What You Need to Know.

• With a focus on multilevel action, urbanization, and the built environment and transport, the events of Day 7 of COP28 highlighted efforts to transition to low-carbon and resilient infrastructure, particularly in urban areas.  This thematic focus is significant; according to the UN Environmental Programme, cities are responsible for an estimated 75 percent of global CO2 emissions, primarily from transportation and buildings.

• In the Blue Zone, global leaders gathered at the second Ministerial Meeting on Urbanization and Climate Change to discuss how to accelerate local climate finance and help local governments be better equipped to address the impacts of climate change.  Members of the air transport sector gathered at the Global Sustainable Aviation Forum to explore how to transition the industry away from fossil fuels and promote decarbonization, while Charging Ahead: A Collective Vision on Charging Infrastructure to Accelerate the EV Transition shared global best practices on the rollout of EV charging infrastructure.  The Climate Pledge and C40 Cities hosted an event on decarbonizing urban freight transportation by transitioning to electric freight vehicles.
• “We can only overcome the climate crisis by ditching business-as-usual,” UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell said in a statement to journalists on a day that marks the halfway point of COP28.  “[G]ood intentions won’t halve emissions this decade or save lives right now,” Steill continued, describing the draft agreement on the Global Stocktake as “a grab bag of wish lists and heavy on posturing.”  “At the end of next week,” said Steill, “we need COP to deliver a bullet train to speed up climate action.  We currently have an old caboose chugging over rickety tracks.”

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