For the third year in a row, Turku has been included in the list of the world’s leading climate cities. Thanks to its climate measures, Turku is recognised as one the 95 best cities in the world in the A list by the international CDP organisation.
To meet the 1.5 degree warming limit target set by the Paris Climate Agreement, the CDP has tightened previous city-level standards and conditions for A list entry for 2021.
As a result, in the listing published on 18 November 2021, only one in ten (9.8%) of the cities assessed by CDP achieved an A score.
CDP upgraded Turku to Category A for the second time in February 2020, when 591 cities were included in the assessment. This year, almost twice as many, 965 cities were involved. In addition to Turku, this year ‘s A list also included Helsinki, Lahti and Espoo.
Earlier this year, Mayor of Turku Minna Arve was the keynote speaker at the CDP Awards event. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, among others, spoke at the same event.
CDP is the world’s leading collector of information and reporting on climate change. It is a non-profit organisation dedicated to encouraging businesses, cities and governments to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and secure water resources and protect forests.
More than 14,000 organisations have released data through the CDP in 2021, which includes more than 13,000 companies, and more than 1,100 cities, states, and regions.
The assessment is based on comprehensive plans and actions
According to CDP ‘s analysis, A listed cities implement, on average, more than twice as many measures to adapt to climate change as other listed cities.
The A score requires that the city:
- Publishes its climate data
- Prepares a comprehensive emission inventory
- Sets an emission reduction target
- Publishes a climate action plan
- Carries out a vulnerability assessment to identify climate hazards and impacts
Turku’s climate work has gained international recognition
Turku is a pioneer in climate work in Finland and internationally. Turku has created networks, has a strong international presence, and has become known as one of the world’s leading climate cities.
In 2020, Turku’s climate work gained an exceptional status when the European Commission selected Turku from more than 10,000 cities and regions as the best climate city in Europe among medium-sized cities.
Turku is also active in the global network of sustainable cities ICLEI. The Mayor of Turku, Minna Arve, is a member of the network’s global board and will serve as vice-chair of the organisation’s European government for the term 2021 – 2024.
Turku aims for carbon neutrality by 2029, when the city will be 800 years old. Turku also encourages its residents and companies to make climate-friendly choices through many measures.