C40 Co-Chair Mayor Khan, Matt Damon & Gary White of Water.org put water safety and security on global climate agenda - C40 Cities (original) (raw)
Today, on the sidelines of Climate Week NYC at The Climate Pledge Summit, C40 Co-Chair and Mayor of London Sadiq Khan will join actor and clean water advocate Matt Damon and Water.org co-founder Gary White to discuss building resilient water systems in response to the growing climate crisis.
The Climate Pledge Summit brings together global leaders to share progress and drive collaboration on climate action. Together, participants will explore how public, private, and non-profit sectors can collaborate to expand access to clean water and improve water quality as floods and droughts become more severe.
Without urgent action, C40 data predicts that by 2050:
- Over 7.4 million people in C40 cities will face flood risks, potentially costing USD$136 billion in GDP annually.
- Water shortages could impact two-thirds of the world’s population, affecting 650 million urban residents and costing C40 cities USD$111 billion annually.
C40 has been working with cities in low- and middle-income countries to build resilience to water risks. For example:
- Durban is restoring river systems through community-led management programs to reduce flood risk and protect ecosystems.
- Rio de Janeiro has implemented an emergency protocol using SMS alerts and sirens to direct residents to pre-built shelters during flood events.
- Dhaka North is expanding urban green space by 70% and boosting rainwater harvesting facilities to manage rapid growth and enhance flood resilience.
Mayor of London and Co-Chair of C40 Cities Sadiq Khan said: “More than half of the world’s population live in urban areas which are facing more frequent climate-induced water issues, including drought, flooding, sea-level rise, storms and water pollution.
“We must adapt our cities to allow them to continue to be thriving places for communities across the globe. That is why, under my leadership, C40 has chosen to allocate two-thirds of its budget to cities in the Global South, which have done the least to create this crisis, but are bearing the brunt of it.”
Earlier this week, Mayor Khan visited New York City’s Billion Oyster Project to see firsthand the return of oysters to the Hudson River, following on from the mayor’s commitment to clean up London’s rivers over the next 10 years.
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