IMM President Ekrem İmamoğlu, the US Presidency Special Envoy for Climate, attended the C40 meeting, in which former Secretary of State John Kerry was also present. Kerry, who received information from İmamoğlu about "Turkey's only C40 member city, Istanbul", stated that he was surprised by this situation and said, "We need to bring more people, more cities to the table. So we can raise our voices even more.”
Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) President Ekrem İmamoğlu, attended the online meeting organized by the C40 Large Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40 Cities). Participating in the virtual meeting on “Improving Green and Fair Recovery Efforts” with the support of the USA, local administrators of 21 different cities of the world asked various questions to the US Presidency Special Envoy for Climate, former US Secretary of State John Kerry.
PRESIDENTS DIRECTED A QUESTION TO KERRY
Delivering the opening speech of the meeting, Los Angeles Mayor and C40 President Eric Garcetti emphasized that national governments should be more determined and cooperative on pandemic and climate change issues. Speaking after Garcetti, Giuseppe Sala, Mayor of Milan and Head of the C40 Global Mayors Kovid-19 Recovery Task Force, gave a speech on the needs for green and fair recovery and the concrete actions of cities. US Presidency Special Envoy for Climate Kerry also emphasized climate change and drew attention to the role of cities in this issue. After the speeches, the participating mayors made their speeches within 2 minutes and asked a question to Kerry.
"TURKEY'S ONLY C40 MEMBER CITY ISTANBUL"
In his speech; Referring to the issues of Kovid-19, climate action plan and waste-energy management, İmamoğlu said:
“Nowadays, when we observe the devastating consequences of the Kovid-19 pandemic, it is necessary not to ignore the issue of climate change, which is expected to have at least as devastating consequences in the near future. In this regard, on behalf of Istanbul, the only C40 member city in Turkey, we are proud to benefit from the vision of the C40 and to spread this vision to non-member cities. In the upcoming period, we would like to be more actively involved in the C40 and to be represented in much stronger positions within the C40 leadership. "
"WE SIGNED THE AGREEMENT OF GREEN CITY ACTION PLAN WITH EBRD"
“I would like to briefly talk about Istanbul's climate actions. First; sustainable public transport. Istanbul is among the top 5 cities in the world in the construction of rail systems. In this context, we signed the 'Green City Action Plan' agreement with the EBRD (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development). With this agreement, our process of building a new 25.5 km metro network will start. In this context, we will provide employment to low-skilled workforce. "
"WE WILL SAVE 16 PERCENT OF THE WASTE PRODUCED BY 17 MILLIONS"
“Waste management and energy management is another important issue we focus on. With the Waste Incineration and Energy Generation facility we have built, we will ensure that 16 percent of the waste generated by the population of 17 million is disposed of. In energy consumption, we will increase the share of renewable resources to 2024 percent by 18. With rain tunnels and other infrastructure projects, we are constantly working to make Istanbul a more resilient city today and in the future. "
"SHOULD BE AN EXAMPLE FOR NATIONAL GOVERNMENTS"
Stressing that as Istanbul, they are pleased to see the United States focus strongly on climate change, İmamoğlu said, “We hope this will set an example for all national governments as well. We use all the methods and tools available to us, but we must say that not all municipalities have equal chances in this regard. For example, making an impact in a city of 16 million is a major challenge, especially in the absence of national and international financial support. Istanbul has important climate change initiatives, but changes in plans on a national scale can damage the entire process. For this reason, it is very important that we cooperate and make sure that the plans are carried out using all relevant financial and political means, ”he said.
KERRY: "ACCOUNTABILITY BASIC POLICY"
Speaking again after İmamoğlu, Kerry stated that he was surprised that only Istanbul was included in the C40 from Turkey and said, “We need to be able to bring more people and more cities to the table. Thus, we can raise our voices more ”. Highlighting the importance of city governments and governments being accountable, Kerry emphasized that this is a fundamental policy.
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