EU Covenant of Mayors

With this flagship initiative, the European Commission formally recognises the importance of the municipal level in energy and climate policy, thereby giving local governments official backing. Launched in 2008, the EU Covenant of Mayors is now a movement boasting some 10,000 cities and towns from across Europe as signatories, representing more than half of the EU population! The success of this European movement laid the foundation for the Global Covenant of Mayors, launced in 2015.

Climate Alliance has taken on a leading role in the EU Covenant of Mayors from its very beginnings and co-manages European Commission funded EU Covenant of Mayors Office in collaboration with other European municipal and regional networks. In this pivotal role, Climate Alliance not only cooperates with key European and global partners – our involvement also enables us to amplify the visibility of municipal action and voices on the EU policy stage.

The EU Covenant of Mayors at a glance

The EU Covenant of Mayors brings together thousands of mayors wanting to secure a better future for their citizens. It places the local level at the heart of energy and climate issues, thus contributing significantly to the growing recognition of the role of local authorities when it comes to acting on climate. This bottom-up initiative unites municipalities of all sizes in pursuing integrated, long-term energy and climate action.

All signatories to the EU Convenant of Mayors voluntarily commit to implementing concrete action in support of a shared vision: climate neutrality by 2050.

Signatories support this goal by striving to:

• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030
• Strengthen climate resilience
• Alleviate energy poverty

Each signatory further develops a Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAP) in which it evaluates its emissions, the extent of energy poverty locally and its climate risks. Witht he SECAP as a starting point, signatories develop strategies to uphold the shared vision. Regular monitoring ensures they stay on track.