Why Cities Matter
70% of global emissions come from cities covering just 2% of Earth's land
Your Progress
Section 1 of 5The Concentrated Opportunity
Cities are climate change accelerators—but they're also solution laboratories.
Heat Magnifiers
Urban heat islands are 5-7°F hotter than surroundings. Concrete and asphalt trap heat. AC usage spikes.
Density Advantage
Dense cities are 2-3x more energy efficient per capita. Shared walls, transit, district systems.
Action Speed
Mayors control zoning, building codes, transit. Cities move faster than nations.
The C40 Cities network (97 of the world's largest cities) committed to net-zero by 2050. They represent 700 million people and 25% of global GDP. When cities act, markets follow.
🎯 Interactive: City Emissions Breakdown
Where do city emissions come from? Click each sector to see the breakdown and solution examples from real cities.
Click any sector to see details and solutions
🏙️ Three Scale Advantages
1. Network Effects
District heating, bike share, EV charging networks only work at scale. Paris installed 1,000 EV chargers in 2023— now 12% of new car sales are electric (vs. 7% nationally).
2. Procurement Power
NYC's $90B annual budget creates markets. When the city mandated electric buses, manufacturers built US factories. Now 5,800 electric buses operate nationwide.
3. Living Labs
Test at neighborhood scale before global rollout. Singapore's smart grid pilot (Punggol district, 10,000 homes) proved demand response cuts peak load 20%—now expanding citywide.