State, regional and provincial leaders of the Under2 Coalition – the largest global network of states and regions committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 – brought their full force to Climate Week NYC’. Nearly 30 Governors, and ministers gathered in New York to deliver on this year’s climate ask, “It’s Time”.
Governor Jay Inslee of the US’s Washington State summed up the ambitious mood when he emphasised subnational governments’ pivotal role in the fight against climate change: “They call us subnational... We are supernational because we can go faster and farther than our federal governments.”
Here are some highlights:
The Under2 Coalition’s new co-chairs, who serve as its figureheads, were announced at its Global Ministerial, a closed-door meeting of leaders from across the network’s membership.
For Africa, the co-chair is the Premier of Western Cape, Alan Winde, who said, “I’m excited to prioritise strengthening the voice of regions directly impacted by climate change on the African continent on the global stage, and thereby reinforce our position in directing implementation action on the ground as well as working with other national and subnational leaders to drive climate action, fast.”
The Asia-Pacific co-chair is the Governor of Chungcheongnam-do, Kim Tae-heum, who commented, “I’m proud to announce my position as co-chair of the Under2 Coalition, where I'll be committed to carbon neutrality.”
The co-chair for Europe is John Swinney MSP, the First Minister of Scotland, while the one for the Americas is the Governor of Querétaro, Mauricio Kuri González.
Under Coalition 2024-2026 co-chairs
With methane emissions 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide, subnational leaders from across the world met to devise new collective strategies for their mitigation.
“If small problems are ignored, they can become major crises,” warned Governor Kim Tae-heum, of South Korea’s South Chungcheong Province and Uncer2 Coalition Co-chair.
Governor of Chungcheongnam-do, Kim Tae-heum at Climate Week NYC
Governors, first ministers and premiers collaborated on ways of pushing national governments and international businesses to show greater climate ambition in the run-up to February 2025 – the crucial deadline for countries to submit their enhanced climate plans, known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), to the United Nations for the period 2025-2035.
At a high-level discussion, the focus was on leveraging public opinion to drive climate action, accessing climate finance and ensuring that subnational governments are key partners in the creation of these upgraded NDCs.
State and regional leaders at the Under2 Coalition Global Ministerial meeting at Climate Week NYC
Following conversations between Wales’s Deputy First Minister Huw Irranca-Davies and Kerry McCarthy, the UK’s Minister for Climate at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the UK Government announced that its joining the Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP) for Climate Action – a collaborative governmental initiative launched at COP28 in Dubai.
“I want to congratulate Wales and the UK for this incredible achievement,” said Nehmat Kaur, Director of the Under2 Coalition and Subnational Governments at Climate Group.
“Wales has demonstrated the power of the Under2 Coalition in championing multi-level partnerships, by playing a critical role in the UK joining the Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships. When we say It’s Time, it’s these bold actions we hope for. Great things happen at Climate Week NYC. We welcome the UK to CHAMP.”
Subnational government leaders – from Andalusia (Spain), California (US), Cross River State (Nigeria), Chungcheongnam-do (South Korea), Gyeonggi-do (South Korea), Minas Gerais Brazil), New Jersey (US), Québec (Canada), Querétaro (Mexico), Wales (UK) and Washington (US) – met to share ideas on how to manage a fair phaseout of fossil fuels.
The World Resources Institute updated subnational leaders on the progress of its Subnational Climate Action Leaders’ Exchange (SCALE) initiative, which is now in its second year.
Leading a panel on subnational climate leadership, Climate Group’s Executive Director for Governments and Policy Champa Patel underlined the need for corporate investment: "Vertical integration, bringing together different levels of government is critical, but we also have to crowd in private sector investment to be successful.”
“The 16th edition of Climate Week was action packed and filled with real enthusiasm that we hope would translate into bold climate action. I was particularly excited to see states and regional leadership as their contribution is integral to reaching net zero goals and ensuring climate action stays on the agenda. Subnational governments are no longer playing second fiddle in the climate fight” Nehmat Kaur, Director of Under2 Coalition, Climate Group.
Find out more here about the work of Climate Group’s Governments and Policy team with the Under2 Coalition.