The Cities Stockholm +50 High Level Forum is one of the very the first global city events to debate the systemic importance of cities with regards to consumption-based emissions, i.e. emissions deriving from goods and services that are consumed in cities, but produced outside of their territorial boundaries. The scale of such emissions - commonly referred to as scope 3 emissions - is significant, as virtually all goods consumed in cities are import goods. Including most food, building materials, electronics and textiles. All in all, around 85% of the emissions associated with goods and services consumed within cities fall under the scope 3 category.
As a result, cities’ consumption-based emissions often exceed those that occur within their territorial boundaries - in the case of C40 member cities by as much as 58%. Given the projected rise of urbanisation across the globe, tackling such emissions becomes increasingly urgent. Research by C40 indicates that urban consumption-based emissions must be cut by at least 50% by 2030 in order to keep global temperature rise below 1.5°C. To put this into perspective: nearly 60% of all urban infrastructure that will be in place by 2050 is yet to be built. In Stockholm alone, tens of thousands of new homes will be constructed until 2030.
This makes it vital that cities and businesses not just address the energy efficiency of buildings, for example, but also tackle the embodied carbon emissions that arise from the extraction, transportation, manufacturing and installation of building materials up and down global supply chains. The same is true when it comes to addressing the carbon footprint of imported food, which, too, can differ significantly. Depending not just on the choice of protein, but also on how food products are grown, farmed, processed, transported and disposed of. That said, the 2022 IPCC WGIII report estimates that lifestyle and behaviour changes - supported by strong policy, infrastructure and technological developments - can reduce demand-side emissions by up to 40-70%. To make this happen, city-business collaboration will be essential.
When it comes to driving the development of low-carbon goods and services, cities do have significant tools at their disposal. Including public procurement, urban planning and investment policy. Many cities are already taking action, amongst others by moving towards life-cycle approaches in urban construction, promoting healthy low-carbon diets in schools and public institutions, eliminating food waste, reducing packaging and energy use, planning land use to encourage more walking, cycling and transit, as well as enabling more repair and re-use in local economies. Oftentimes these actions not only help decrease consumption-based emissions, but also help strengthen local economies.
CEOs and business leaders have a similarly pivotal role to play in advancing responsible consumption given their direct control over the design, production, distribution and marketing of products and services. Working with their suppliers, businesses can drive real change across global supply chains to reduce consumption emissions using both reward based and penalty-based approaches. These can for example include beneficial payment Information terms, carbon reduction clauses, as well as mandatory carbon reporting. Considering that company supply chains are estimated to produce more than eleven times the emissions of operations, the significance of such efforts can hardly be overstated. Particularly if matched with strong demand side policies from the local level.
It is within this context that the Cities Stockholm+50 High Level Forum aims to:
· highlight cities’ systemic importance in the context of consumption-based emissions.
· strengthen collaboration among mayors and global business leaders, sending a clear market signal that cities are ready to change the way we consume.
· act as a launchpad for city-business action on consumption-based emissions under the umbrella of relevant city and business networks.