Global Climate Action from Cities, Regions and Businesses 2021

The 2021 report by the NewClimate Institute evaluates climate action by subnational and non-state actors across ten major emitting economies, focusing on the progress of cities, regions, and businesses toward emissions reduction targets.

• The scale of non-state and subnational climate action is expanding, with an increase in both individual actions and participation in international cooperative initiatives (ICIs). Subnational actors with post-2020 targets represent 11% of the global population and 12% of global emissions. Furthermore, over 800 firms in the ten analyzed economies have set quantifiable post-2020 targets, with combined revenues of approximately USD 13 trillion. There are 297 ICIs comprising 13,583 businesses, over 4,510 investors, 13,012 cities and regions, and 2,424 NGOs.
• The collective 2030 ambition of non-state and subnational actors has not shown significant increase since 2019. However, full implementation of individual targets could result in 2.0 to 2.5 GtCO2e/year of additional reductions compared to the pre-COVID "current national policies scenario" by 2030. If the aspirational goals of ICIs are fully implemented, reductions could reach 16 GtCO2e/year below current national policy projections, bringing total emissions close to the 2°C pathway range.
• There is limited evidence that the growing ambition of non-state and subnational actors is translating into realized impact, partly due to a lack of GHG inventory data. Analysis of available 2020 inventories indicates that only 80% of companies and 50% of city governments met their 2020 emission reduction targets, suggesting a need for accelerated action to meet 2030 goals.
• Car manufacturers' electric vehicle (EV) sales targets could drive a higher share of EV sales than predicted by the national policies of the United States, China, and the EU. Because a significant portion of these manufacturers' emissions occurs in their value chain—specifically through product use—fulfilling EV sales goals and improving fossil fuel cars could lead to transformational change.

APA

NewClimate Institute (2021). Global Climate Action from Cities, Regions and Businesses 2021. http://www.newclimate.org/resources/publications/global-climate-action-from-cities-regions-and-businesses-2021

Chicago

NewClimate Institute. Global Climate Action from Cities, Regions and Businesses 2021. 2021. http://www.newclimate.org/resources/publications/global-climate-action-from-cities-regions-and-businesses-2021.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=NewClimate Institute |title=Global Climate Action from Cities, Regions and Businesses 2021 |date=23 June 2021 |url=http://www.newclimate.org/resources/publications/global-climate-action-from-cities-regions-and-businesses-2021 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{newclimateinstitute2021global, author = {{NewClimate Institute}}, title = {{Global Climate Action from Cities, Regions and Businesses 2021}}, institution = {NewClimate Institute}, year = {2021}, month = jun, url = {http://www.newclimate.org/resources/publications/global-climate-action-from-cities-regions-and-businesses-2021}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }