The SDSN Global Commission
for Urban SDG Finance
A high-level group of mayors, experts, city networks and scholars are delivering actionable recommendations for how cities can obtain more and better financing for projects that contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Mayors rally for urban climate finance, urge development banks to help boost city climate action
City leaders worldwide are urgently calling on multilateral development banks (MDBs) to provide essential support in addressing the pressing climate challenges facing urban areas. Ahead of the World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings, in an open letter addressed to the presidents of ten global and regional MDBs, 40 mayors and governors from cities across the globe underscore the urgent need for action.
Commission and UN-Habitat co-organize side event during FfD4 PrepCom2 in NYC
On Dec 3, 2024, the Commission and UN-Habitat co-organized a side event at FfD4 PrepCom2. We brought together (left to right) Leila Yim Surrat (WRI), Roland White (World Bank), Paula Pennanen-Rebeiro-Hargrave (UN-Habitat), Mauricio Rodas (Commission), Eugenie Birch (Commission), Paul Smoke (NYU), David Jackson (UNCDF), and Rodolfo Reta (Mission of Mexico to the UN) to discuss local readiness challenges and finance innovation opportunities.
Commission Releases Concept Paper for a Green Cities Guarantee Fund Proposal
The Commission proposes a Green Cities Guarantee Fund (GCGF) as an important tool to increase the flow of public and private capital into subnational climate-responsive projects. This report details the case for the GCGF, offers a roadmap for operationalizing the fund, and makes suggestions for its initial market pilot in Latin America.
Paris Meeting of SDSN Global Commission for Urban Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Finance Marks A Year of Progress
Anne Hidalgo, Mayor, Paris and co-chair, SDSN Commission on Urban SDG Finance (center) with Mauricio Rodas, former Mayor, Quito, Ecuador (right), Professor Jeffrey Sachs, President of SDSN Network (left), and honorable guest Janja da Silva, First Lady of Brazil (far right) give remarks at the Commission's plenary meeting in Paris's City Hall. The meeting was attended by over 50 Commissioners from around the world and across many climate finance sectors.
U20 Co-Chairs Endorse SDSN Global Commission for Urban SDG Finance's Green Cities Guarantee Fund Proposal
Eduardo Paes, Mayor, Rio de Janeiro and co-chair, SDSN Commission on Urban SDG Finance (center) with Mauricio Rodas, former Mayor, Quito, Ecuador (left) and Professor Eugenie Birch (right) of the Commission Secretariat at the University of Pennsylvania Institute for Urban Research, delivering the declaration from the Finance in Common (https://financeincommon.org/) G-20 side event. Held May 20-21 in Rio, the event endorses the Green Cities Guarantee Fund, among other items.
Mayors rally for urban climate finance, urge development banks to help boost city climate action
City leaders worldwide are urgently calling on multilateral development banks (MDBs) to provide essential support in addressing the pressing climate challenges facing urban areas. Ahead of the World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings, in an open letter addressed to the presidents of ten global and regional MDBs, 40 mayors and governors from cities across the globe underscore the urgent need for action.Commission and UN-Habitat co-organize side event during FfD4 PrepCom2 in NYC
On Dec 3, 2024, the Commission and UN-Habitat co-organized a side event at FfD4 PrepCom2. We brought together (left to right) Leila Yim Surrat (WRI), Roland White (World Bank), Paula Pennanen-Rebeiro-Hargrave (UN-Habitat), Mauricio Rodas (Commission), Eugenie Birch (Commission), Paul Smoke (NYU), David Jackson (UNCDF), and Rodolfo Reta (Mission of Mexico to the UN) to discuss local readiness challenges and finance innovation opportunities.
Why Urban SDG Finance
While the world’s cities generate 80% of global GDP, they also produce 75% of total CO2 emissions. They are the key to meeting the SDGs and Paris Agreement goals by 2030, a task that requires mobilizing an estimated $4.5 to 5.4 trillion per year and calling for a greater commitment to subnational and urban SDG financing, which is currently far below this number.
Cities need new financial mechanisms and governance systems that can scale up effectively and quickly over the next 20 years. But cities today confront a global financial architecture designed largely by and for nation states, therefore not fit for purpose. Although some development banks have implemented city-oriented programs (such as the EBRD’s Green Cities program), structural and socio-political barriers continue to slow urban investments.
To this end, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) launched the SDSN Global Commission for Urban SDG Finance in June 2023, co-chaired by Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris, France, Eduardo Paes, Mayor of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Jeff Sachs, President and founder of SDSN.
The Commission is harnessing the insights of mayors, climate and finance experts, city networks leaders, practitioners, and scholars to develop and champion innovative ideas and solutions for increasing urban SDG finance. The University of Pennsylvania hosts the Commission’s Secretariat.
