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The aim of this policy paper is to characterize the current situation of Tunisian municipalities in matters of climate change policies and actions and to understand the barriers and best practices. By surveying municipalities in Tunisia, we were able to provide an overview of the Tunisian municipalities in matters of climate change actions and strategies, as well as finding the main barriers and best practices. First, we found that most Tunisian municipalities are facing different effects of climate change. Second, the majority of municipalities do not have a strategy for mitigation and adaptation of climate change at the local level. Third, the main barrier that municipalities face in investing in climate change actions is the lack of financial resources and funding. Four, we have identified some of the best climate change mitigation and adaptation practices of surveyed cities, which should be taken into consideration and implemented also by the other cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is central for climate policy to understand, monitor and forecast greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, generating insights on the key factors and actions with a greater impact to mitigate and adapt to global warming. Focusing on the leading role of cities, it is relevant to build robust and reliable GHG emissions prospects for every city committing to mitigate and adapt to climate change. In this paper, a novel methodology is proposed to build those prospects, presenting a case study with 6231 EU-27 cities and local municipalities taken from the Global Covenant of Mayors (GCoM). Key GHG emissions predictors for the target years of 2020 and 2030 refer to the baseline energy consumption and associated GHG emissions, as well as the population and the national emissions per capita trend. Additionally, other informative predictors are the baseline inventory year, the reduction target, the disaggregated baseline emissions by type of fuel (fossils or renewables), the heating and cooling degree days and the NUTS urban/rural categorization. The proposed methodology allows assessing the cities' achievements based on their expected performance, and it could be further implemented to support new cities willing to commit to a significant reduction of their GHG emissions. • A robust methodology is proposed to predict GHG emissions for cities committing to climate change mitigation and adaptation. • Key predictors refer to local, regional and national sources of information. • A case study is performed with 6231 European cities: 2030 commitments are expected to achieve a 40 % GHG emissions reduction. • The models described in this paper provide useful information to urban policy makers in the climate action planning process. • The results are replicable in the context of transnational initiatives involving cities in the fight against climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With nearly 70% of the world population expected to live in cities by 2050, assessing the sustainability of urban systems, both existing and future ones, is becoming increasingly relevant. Making cities more sustainable is a global priority, which is highlighted by 'Sustainable Cities and Communities' being listed as one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) adopted by United Nations Member States in 2015. This Virtual Special Issue (VSI) explores the implementation and assessment of policies and technologies that contribute to the transition to a sustainable, energy efficient and regenerative society. We organized the issue according to four main research themes: 1) Renewable Energy Systems (i.e., different types of systems, qualitative assessments and public acceptance); 2) Sustainable Built Environment (which includes construction, operation and refurbishment); 3) Multi-Scale Models (considering urban sustainability transition from building to districts, or cities and regions to multi-country comparisons and their scaling across different countries); and 4) Governance and Policy (climate change mitigation and adaptation plans/policies that are reported across countries, urban services and infrastructures). This paper serves two purposes. The first is to provide an analysis about patterns, correlations and synergies found across the different topics that have been addressed over the last 20 years in the literature about cities' sustainability paths. A bibliometric analysis and a contingency matrix show the degree of correlation between scientific journals and main topics addressed by published articles. Secondly, the paper acts as an Editorial to the VSI, introducing the wealth of research articles and topics included in it. Both the bibliometric analysis and the papers published in this VSI demonstrate the interconnectedness of energy consumption, pollutant emissions and the competition for finite resources. The aim is to present advances and challenges of this exciting and ever-evolving research field to inform and guide future studies of urban sustainability. • We carried out a bibliometric analysis of the literature using the Cortext Manager platform· Using network analysis of a corpus of paper spanning 20 years we identified 8 major clusters. • The paper serves also as editorial for a virtual special issue dealing with urban sustainability pathways. • The virtual special issue is organised in four main themes, which touch upon different Sustainable Development Goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cities are facing considerable challenges resulting from imminent climate change impacts. Urban planning to minimise adverse impacts of climate change at the city level can establish a climate-resilient city. Mitigation strategies to reduce CO2 emissions would lead to a climate-friendly city. Integrating climate change adaptation and mitigation into sustainable city planning should not be merely added as a single level of sustainable city planning, but requires a wide range of multi-level cooperation. Lijiang City has experienced climatic change during the last half century, and its CO2 emissions have increased faster than the GDP growth. Nearby glaciers on Yulong Snow Mountain have been retreating and losing mass since the early twentieth century. In this paper, we identify economic sectors that are vulnerable to climate change, including tourism, agriculture and water supply, and propose mitigation and adaptation strategies to cope with climate change in this tourism city. As energy use is the largest source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, renewable energy has enormous CO2 reduction potential. Land use practices, a sectoral approach and public participation are all considered adaptive in climate planning. The proposals outlined are valuable as they provide an understanding of how to implement integrated climate planning and integrate climate change mitigation and adaptation into sustainable city planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: With 60% of the population younger than 26years, a need of about 1.5 million residential units per year for the next 5years and the necessity of mitigating its rapidly growing GHG emissions together with adapting cities to the expected drastic effects of climate change, Iran’s urban agglomerations are facing tremendous challenges now and in the future. The paper presents interim findings of the German–Iranian research initiative “Young Cities” (2005–2013) that investigates approaches for these immense challenges. The project aims at developing energy-efficient and resilient housing in a real-life pilot project, the 35ha area in Hashtgerd New Town in the Tehran province. The article explores the framing conditions and the master plan of this pilot and identifies four key planning strategies. Besides applying climate-sensitive urban form, the project stresses the need to develop culturally adapted building typologies for reduced heating and cooling, an efficient public transport in a mixed and dense urban structure and integrated water and energy systems on the neighborhood level. Simulations of these planning approaches have proven a significant reduction of energy- and resource consumption and the capacity of the design to adapt to (a potentially changing) environment. These promising strategies for energy-efficiency and resilience were transferred into a legally binding comprehensive plan commissioned in October 2010, though the major challenge in the second phase of the project (2011–2013) will be making these innovations a built reality. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Urban areas play a pivotal role in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to adverse effects of climate change, worldwide. Climate-related assessment of urban development projects shall contribute to reduce complex climate vulnerability, especially in fast growing cities in emerging economies. Hungarian cities face significant challenges regarding changing climatic patterns, consequently climate-oriented assessment methodology to evaluate the performance of urban development interventions is needed. The main aim of the research was to elaborate on a comprehensive methodology that can define mitigation, adaptation, and awareness-raising aspects of interventions; moreover may reveal path dependencies in order to avoid negative lock-ins during urban development activities. The developed method uses a three-step scoring approach to assess both direct and indirect impacts of selected interventions while taking into account the main objectives of the Budapest Climate Change Strategy as evaluation criteria in order to strengthen local-specific characters. By applying the developed methodology, the main conclusions can be defined by paying attention to weaknesses and strengths of the selected interventions regarding mitigation, adaptation, and awareness-raising issues; thus, further recommendations were identified to improve their overall climate performance and to avoid negative lock-ins. • Analysis of urban development actions is crucial in avoiding negative lock-ins. • The developed method uses a three-step scoring approach to assess both the direct and indirect impacts of selected interventions. • Further recommendations were identified to improve their overall climate performance and to avoid negative lock-ins. • The recommendations made in the present paper may support the decision making processes during the whole life cycle of planned actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many cities around the world are increasingly developing plans and policies for mitigation and adaptation to climate change. These plans and policies are often focused on either mitigation or adaptation. This dichotomized approach can be problematic and result in trade-offs. In other words, efforts aimed at enhancing mitigation (adaptation) may hinder achieving adaptation (mitigation) objectives. Additionally, conflicts may arise as there might be inconsistencies between some mitigation and adaptation measures. Since trade-offs and conflicts between adaptation and mitigation measures can undermine effectiveness and efficiency of municipal activities, efforts should be made to avoid or minimize them. This study aims to provide a better understanding of potential trade-offs and conflicts through reviewing literature on the interactions between urban adaptation and mitigation measures. This is done through bibliographic analysis and detailed content analyses of selected papers. Results of this review show that research on trade-offs and conflict has gained traction since the publication of the fourth assessment report of The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. However, there is still a lack of empirical studies. In particular, limited research exists on the Global South cities. Also, according to the findings, existing research is mainly focused on trade-offs associated with measures related to energy, land use, transport, water, building, green infrastructure, and waste sectors. It is found that mitigation measures may have negative impacts on adaptation by increasing exposure to risks such as the urban heat island effect and flooding and/or by eroding livelihood options of poor and marginalized groups and causing equity concerns. In contrast, adaptation measures may increase greenhouse gas emissions by, among other things, reducing efficiency and increasing energy demand. It is discussed that integrated assessment frameworks should be utilized to deal with trade-offs and conflicts. Finally, some recommendations for better uptake of integrated frameworks are provided. • Conflicts and trade-offs between urban adaptation and mitigation measures are explored. • Conflicts and trade-offs have received more attention since publication of IPCC AR4 report. • Most trade-offs are related to energy, land use, transport, water, and building sectors. • The most recurring trade-offs of mitigation measures are related to equity and adaptive capacity. • Integrated assessment frameworks should be used to deal with conflicts and trade-offs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]