UK kicks off Climate Week NYC with a series of ambitious climate commitments
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COP26 President and Secretary of State for Business, Energy and
Industrial Strategy Alok Sharma will announce a series of new
climate commitments today at the launch of Climate Week NYC, which
runs alongside the UN General Assembly. 22 regions, 452 cities,
1,128 businesses, 549 universities and 45 of the biggest investors
have now joined the Race to Zero, the global campaign for a
zero-carbon world, including Facebook and Ford UK Government
launches the COP26 Energy Transition...Request free trial
COP26 President and Secretary of State for Business,
Energy and Industrial Strategy Alok
Sharma will announce a series of new climate commitments today
at the launch of Climate Week NYC, which runs alongside the UN
General Assembly.
COP26 President and Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Alok Sharma will announce a series of new climate commitments today at the launch of Climate Week NYC, which runs alongside the UNGA. He will confirm that major new companies have joined the Race to Zero campaign to accelerate net zero commitments from businesses, cities, regions and investors, including Ford, the first US automotive company to join; LafargeHolcim, the world’s largest cement company; and global social media company Facebook. Their decision demonstrates the clear momentum behind the shift towards a decarbonised economy. Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Lord Callanan, will also be speaking at a special event on Monday, about the next decade of clean energy cooperation. Lord Callanan will announce the launch of the COP26 Energy Transition Council to bring together leaders in the power sector across politics, finance and technology to speed up the transition from coal to renewables in developing countries. The UK will chair the Council alongside the co-chair Damilola Ogunbiyi, the UN Secretary General’s Special Representative for Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL). Together, members will drive the shift to green energy ahead of COP26. The launch of the Council comes as the UK Government announces a £50 million investment in a new Clean Energy Innovation Facility (CEIF) under the UK’s International Climate Finance. This funding will help developing countries more easily access innovative clean energy technologies to foster clean growth, focusing on key sectors such as industry, cooling, smart energy and storage. Alok Sharma, COP26 President and UK Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, said:
Damilola Ogunbiyi, CEO and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), said:
Patricia Espinosa, UNFCCC Executive Secretary, said:
Notes to editorsThe ‘COP26 & the Zero Carbon Growth Agenda’ opening event at Climate Week NYC will bring together global leaders from business and government including:
The event will be convened by Nigel Topping and Gonzalo Muñoz, UN High Level Climate Champions and leaders of the Race to Zero campaign, in a collaboration with the Climate Group, to showcase how the economic net zero transformation is accelerating and highlight the scale of the opportunity to create good jobs, protect public health and level up society.
Full list of members of the Energy Transitions Council
Funding for the Clean Energy Innovation Facility forms part of the UK Government’s International Climate Finance spend, which refers to UK aid support given to developing countries to deal with the causes of climate change and to prepare for its effects. The UK has committed at least £11.6 billion from 2021/22 to 2025/26. About Race to ZeroRace to Zero is the international campaign for a healthy, resilient zero carbon recovery. Led by the UNFCCC Champions for Climate Action, it aims to bring together net zero commitments from cities, businesses and investors across the climate action community in the run up to COP26. Race to Zero collaborates with the following international networks and initiatives, which have independently been mobilising net zero commitments. All of them require their participants to meet the Race to Zero’s minimum criteria:
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