Local decision-makers, planners, local government associations and networks, and energy agencies are invited to participate in this free workshop addressing the potential for roll-out of community energy.

This event will include topics such as: how community energy projects can be integrated into local energy action planning, how can a local government set up and facilitate a community energy, what are the barriers and how to access funds. Best practice from across Europe will also be showcased during the workshop.

Have a look at the programme here.

To register for this event, please click here OR email serena.boccardo@iclei.org

The event "Local climate action raises global ambition", organized by ICLEI Europe in collaboration with the Compact of Mayors, will take place on 26 April 2016, in Bilbao, Spain.

Today, many cities, towns and regions actively plan and achieve greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions and adapt to climate change. They have been crucial in raising ambition at the global level, also showing the impact of their efforts. Their role remains clear: catalyzing new action and leading the transition to a more sustainable future.

There are two key initiatives that help local governments make firm commitments and report on their progress, namely the Compact of Mayors and the Covenant of Mayors. Each initiative was designed to be unique, but there are also many similarities. These initiatives and how local governments benefit from them will be explored in this session.

The Compact of Mayors is a global coalition of mayors and city officials committing to reduce GHGs, enhance resilience to climate change and track their progress publicly. It is an agreement by city networks – and then by their members – to fight climate change in a consistent and complimentary manner to national efforts. The Compact of Mayors was launched in 2014 by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and his Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change, Michael R. Bloomberg, under the leadership of the world’s global city networks – C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40), ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI) and the United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) – with support from UN-Habitat, the UN’s lead agency on urban issues. The Compact establishes a common platform to capture the impact of cities’ collective actions through standardized measurement of emissions and climate risk, and consistent, public reporting of their efforts.

The Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy brings together thousands of local and regional authorities voluntarily committed to implementing the European Union (EU) climate and energy objectives on their territory. New signatories now pledge to reduce CO2 emissions by at least 40% by 2030 and to adopt an integrated approach to tackling mitigation and adaptation to climate change.

How do these two initiatives differ and where are they similar? What are the synergies between these initiatives? What can they offer to local governments across the globe? These questions will be explored in a dynamic, interactive session.

View the programme and register for this great event!