22 Ways your city can address climate change

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We often hear that cities are at the forefront of climate action. But what does this exactly mean? At the IDB, we work to support cities in their challenges towards sustainable development, making adaptation and mitigation of the effects of climate change one of our key focus areas.

To answer many questions about climate action in cities, the IDB, the Ministry of Environment of Chile, and the Sustainability Solutions Group have published a systematic inventory of solutions that we can activate in our daily lives to advance towards climate resilience and a carbon-neutral economy. Keep reading to discover all the details!

The Origin of the Problem

The guide begins by describing the origin of the problem. Firstly, climate change exacerbates heatwaves, wildfires, floods, and droughts, among other adversities. Secondly, to a greater or lesser extent, we all contribute to this phenomenon since the energy we use makes us responsible for greenhouse gas emissions. These emissions stem from burning fuels for electricity generation, heating buildings, and transportation, among other sources.

Time to Implement Solutions

Once the problem is identified and the causes analyzed, it is easier to understand what solutions can be implemented locally to have a global impact. How can cities address the effects of climate change?

The solution lies in adapting public spaces to current conditions. For example, climate resilience requires designing cooler cities that retain more water through urban parks or avoiding flood-prone areas when locating new constructions. Another example: moving towards carbon neutrality means using solar panels and wind power plants to generate electricity (these energy sources are cheaper than natural gas), using reversible air conditioners instead of wood stoves for heating (also cheaper and with the benefit of reducing the risk of asthma and fires), or improving landfills. The new guide presents 22 climate solutions as commendable as these.

A Practical Guide to Facilitate City Decision-Making

We hope mayors and citizens worldwide benefit from this guide. For instance, in Chile, the law requires all municipalities and regional governments to design action plans against climate change. We hope that, thanks to the guide, mayors establish plans with clear objectives inspired by our 22 solutions. This is the first step towards a better future.

The guide can also help design plans with realistic implementation means. For example, mayors cannot decree that people buy an electric car or commute to work on a bicycle. However, through public policy, they can incentivize the use of both. That’s why we review their legal powers and city competencies, proposing over 100 examples of concrete actions that can be applied. One of them is improving the design of bike lanes or researching and communicating climate hazards.

The reader will also find examples showing how cities and towns in Chile have faced challenges and succeeded with local-scale climate action.

Let’s Improve Lives Together in Cities of Latin America and the Caribbean!

This publication has been carried out with contributions from professionals at the Ministry of Environment, regional governments, and municipalities in Chile. We appreciate the broad community that has participated in this process and the numerous contributions received from different stakeholders committed to climate action.