Mayors unanimously adopt declaration to build urban resilience and fight climate change
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Following the 2nd World Congress on Cities and Adaptation to Climate Change, mayors from over sixty countries unanimously adopt the 2011 Bonn Declaration of Mayors to commit to globally coordinated local climate action.
In the declaration, building resilience to disasters was highlighted as a critical issue. It also signaled the need to take appropriate action to build local capacities in reducing risk to disasters including those exacerbated by climate change. The three-day Congress took place from 3-5 June 2011 in Bonn, Germany.
Throughout the Congress, UNISDR provided key insight and discussions on the issue of risk reduction and resilience building. This included conducting a one-day workshop on resilient cities and local monitoring of the Hyogo Framework for Action, a joint project with Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI). The local HFA monitoring tool will be piloted in more than ten cities with a component to assess the cities progress on the implementation of the Ten Essentials of Making Cities Resilient Campaign.
The Mayor’s Adaptation Forum provided an opportunity to discuss bottom-up financing for urban adaptation and global climate reporting from local governments with a focus on adaptation actions. Underlying the links between climate change and risk reduction affecting mayors and cities, the chair of the forum, Mayor Marcelo Ebrard of Mexico City reminded participants about the links to broader risk reduction and urged everyone to sign-up to the Making Cities Resilient Campaign.