What three decades of city networks tell us about city diplomacy’s potential for climate action

Climate change presents a planetary threat with scorching implications for life in the streets of a growingly urbanized Earth. Since the 1990s, a key contribution to tackling this crisis has come from thousands of local governments facing the climate head-on. Cities have done so not just individually but in a mounting mix of ‘city networks’, crossing borders and geopolitical differences. So, what more could we ask of this city diplomacy? Stepping up the inclusiveness, recognition and reach of these networks is an essential piece of the much-needed global response to today’s existential challenge to our urban species. Local governments have formed city networks to face the climate emergency by bridging borders and geopolitical differences since at least the 1990s. This Review shows what has been achieved in these three decades, and indicates the importance of improving the inclusiveness, recognition and reach of these city networks going forward.