Fang
  • ​Transport sector climate action key to close the world’s emissions gap by Benoit Lefevre and Angela Enriquez
  • Real progress on sustainable cities and transport unveiled at U.N. Climate Summit by Holger Dalkmann and Benoit Lefevre

For press

Senior representatives from the World Resources Institute (WRI) held a press call on Friday, September 12, to provide insights and context for the upcoming UN Climate Summit. On the call, WRI experts focused on key areas where major announcements and developments are expected, especially around cities, forests, and finance. Topics around cities include what governments and businesses can do to advance more sustainable citie sand and reduce city-level emissions, as well as how these actions can create significant local benefits and improve quality of life. Participating WRI experts are:

• Andrew Steer, President & CEO, WRI
• Manish Bapna, Executive Vice President and Managing Director, WRI
• Jennifer Morgan, Director, Climate and Energy Programs, WRI
• Craig Hanson, Director, Food, Forests, and Water Programs, WRI

For media inquiries and to speak with an expert, please contact Daniel Melling.