Welcome: Urban Dialogues on Sustainable Energy and Cities – Abu Dhabi Thematic Meeting

Cities today consume roughly two-thirds of the global primary energy supply and produce over 70% of the global energy-related CO2 emissions, making them the largest market for sustainable energy and the principal arena for climate action. Moreover, as population and economic growth accelerate urbanization, the demand in cities for clean, reliable, and affordable electricity, heating and cooling, transport, process inputs, and other energy forms will dramatically increase. Energy is furthermore a central aspect of poverty eradication, with hundreds of millions of urban dwellers denied development benefits due to lack of high-quality energy access. In addition, renewable energy can contribute to key aspects of Sustainable Development Goal 11 on sustainable cities, such as air quality, waste management, safety and resilience towards disasters. From 12 to 24 January 2016, individuals and organizations from around the world were invited to contribute their input on the topic of Sustainable Energy and Cities. During this two-week online consultation, participants discussed technology, policy, and financing interventions and mechanisms to accelerate uptake of sustainable energy in cities. This was an opportunity to provide meaningful insight into the way cities of the future should be governed and shaped.

Urban Dialogues Summary Outcome and Comments