UCLG at the Climate Summit for Local Leaders and COP21

Around a thousand mayors and local leaders will come together in Paris in December to bring the voices of local and regional governments to the 21st United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP21). The UCLG network of Regional Sections, Committees and partners will mobilize for these events.

The 21st United Nations Conference on Climate Change COP21 will be held from 30 November to 11 December 2015 on the Paris-Le Bourget site. 

In addition to the official Local and Regional Leaders Delegation to COP21, the gathering will see a Climate Summit for Local Leaders, meetings of the UCLG World Council and Executive Bureau, and sessions on how to cooperate to tackle climate change, the role of local governments in tackling climate change, and women’s leadership and development, among others.  

We who work at local level know well that tackling climate change is not about technical solutions but making choices about the type of development model we need. It’s also about learning to adapt to environmental challenges, and developing sound governance mechanisms to put citizens’ needs at the heart of all we do.

The strong presence of local and regional governments at COP21 is important to showcase the huge potential of our constituency to implement practical solutions to mitigate and adapt to climate change, as well as to foster sustainable development with a strong social dimension based on citizen participation.  

 UCLG meetings 

World Council meeting

Friday 4 December | 10:00- 11:30 | Paris City Hall, Saint-Jean Room

The World Council is made up of around 340 local government leaders and is the biggest and broadest democratic structure of local and regional governments worldwide. It meets once a year and is UCLG’s principal policy-making body. Over 500 representatives are expected to attend this year.  The World Council will bring to the table some of the key global issues of relevance for the political agenda of local governments internationally. Motions to be debated include the impact of humanitarian crises at local level, the need for local governance to play a greater role in the new urban agenda, and the local dimension of the 2030 Agenda.

More Information

Executive Bureau meeting

Saturday 5 December | 14:00-18:00 | Paris City Hall, Saint-Jean Room

The Executive Bureau is made up of 115 local government leaders. It meets twice a year and is responsible for making proposals, carrying out the decisions of the World Council, and for the administrative and financial management of UCLG. 

The agenda of the Executive Bureau meeting will cover: the outcomes and recommendations of the 3rd World Forum of Local Economic Development in Turin; progress in preparations for the 2016 UCLG World Congress in Bogotá; reports by the Financial Management Committee and Committee on Statutory Affairs; information on UCLG global prizes and awards; an update on Habitat III preparations and work with the Global Taskforce, and a report on the implementation of the UCLG Work Plan and Strategic Partnership with the EU.

From COP 21 to Habitat III: local governments and citizens at the heart of the challenges

Saturday 5 December | 9:30 - 12:30 | Stade de France, Saint-Denis

This seminar on the Right to the City is organized by the UCLG Committee on Social Inclusion, Participatory Democracy and Human Rights (CISDP), Plaine Commune, the UCLG World Secretariat and the Global Platform for the Right to the City. The UCLG Committees on Culture, Peripheral Cities and Local Finance will also participate. Over the past year, the UCLG CSIPD has been working with civil society on joint proposals to integrate the Global Charter-Agenda for Human Rights in the City into the New Urban Agenda at Habitat III. This seminar will consolidate this alliance and explore the right to the city debate from an ecological perspective in the framework of COP21. The debate aims to identify proposals from local governments and civil society for the Habitat III Conference.

Women Leadership and Development

Sunday 6 December | 9:30 - 13:00 | Paris City Hall, Conseil de Paris Room

Mayor of Paris and Chair of the Standing Committee on Gender Equality of UCLG, Anne Hidalgo, invites UCLG members, local elected women And partners to a special event on Women Leadership and Development. The event will be held in the framework of the UCLG World Council and the COP21, also being held in Paris in December. It will bring together elected officials, local government practitioners and associations as well as key partners in UCLG’s work on gender.

The event will be held in the framework of the UCLG World Council and the COP21, also being held in Paris in December. It will bring together elected officials, local government practitioners and associations as well as key partners in UCLG’s work on gender.

The following Committees will also be meeting in Paris:

Thursday 3 December Saturday 5 December
Committee on Development Cooperation & City Diplomacy Taskforce on Local Government Disaster Response
Saturday 5 December Saturday 5 December
Community of Practice on Urban Innovation Committee on Culture


Saturday 5 December | 09.30-12.30 | Paris City Hall
CEMR, PLATFORMA and the Covenant of Mayors will hold the event “European cities and regions united against climate change” from 09.30-12.30.  Platforma and its partners will hold the parallel session “Cooperate to tackle climate change” at 11.30 in the Saint-Jean room of Paris City Hall.

Monday 7 December | 09.30-12.30 | Paris City Hall, Conseil de Paris Room
The Policy Committee of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions will debate their policy paper “Municipalities and regions as catalysts for Success” on Monday, 7 December in the Conseil de Paris Room.

Tuesday 8 December | 17.00 | COP21 Venue, Paris-Le Bourget  Blue Zone, French Pavilion
The Departmental Council of Seine-Saint-Denis and the UCLG Committee on Social Inclusion, Participatory Democracy and Human Rights will hold the event “Climate policies in less affluent suburbs: a priority to reduce socio-economic inequalities”. Environmental, social and economic disparities are strong and cumulative in high-density disadvantaged suburbs. The need for a new development model in the face of climate change is both an opportunity and a priority to improve living conditions in those territories. The purpose of this side-event is to identify actions and messages which could be shared by the less affluent suburbs to foster the transition towards resilient and inclusive cities.


 UCLG also at: 

COP21 30 November - 11 December | The Paris-Le Bourget site
While non-state actors’ access to the conference is limited, the local and regional government delegation will follow the daily discussions among Member States and advocate through bilateral meetings and speaking slots given to Local Authorities and Municipal Governments (LAMG) in the plenary sessions.

CITIES & REGIONS PAVILION 1-11 December | COP 21 venue, Paris Le Bourget, Blue Zone
UCLG, C40, R20 and ICLEI will host a joint stand in the pavilion during the two weeks of the COP. This stand will act as a point of contact with the public visiting the pavilion and the Climate Generations space (the civil society exhibition space – where all visitors will be allowed). UCLG has four slots available in the pavilion to organize dialogues.

ACTION DAYS Saturday 4 December - Tuesday 8 December | COP 21 venue, Paris Le Bourget, Blue Zone
The Action Days are multistakeholder events to follow up on the creation of the NAZCA Portal (Non-State Actor Zone for Climate Action). They aim to ensure that all stakeholders are taken into account in the climate change agenda. The Action Days will include thematic events on different issues and events directed at specific constituencies, including local authorties.

CLIMATE SUMMIT FOR LOCAL LEADERS Friday 4 December |  Paris City Hall
Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of the City of Paris and Michael R. Bloomberg, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change – in partnership with the global networks of cities and local governments for climate action – will co-host the Climate Summit for Local Leaders in the Salle des Fêtes at Paris City Hall.

COMPACT OF MAYORS Monday 7 December | 13.15-14.45 | COP 21 venue, Paris Le Bourget, Blue Zone, Room 3.
The official side-event on the Compact of Mayors initiative will be co-organized by ICLEI and UCLG with the support of the Global Taskforce, C40, Bloomberg Philanthropies and UN-Habitat.