“Somerville Towards Route 93” – Cynthia Maurice

The City of Somerville has been recognized by CDP as one of 122 cities and counties across the globe that is taking bold leadership on environmental action and transparency, despite the pressures of a challenging global economic situation.

Designed to encourage and support local governments to ramp up their climate action and ambition, CDP’s Cities A List is based on environmental data disclosed by local governments to CDP-ICLEI Track. A clear momentum in local climate disclosure and action is building – for the first time, over 1,000 cities and counties (1,002 in total) received a rating for their climate action from CDP in 2022, a rise on the 965 cities and counties scored in 2021. In 2022, just over one in ten local governments scored by CDP (12% of such local governments) received an A.

To score an A, among other actions, a local government must disclose publicly through have a community-wide emissions inventory, and have published a climate action plan. It must also complete a climate risk and vulnerability assessment and have a climate adaptation plan to demonstrate how it will tackle climate hazards. Many A List cities and counties are also taking a variety of other leadership actions, such as political commitment from a city’s Mayor to tackle climate change. 

A List cities and counties are demonstrating their climate leadership through concerted and effective action, just as national governments have been asked to do at COP27. They are taking twice as many mitigation and adaptation measures as non-A List local governments.

Somerville and the other 121 cities and counties on this year’s A List are also celebrated for showing that urgent and impactful climate action – from ambitious emissions reduction targets to building resilience against climate change – is achievable at a global level, and in places with different climate realities and priorities. However, this action needs to go further and faster.