UNEA-6 Cities and Regions Summit

Cities and Regions Summit Opening

Time: 10:00-10:40 EAT                           

This session will officially open the meeting, set the context and objectives of the Cities and Regions Summit and its agenda. It will also highlight the critical role played by subnational governments in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and global environmental goals set out in Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs)                                              

Thematic Session 1: Multilevel governance, a key element of effective environmental governance

Time: 11:20-13:00 EAT

The first session will discuss experiences of the existing institutional arrangements which support the engagement of subnational actors through support from the national and international levels and strengthen the multilevel governance approach. Within the framework of the localization of the SDGs, it will particularly focus on institutional arrangements and policy processes under the Paris Climate Agreement and the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Thematic Session 2 : Unlocking finance for sustainable urban transformation

Time: 15:00-17:05 EAT

The second session will discuss how to facilitate access of subnational governments to development and climate finance, building on the finding of the Global Commission for Urban SDG Finance, and recent publications, such as the CCFLA report “Accelerating Urban Climate Finance in Low- and Middle- Income Countries: An important strategic dimension of MDB reform”.

Closing: Empowering subnational governments to achieve global environmental goals

Time: 17:05-18:00 EAT

Summarizing the key messages from the discussions, the closing session will embed the discussion in the wider framing of the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and their localization. It will outline key recommendations to enable subnational governments to take an increased role in achieving global environment goals and call all actors to scale up their ambition and create the enabling conditions for change. 

Explore the Agenda for more information on speakers and panel sessions. 

Ms. Inger Andersen, Executive Director, UNEP, and Mr. Michal Mlynar, Acting Executive Director, UN-Habitat, take a picture on the stairs at the UNEP headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, with speakers and participants of the UNEA-6 Cities and Regions Summit. 

Nairobi, Kenya, February 23, 2024 – The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and its partners successfully held the Third UNEA Cities and Regions Summit as an associated event to the Sixth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-6). Coming at a time when the world is called upon to accelerate the implementation of the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs), the UNEA-6 Cities and Regions Summit provided a unique meeting point to connect local, national, and global leaders on the environmental front, bringing together more than 80 attendees in person and almost 500 attendees online.

The Summit showcased concrete examples of cities and regions working together with their national governments to achieve global environmental and sustainability targets, thereby building on the outcomes of COP28 and responding to the supplementary theme of UNEA-6: “Effective, Inclusive, and Sustainable Multilateral Actions to Tackle Climate Change, Biodiversity Loss and Pollution,”.

The discussion focused on two key objectives: strengthening multi-level governance for achieving SDGs and the MEAs’ goals; and funding and financing to accelerate local climate and environmental actions. With commitments and recommendations towards increasing the visibility of cities and regions in the implementation of global environmental goals, the Summit laid the ground for the upcoming UN Summit of the Future, the Twelfth World Urban Forum (WUF12), the 2024 United Nations Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP16), and the 2024 Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP29), along with other major events in 2024 with important implications for the environment and sustainable urban development.

Browse the Outcome Document. Read the full Event Summary. 

Mayor Joy Belmonte, Mayor Quezon City, Philippines reported back on the Summit's findings and outcomes during to Opening of the UNEA-6 Plenary. Watch her intervention.