At the 24th Climate Change Conference, COP24, currently being held in the Polish city of Katowice, the 197 states which signed the COP21 Paris Agreement are weighing up the commitment to stop average temperatures around the planet rising by more than 1.5 ºC this century.

The Climate Plan and Barcelona Energia at the COP24

The summit includes a presentation of the Climate Plan, a project which gained the prize for the best initiative by a major European City, awarded by the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy. The main goals of the municipal plan are to cut harmful emissions by 45% between now and 2020 and become a carbon-neutral city by 2050.

There will also be a presentation of Barcelona Energia, the metropolitan energy distributor which is to start supplying power to 20,000 homes on 1 January and is the largest public energy operation in the Spanish state, offering certified local and renewable energy. So far, the service has been supplying power for municipal facilities, markets, sports centres, street lighting and traffic lights.

A network of cities to promote sustainability

In the fight against global warming, a networked approach from cities plays a key role in cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Barcelona and twenty other European cities are presenting the European Green Capital Network at the COP24, reaffirming the commitment by cities as a driving force for sustainable development.