Partnerships for financing of a local project
Partnerships for co-creation of knowledge and research
Empower cities to act, raise ambition, and scale implementation
Knowledge-sharing on a specific topic, method, and/or output
Awareness-raising on a specific topic, method, and/or output
Capacity building in climate science data and analyses
Co-Director
As States might struggle to act, cities can take the lead. Recent City of Zurich pioneering legislation launched a 5-year pilot on international climate finance (2026–30). The initiative commits ZU to contribute to global CO₂ reduction efforts equivalent to 10% of ZU’s annual emissions through investments in international climate projects with solidarity dimension. ZU approved CHF 9 million to design and implement this pilot.
It will support mitigation and adaptation projects—such as renewable energy deployment, energy efficiency, flood protection, and early-warning systems—particularly in regions most affected by climate change.
Projects must demonstrate climate and sustainability impacts, involve local partners, and ideally connect to ZU’s value chains (e.g., food, mobility, textiles).The session will explore how international organizations can support such city-led initiatives, the added value subnational climate finance can bring, & how cities as emerging donors can engage within the international system traditionally structured around States. (This application is still under discussion internally and also with UN-Habitat)
Kamelia Kemileva
