The Voice of Cities and Regions in the UNFCCC Climate Process

Welcome to the home of the Local Governments and Municipal Authorities Constituency (LGMA)

About the LGMA Constituency

The LGMA has served as the voice of cities and regions in global processes since were designated an official United Nations constituency group at the 1992 UN Earth Summit. We advocated for local governments at the first climate COP in 1995 and continue to achieve advocacy success for multilevel action across the climate, nature, and desertification agendas. Learn about our advocacy channels and get involved!

lgma-all-visuals

Keep up-to-date with the LGMA

Every month, you’ll receive updates about how cities and regions are engaging in the global climate agenda and other global sustainability processes, prepared for you by the Global Advocacy team at ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability.

Through our webinars and bulletin, ICLEI’s Director of Global Advocacy Yunus Arikan, will be highlighting developments and key topics from the global climate arena to orient local and regional governments on the important issues of multilevel governance and progress in the global climate negotiations through the year, and in the leadup to COP30.

Webinars

Bulletin

cover-cop30-position-v2

LGMA’s position towards COP30 negotiations

We welcome the Brazilian Presidency’s call for a mutirão, a society-wide mobilization to achieve climate goals. From the Paris Agreement to the Glasgow Climate Pact and the COP28 UAE Consensus, the international climate regime has progressively recognized the essential role of local and other subnational governments. Now, COP30 must deliver on this recognition by institutionalizing engagement and empowering local authorities to lead implementation.

Through our vision for COP30 and beyond, we are pushing for a new phase of climate governance, one where multilevel action is no longer voluntary or symbolic, but an operational core of the UNFCCC process. The position urges to work towards a formal UNFCCC work program on multilevel and urbanization, better alignment of adaptation indicators with local needs, recognition of subnational roles in just transitions, localized access to climate finance, and connect multilevel climate governance to the UN80 reforms.

The Cities & Regions Hub at COP30

With its roots in the legacy of the Multilevel Action & Urbanization Pavilion, the Cities & Regions Hub now serves as the central platform for cities, regions, and their partners during COP30. Co-convened by UN-Habitat and ICLEI, and hosted by the Ministry of Cities of Brazil, the Hub is the focal point for the LGMA Constituency in Belém. It elevates the role of subnational governments as key actors in the COP process and anchors their contributions to the global climate agenda.

The LGMA at the SB62 Bonn Talks

The 62nd session of the Subsidiary Bodies (SB62) of the UNFCCC came at a pivotal moment in the global climate process. With key negotiations from COP29 in Baku still unresolved and the incoming Brazilian COP30 Presidency calling for an era of inclusive implementation, SB62 marked a critical checkpoint on the road to Belém.

For the LGMA Constituency, the SB62 was more than a procedural stop. It was a proving ground for multilevel action – and a platform to show how collaboration between national and subnational governments is already driving results.

Highlighted initiatives

Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP) for Climate Action

Launched at COP28, CHAMP focuses on enhancing multilevel governance to ensure that climate commitments are not only made at the national level but also effectively implemented through coordinated efforts at all levels.

It aims to drive more ambitious climate action by fostering collaboration between different levels of government, including national, regional, and local authorities, as well as non-state actors such as businesses and civil society.

Town Hall COPs

By hosting annual mini-COPs, local and subnational governments, along with their citizens, can engage in climate action by turning their city halls and other local venues into COP-like platforms.

Piloted in 2023 as “local stocktakes,” Town Hall COPs have since become a way for local and subnational governments to assess their climate progress, share insights, and collaborate with national governments. Importantly, they help integrate local voices into global climate policies, particularly countries’ Paris Agreement plans, known as Nationally Determined Contributions.

Sustainable Urban Resilience for the Next Generation (SURGe)

We need effective multi-level governance to transform cities. To achieve this vision, the COP27 Presidency has launched the SURGe Initiative with the objective to enhance and accelerate local and urban climate action through multi-level governance, engagement, and delivery through five integrated tracks, contributing to achieving the Paris Climate Goals and Sustainable Development Goals.

SURGe is developed in collaboration with UN-Habitat, facilitated by ICLEI, and endorsed by 70+ global partners.

COP29: While Baku delivered the bare minimum, multilevel action is more vital than ever to keep climate ambition on track

Upon the conclusion of COP29, the LGMA Constituency welcomes the first major climate finance deal in fifteen years. However, the deal is inadequate to ensure that communities around the world can protect themselves and represents the absolute floor of finance that is needed. With a disappointing lack of ambition in the overall COP29 outcomes, the LGMA Constituency stressed the increasing importance of multilevel action to ensure the climate fight continues at speed and scale.

Check out or interviews, daily recap videos, photos and interventions delivered at COP29 on behalf of the LGMA.

Advocacy outcomes

COP29: Outcomes from Baku 2024

COP29 in Baku delivered the first major climate finance deal in 15 years, though it fell short of global needs. Key LGMA related outcomes included the 3rd Ministerial Meetings on Urbanization and Climate Change, launching the Multisectoral Action Pathways for Resilient and Healthy Cities Declaration, Baku Urban Continuity Coalition, new funding to COP27 SURGe initiative, and COP28 CHAMP Initiative reaching to 74 Endorsing countries, Mitigation Work Programme Dialogues on cities, buildings and urban systems, and the dynamic Multilevel Action and Urbanization Pavilion. The LGMA will continue to advocate for seizing opportunities through multilevel collaboration and sustainable urbanisation for climate action by institutionalization of such meetings and concepts in the UNFCCC Process towards and by COP30.

MORE ON COP29

COP28: Outcomes from Dubai 2023

Under the UAE Presidency, COP28 in Dubai was the most ambitious, inclusive, and fruitful event for climate commitments, broader development agendas, and multilevel urbanization actions. Key outcomes included urging multilevel action in the COP28 Global Stocktake and launching the Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnership (CHAMP). Additionally, the Multilevel Action and Urbanization Pavilion was co-convened by ICLEI and UNHabitat for the first time.

MORE ON COP28

COP27: Outcomes from Sharm El Sheikh 2022

COP27 puts loss-and-damage on the agenda, and in two firsts, the COP27 Presidency creates a Sustainable Urban Resilience for the Next Generation (SURGe) Initiative while a Climate & Urbanization Ministerial brings national urban ministers to a climate COP.

MORE ON COP27

COP26: Outcomes from Glasgow 2021

During the Glasgow conference, all parties were focused on keeping the 1.5°C target alive through raising NDCs’ ambition. These are the specific references to the role of subnationals, including cities, towns and regions, in the outcomes of COP26.

MORE ON COP26

COP25: Outcomes of Madrid 2019

During the Chilean COP held in Madrid, the focus was on building up the ambition for revised NDCs in 2020 (now 2021). Local governments showed their aligned actions and commitments to advance towards this important deadline.

MORE ON COP25

COP24: 2018 Katowice enshrines Talanoa Dialogues

COP24 in Katowice invited Parties to consider the outcome, inputs and outputs of the Talanoa Dialogue in preparing their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and in their efforts to enhance pre-2020 implementation and ambition.

MORE ON COP24

COP23: Talanoa Dialogues of 2017

The Cities and Regions Talanoa Dialogues were developed as a bottom-up, pro-active and immediate response to the COP23 decision in 2017 to convene year-long, inclusive Talanoa Dialogues.

MORE ON COP23

COP21: Paris Agreement recognizes the role of cities in 2015

The Paris Agreement, in its preamble, recognized the importance of the engagement of all levels of government. The fact that 185 Parties out of 197 Parties to the UNFCCC ratified the Paris Agreement established a strong indication of the momentum towards strengthening multilevel governance on climate action.

MORE ON COP21

LGMA advocates in action

  • "Oslo is the electric vehicle capital of the world and that has been made possible with the close cooperation of the national government so that it is cheaper to buy electric/hybrid vehicles and at the local level it is made easier to use. Planning for the city needs to involve the citizens of the city actively – which also helps raise awareness of the challenges being faced. For plans to be implemented they should be concrete and measurable." Watch the entire Climate Studio interview.

    Mr. Raymond Johansen, Governing Mayor of Oslo, Norway
    Mr. Raymond Johansen, Governing Mayor of Oslo, Norway
  • "Cities are taking on the standards of the Paris agreements in order to be able to meet them ourselves... We want a just transition, and the social impacts that occur during a quick transition can't effect those who need the most help." Watch the entire Climate Studio interview.

    Mr. William Peduto, Mayor of Pittsburgh, USA
  • "Collaboration among local goverments can push national governments forward towards de-carbonized societies." Watch the entire Climate Studio interview.

    Ms. Eri Nakajima, Vice Governor of Nagano Prefecture, Japan
    Ms. Eri Nakajima, Vice Governor of Nagano Prefecture, Japan
  • "In every council we do, we make sure that every sector is well represented: youth, academia, religion, persons with disabilities, elderly, urban poor... because lacking one sector would make our action slower." Watch the entire Climate Studio interview.

    Ms. Stephany Uy Tan, Councillor of City of Catbalogan, Philipinnes
    Ms. Stephany Uy Tan, Councillor of City of Catbalogan, Philipinnes
  • "I think it is necessary for everyone to recognize that we are in a climate emergency, and I am not afraid to use the expression climate emergency." Watch the entire Climate Studio interview.

    Mr. Geraldo Julio de Mello Filho, Mayor of Municipality of Recife, Federative Republic of Brazil
    Mr. Geraldo Julio de Mello Filho, Mayor of Municipality of Recife, Federative Republic of Brazil
  • "No city or region in the world is immune to disasters anymore... The impacts are different, but the solutions should be collaboratively developed." Watch the entire Climate Studio interview.

    Mr. Yunus Arikan, Head of ICLEI Global Policy and Advocacy
    Mr. Yunus Arikan, Head of ICLEI Global Policy and Advocacy