Cities lead the way in climate-change action: says Cynthia Rosenzweig

On October 10th, Cynthia Rosenzweig addressed the Climate Impacts in New England Seminar at UMass ( "Cities as First Responders: Case studies from the First UCCRN Assessment Report on Climate Change and Cities (ARC3)"). Rosenzweig is a small, focused, and surprisingly optimistic speaker who believes that some of the most practical work in addressing climate change is originating in cities around the world.  Rosenzweig is working with mayor Bloomberg’s Climate team to identify vulnerabilities and develop flexible responses to expected challenges.

 Rosenzweig feels that because cities are quite used to dealing with the very practical public health repercussions of natural disasters and extreme weather, cities are rising to the challenge.  Cities are areas of concentrated population (and tax revenue), whose ability to install infrastructure such as a sea wall to guard against higher sea level, or public transportation to reduce emissions, is more cost effective.  Cities usually see immediate improvements in public health, or infrastructure with climate change adaptations.  For instance, any reduction in greenhouse gas emissions will make an immediate improvement in asthma related disease.

Rosenzweig plays an active role with the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, launched in October 2005; and the World Mayors Council on Climate Change (WMCCC) also founded in 2005, which claims over 200 current, and former mayors.  Rosenzweig claimed over 300 cities were enrolled, and actively addressing climate change scenarios. 

She has recently contributed to a primer of sorts, called Climate Change and Cities: First Assessment Report of the Urban Climate Change Research Network.  The book offers practical, hard won advice on urban planning approaches, and over 50 case studies from a variety of cities, in both the developing, and developed world. 

Rosenzweig argues that the size, and responsiveness of municipal government drives effective planning. It may seem counterintuitive that cities would take the lead in reducing emissions, or mitigation.  On the one hand, any single city is at the mercy of the world’s emissions, yet with their concentration of infrastructure and personnel, cities can more effectively preparing for climate complications than rural populations could.  On the other hand, any serious, practical engagement in planning for climate change inevitably brings to awareness how much more effective, and less expensive it would be to simply reduce greenhouse gasses, than to try to predict and prepare for run away emissions. 

Now that the majority of the world’s population (National Geographic estimates 7 billion and growing) has shifted to living in cities, the potential of a green city movement is enormous. 

This Oct. 2010 issue of Nature features Cynthia Rosenzweig and others. 

A pdf of Rosenzweig's presentation. (cc)

Cynthia Rosenzweig addresses the Climate Impacts in New England seminar: For best video quality, use this link::  "Cities as First Responders: Case studies from the First UCCRN Assessment Report on Climate Change and Cities (ARC3)"