*Please see below a news release issued by the City of Burlington.
Burlington, Ont. — Feb. 23, 2021 — The City of Burlington is among 25 municipalities across Canada that successfully completed an intensive pilot focusing on local climate action.
In August 2019, Burlington was selected to join the first Showcase Cities cohort led by the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM) Canada. As a member of this network, the City received free support to spur climate action at a local level.
Municipalities are on the front lines of climate change, and through this pilot project which included technical support, training, exclusive networking opportunities and access to tools and resources, the City of Burlington advanced our ambitious climate action objectives.
Mitigation Badge.By participating in this pilot, the City has been recognized as a leader on local climate action both nationally and internationally and has been awarded the Mitigation Badge for setting its greenhouse gas emissions reduction target and completion of the Climate Action Plan.
About Climate Action in Burlington
The City of Burlington declared a Climate Change Emergency in 2019.
In April 2020, the City followed with a Climate Action Plan that was endorsed by City Council. The Climate Action Plan represents the first phase for Burlington, with a focus on mitigating greenhouse gases (GHGs) and reducing energy consumption. The City has set a goal in its Strategic Plan to work towards being a net carbon-neutral community.
Climate Adaptation Plan
Another goal in the Strategic Plan is to develop and implement a climate adaptation plan. The City will now focus on developing a plan on climate adaptation, identifying ways for Burlington to improve its resiliency and adapt to the changing climate.
Learn more at burlington.ca/environment.
About the Global Covenant of Mayors Canada partners
The Federation of Canadian Municipalities is the national voice of municipal governments, with 2,000 members representing more than 90 per cent of the Canadian population.
“Municipalities are leading the way on low-carbon solutions—from building retrofits to green transit fleets. And with municipalities influencing half of Canada’s GHG emissions, scaling up local solutions is key to meeting Canada’s climate targets. We applaud the City of Burlington for taking direct action to tackle the impacts of climate change and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.” — Garth Frizzel, Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) President
“Burlington has long been on a road to climate leadership municipally and in recent years our efforts have ramped up significantly. Our selection as a showcase city reflects the deep commitment of the City of Burlington to being strong on climate action in our community, the intensive project is keeping us moving in the right direction, and there is much more to be done.” — City of Burlington Ward 3 Councillor Rory Nisan, and Halton Region’s representative at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM)
ICLEI- Local Governments for Sustainability is an international association of local governments committed to sustainability. The Canada offices work with local governments across the country to meet with their sustainability objectives.
“The Showcase Cities are leaders in Canada. Through their commitment to climate action, they have proven the impact local governments can have in reducing greenhouse gases and adapting our communities to the impacts of a changing climate.” — Megan Meaney, Executive Director of the Canada office of ICLEI
The International Urban Cooperation (IUC) program is part of a long-term strategy by the European Union to foster sustainable urban development in cooperation with both the public and private sectors.
The Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM) is the largest global alliance for climate leadership, uniting a global coalition of over 10,000 cities and local governments. By 2030, GCoM cities and local governments could collectively reduce 1.3 billion tons of CO2 emissions per year. That’s the equivalent of taking 276 million cars off the road.
The initiative combines two leading domestic climate programs, the Partners for Climate Protection (PCP) program and Building Adaptive and Resilient Communities (BARC), with the leading global climate program. The GCoM Canada is piloting this approach, which will build on FCM and ICLEI’s more than 25 years’ experience in delivering climate change programs in Canada. The City of Burlington has been a member of the Partners for Climate Protection program since 2002 and received recognition for completing the program in 2017.
The Global Covenant of Mayors Canada is a collaboration between the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability, the Global Covenant of Mayors Secretariat and the International Urban Cooperation Project supported by funding from the European Union.
MAYOR MEED WARD’S TAKE:
This is great news for our City. Council is committed to local climate action and encouraging our community to do everything we can to mitigate the negative effects of climate change. The next few years are a tipping point for us all in ensuring a healthy and safe tomorrow for our future generations.
RELATED LINKS:
—
*Posted by John Bkila, Mayor’s Media and Digital Communications Specialist
