Bratislava (source: Unsplash)
Deadly floods in Germany and wildfires in the United States are but the latest reminders of the threat poised by global warming. More than 170 countries have signed the Paris Agreement which seeks to keep global warming below 2°C our preindustrial levels, but interesting recent research points out how cities can make a difference on their own.
Cities cover just 3 percent of the Earth’s surface by area but produce about 72 percent of all global greenhouse gas emissions. By 2050 some 85 percent of Europeans will live in cities and the EU Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy now has 10,693 signatory cities.
They all pledge to go further than the EU-wide 2020 target of reducing emissions 20 percent below 1990 levels, or to meet the EU’s 2030 target of reducing emissions by at least 40 percent by 2030. Slovakia has 40 cities signed up to pledge, ranging in size from Háj (less than 300 people) to Bratislava (450,000 or so).
