Robert Redford meets Mundiya Kepanga, chief of the Huli tribe in Papua New-Guinea, during the Paris climate conference.
Robert Redford meets Mundiya Kepanga, chief of the Huli tribe in Papua New-Guinea, during the Paris climate conference. © Thibault Camus/AP

When Leonardo di Caprio and Robert Redford arrived at the UN Climate Conference, their first priority was to talk to city leaders. It’s one indication of where the power to reduce climate emissions now lies, writes John Vidal

In total, more than 450 cities with a combined population of nearly 1bn people have now pledged to reduce emissions by more than 50% in around 15 years by encouraging walking and cycling, reducing emissions from landfill, switching to renewables, and making people to change the way they travel.

“Mayors are a powerful group. You are the catalysts. Be bold, be courageous – the world is watching you,” Di Caprio told the mayors on Friday.

He was echoed by Robert Redford: “Mayors are closer to people than governments. They are less political. Politics gets in the way of things. Mayors are really the force we should work with.”

According to Mark Watts, director of the C40 group of 83 large cities addressing climate change: “The national state is the same late-18th-century model designed to defend its borders, not to solve problems. But the job of the mayor demands action. These days, people in all the world’s big cities people want much the same: clean air, public transport and cycles and not cars. There is no debate any more about there being a choice between economic growth or climate change action. Mayors have to use their powers to the maximum.”

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Economists now calculate that if cities invested in bikes, walking, more efficient transport, efficient buildings and waste management, this low-carbon future could save them $17trillion a year. According to New Climate Economy (NCE), a group set up examine the costs and benefits of addressing climate change, the savings would come from stimulating economic activity, decreasing healthcare costs, reducing poverty, and cutting the costs associated with urban sprawl, such as time and productivity lost to traffic congestion.

“For too long, there’s been the same old argument used to prevent bold action on climate change, which is there’s some sort of trade-off between economic prosperity and climate action,” says Nick Godfrey, an author of the report for NCE. “In cities, that is a false choice. Actually, there is a significant confluence between promoting economic growth and prosperity, and climate action.”

“Please do more. Please commit today,” Di Caprio told the purring mayors in Paris. “The shift does not need technical breakthroughs. Only strong leadership.”