Experiences Applying Guiding Principles for City Climate Action Planning

This session will be formatted as a presentation and discussion session, highlighting the recent assessment reports conducted as part of the Guiding Principles for City Climate Action Planning initiative. Participants will learn: (1) how the Guiding Principles have been used to guide the development of CAPs and (2) how the Guiding Principles, with support from academic, private sector, and NGO endorsing partners, can be applied to help local climate action planning efforts in other cities/communities.

The Guiding Principles for City Climate Action Planning is a publication that reviews typical steps in the city-level climate action planning process in light of set of 8 globally applicable principles. These principles have been elaborated into a toolkit that reviews city climate action planning processes and planning documents to promote a universal minimum standard. Through the application of the Guiding Principles, cities are not only being encouraged to develop climate change mitigation and adaptation plans, as dictated by the SDG 11 Target B and the NUA, but they are also being encouraged to strengthen ongoing climate action planning efforts.

Many cities require additional support to develop climate action plans, as they may lack technical capacity. Furthermore, the opportunity of universities and members of academia to provide this technical capacity is often underutilized. Through the Guiding Principles initiative, endorsing partners, including academic institutions, have started offering much-needed support to cities that are engaged in climate action planning. The principle of ‘Inclusivity’ – one of the 8 Guiding Principles – encourages local climate action planning that is inclusive of the marginalized, promotes fairness (another of the Principles), and leverages the strengths of economic actors, academia, and NGOs to provide financial and technical support. Under the stewardship of UN-Habitat, endorsing partners are leveraging their expertise to support cities develop climate action plans and take action against climate change.