Sweden raises climate ambition internationally and joins CHAMP, a global platform to accelerate climate transition in cities. With Sweden, 77 countries have now joined the initiative, which will be a bridge between the local climate transition and national and global policy levels. Viable Cities will coordinate Sweden's participation in the initiative.
CHAMP - Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships - was formed at COP28 to strengthen cooperation between all levels of society to achieve the climate goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement. With Sweden now joining, 13 countries in the EU and the whole of Scandinavia are now involved.
- I am pleased that Sweden has now joined CHAMP and that Viable Cities will coordinate the practical work of the initiative. Municipalities and regions have a central role in reducing emissions and thus enabling us to achieve our climate goals. Sweden has many good experiences in this area that we look forward to sharing within the framework of CHAMP," says Romina Pourmokthari, Minister for Climate and Environment.
- Sustainable planning and urban development is an important part of climate action, and many Swedish municipalities are at the forefront of this work. The Government wants to encourage this, and by joining the CHAMP initiative, new opportunities are now created to leverage this work and put it in a national and global context," says Andreas Carlson, Minister for Infrastructure and Housing.
The City of Malmö is a pioneer in the urban climate transition. Its chairperson, Katrin Stjernfeldt Jammeh (S), is also Chairman of ICLEI, Local Governments for Sustainability, a global network for local and regional climate mobilization with over 2500 members.
-Sweden joining CHAMP is good news. Many Swedish municipalities have worked long and systematically on climate change adaptation. Now that Sweden is joining the global initiative, our opportunities to accelerate the efforts that need to be made so that we can achieve the global goals locally, in Sweden and worldwide, are strengthened. Viable Cities is a strong platform that enables Sweden to be a pioneer and I look forward to the continued work," says Katrin Stjernfeldt Jammeh, Chair of Malmö City Council.
Viable Cities - Sweden's largest initiative on the climate transition in cities - is now coordinating the country's participation in CHAMP through Olle Dierks. Olle is also Chairman of Team Sweden Smart Cities, a collaboration between the Government Offices of Sweden, a number of Swedish government agencies and other actors, which strengthens Sweden's role as a partner for the green and digital transition globally. Sweden's participation will both benefit the local climate transition at home, and also that Swedish experiences will be disseminated globally. The CHAMP platform has already signaled interest in taking part in the work of Viable Cities with Climate City Contract 2030 as a tool for multi-level governance.
- Sweden's membership of CHAMP can contribute to the climate transition in cities globally. "Sweden is small, but we have mobilized interest far beyond Sweden's borders, and we already have Europe on board. Now we are taking the step to the global level, to learn and share with even more people," says Olga Kordas, Program Manager Viable Cities, who was also recently appointed as an expert in Sweden's international climate inquiry.
About CHAMP
- The Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP) was launched at COP28 by the COP28 Presidency and Bloomberg Philanthropies.
- Since its inception, 77 countries have joined CHAMP, demonstrating a growing global commitment to integrating multi-level governance into the climate transition.
- Read more: champ-climate.org
About Viable Cities
- Viable Cities is a strategic innovation program focused on climate-neutral and sustainable cities that is supported in a joint initiative by the Swedish Energy Agency, Vinnova and Formas.
- Viable Cities is coordinated by KTH.
Contact: Olle Dierks, olle.dierks@viablecities.se,
