The politics of climate change at the city level: Insights from a comparative study of Buenos Aires, São Paulo and Mexico City

The guide examines the politics of climate change in three Latin American mega-cities, finding that while political leadership and local framing drive policy adoption, implementation is often hindered by a lack of broad social coalitions and low electoral salience of climate issues.

• Linking climate objectives to local socioeconomic or environmental concerns is a critical factor for advancing the climate agenda. For example, Mexico City's Metrobus was framed as a way to reduce "traffic congestion and alleviating local air pollution" rather than just greenhouse gas emissions, and São Paulo's landfill biogas plants were primarily motivated by "generation of electricity and improving air quality".
• Political leadership and 'climate champions' are influential in the initial adoption of climate legislation and frameworks, but they are insufficient for long-term implementation. In São Paulo and Mexico City, changes in administration in 2012 led to a loss of momentum because the new leadership did not view climate issues as priorities.
• Successful implementation of climate policies requires building broad social and political coalitions that extend beyond environmental groups to include the urban poor and business sectors. In Buenos Aires, bicycle manufacturers supported bike promotion policies, while taxi owners' associations actively opposed them.
• Climate change remains a peripheral issue in local democratic politics and lacks 'politicisation', meaning it is not a subject of competition between political parties nor an electorally salient issue. While city legislatures in Buenos Aires, São Paulo, and Mexico City passed climate laws with cross-party support, the issues are not part of the active local political debate.

APA

Ryan, D., & Cuesta, A. R. (2016). The politics of climate change at the city level: Insights from a comparative study of Buenos Aires, São Paulo and Mexico City. Climate and Development Knowledge Network. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/CDKN-Guide-Politics-of-climate-change_Final-WEB.pdf

Chicago

Ryan, Daniel, and Alejandra Ramirez Cuesta. The politics of climate change at the city level: Insights from a comparative study of Buenos Aires, São Paulo and Mexico City. Climate and Development Knowledge Network, 2016. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/CDKN-Guide-Politics-of-climate-change_Final-WEB.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Ryan |first1=Daniel |last2=Cuesta |first2=Alejandra Ramirez |title=The politics of climate change at the city level: Insights from a comparative study of Buenos Aires, São Paulo and Mexico City |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |date=July 2016 |url=http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/CDKN-Guide-Politics-of-climate-change_Final-WEB.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ryan2016politics, author = {Ryan, Daniel and Cuesta, Alejandra Ramirez}, title = {{The politics of climate change at the city level: Insights from a comparative study of Buenos Aires, São Paulo and Mexico City}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2016}, month = jul, url = {http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/CDKN-Guide-Politics-of-climate-change_Final-WEB.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }