Supported by a new coalition between Realdania, Danish Local Government (KL) and the five Danish Regions, every Danish municipality now has access to the tools necessary to cut their emissions at a rate consistent with keeping global temperature rise below 1.5℃.
Across Denmark, municipalities and regions climate change and sustainability are being put at the forefront of policy making. Through this new coalition, the aim is to accelerate the planning and implementation of ambitious climate action and provide the municipalities with a common goal and a shared platform for learning. All of the municipalities will be using the global C40 Climate Action Planning Framework, which was developed for C40 megacities as a guide to identifying pathways to at least halving emissions by 2030 and reach net-zero emissions no later than 2050 in accordance with the goals of the Paris Agreement.
Mark Watts, Executive Director of C40 Cities, said: “We are thrilled to be a part of the second phase of ‘DK2020’ and thank Realdania, Danish Local Government (KL) and the five Danish regions for making it possible for a majority of Danish municipalities to develop highly ambitious climate action plans. It is inspiring to witness the ambition of the Danish local governments and it is exactly what we need to see replicated by municipalities, cities, and nations everywhere. This is the time for every level of government to adapt to an already changing climate, and act immediately to at least halve emissions between now and 2030.”
In the pilot phase of the ‘DK2020’ project, 20 Danish municipalities are already developing local, ambitious plans showing the way to halve emissions by 2030 and net-zero by 2050. The second phase of the project opens up to the remaining municipalities in Denmark and is likely to bring more than a majority of Danish municipalities into a process to develop CAPs using C40’s framework. Denmark is the first country where a majority of municipalities will be working together to develop their plans by using C40’s tools and network – the aim is for this model to be replicated all across the globe.
The ‘DK2020’ project is a Danish adaptation of C40’s global Deadline 2020 Programme – a commitment from the world’s leading cities to seek high ambition climate action, showing how we can deliver on the 1.5℃ goal of the Paris Agreement. In 2016, C40 Cities launched Deadline 2020, detailing the level of ambition and action needed by C40 cities to play their part in converting the Paris Agreement from aspiration into reality. As of now, 120 cities around the world have committed to developing climate action plans.
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