Cities' Role in Climate Governance and Global Policy: A Dispatch from the Urban20

As an acoustic cover of Queen’s “We Are the Champions” drifted over the Buenos Aires Convention Center’s speakers at the close of the inaugural Urban 20 (U20) Mayoral Summit, we were left pondering who were the champions— and of what?

In anticipation of the annual Group of 20 (G20) Summit in November 2018, the U20 brought together mayors, city officials, and municipal stakeholders to address critical issues affecting not only cities, but the world as a whole.  Climate change, at the forefront of the news and (some) international leaders’ priorities these days, was certainly on that list. Such discussions are no doubt a good first step, but how much do they affect real policy change or move the needle forward on mitigating climate change?