News 18 November 2024
The Urban 20 (U20) forum, made up of G20 cities, acknowledged for the first time the importance of cities tackling air pollution in its final Communiqué.
Tackling the climate and air pollution crisis is essential to avoiding harm, and cities can lead the way in reducing urban air pollution, with measures that get strong public support from residents, also thanks to dedicated awareness-raising campaigns fighting disinformation.
U20 2024 Communiqué
Campaigners have welcomed this as an important milestone. The declaration coincided with the launch of Breathe Rio, as Mayor Eduardo Paes and the Breathe Cities initiative delivered by Clean Air Fund, C40 Cities and Bloomberg Philanthropies officially announced their strategy to help clean the city’s air.
As part of Breathe Cities, Rio de Janeiro is taking ambitious steps to reduce air pollution, bringing to life the aspirations set out in the U20 Communiqué. Air pollution is a development delayer, harming health and economies. It is vital that the G20 recognises the critical role governments play at all levels in cleaning up the air we breathe and backs this up with increased development finance and intergovernmental action.
Jaime Pumarejo, Executive Director of Breathe Cities
The U20 forum was co-chaired by São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro and co-convened by C40 Cities and United Cities and Local Governments, two of the networks gathered around the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments. The Communiqué will be presented to the G20 Presidency which takes place in Rio de Janeiro on 18 and 19 November 2024.
Many cities are pollution hotspots, and rapid urbanisation means that more people are exposed to toxic air than ever before. As a result, cities are often required to play the role of first responders and drivers of innovation and action. The U20 Communiqué reflects the important role that cities are playing in delivering the local solutions needed to address air pollution at its source and clean the air that millions of urban residents breathe.
