Leading figures from a range of countries and organisations committed to addressing climate change gathered last week at a meeting convened by the Oxford Martin School to discuss the creation of a new coalition of countries, companies and cities to kickstart action on climate change.
The proposal for a C20-C30-C40 coalition, as outlined in Now for the Long Term, the report of the Oxford Martin Commission for Future Generations, suggests bringing together a group of countries, companies, and members of the C40 Cities initiative to undertake meaningful and practical action on climate change. The aim is to establish a creative coalition, of cities, companies and countries, who can build momentum for changes to be agreed in Paris in December 2015 at the global summit of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The C20-C30-C40 meeting saw members of the Oxford Martin Commission for Future Generations, current and former climate change envoys, and senior representatives of international organisations, climate networks and NGOs discuss the challenges and opportunities for such a coalition, and priority areas for action.
The meeting was chaired by Pascal Lamy, Chair of the Oxford Martin Commission on Future Generations, and participants included Connie Hedegaard, European Commissioner for Climate Action, Yvo de Boer, Director-General of the Global Green Growth Institute, Shyam Saran, former Special Envoy and Chief Negotiator on Climate Change for the Government of India, and Mark Watts, Executive Director of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, Peter Bakker, the President of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, Chairman of the Foundation for the United Nations Global Compact.
During the same week, the Commission report was presented at France Stratégie (a unit within the French Prime Minister's Office), and productive private discussions were held with the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, on the Commission's Fit Cities recommendation, and with the Secretary-General of the OECD, Ángel Gurría, on a range of Commission proposals.