Cities are a key contributor to climate change, as urban activities are major sources of greenhouse gas emissions but cities are also the center of the solution with innovation and action capacities.
It is only possible to tackle climate change with a coordinated approach and action at the global, regional, national and local levels. It is essential, therefore, to make cities an integral part of the solution.
Signatories of the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy have committed to prepare and implement a Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plan (SECAP) before 2030. The SECAP format basically consists of two parts, “Mitigation” and “Adaptation”.
SECAPs include an assessment of the geographical, demographical and energy local context, a Baseline CO2 Emission Inventory (BEI) referring to a specific base year, a clear identification of the emissions reduction target, and the actions planned together with time frames, assigned responsibilities and estimated impacts and costs.
SECAP requires members to develop a risk and vulnerability assessment of the effects of climate change, in order to highlight strengths and weaknesses of a territory. This is to determine the nature and extent of risk by analyzing potential hazards and assessing vulnerability that could pose a potential threat or harm to people, property, livelihoods and to the environment on which they depend. This will allow the definition of appropriate adaptation strategies, which will translate into the SECAP’s actions and contribute to improve the resilience of the territory.
Demir Enerji is helping cities to calculate corporate and city GHG emissions, help prepare a projection for 2030, guide the city to do a risk and vulnerability assessment and prioritize cities actions to tackle climate change.