WHILE national governments quibble and drag their feet on global warming, one tier of government is forging ahead. City governments are growing tired of waiting for national action, and are grabbing the green initiative for themselves.
On 5 June, World Environment Day, city mayors from five continents are meeting in San Francisco to push their environmental agenda. They plan to sign up to a set of 21 “urban environmental accords” covering energy, waste reduction, urban design and other goals, complete with a scorecard to measure their progress (see “City targets”). “Municipal governments have the power to shape the future of the world’s environment,” says Jared…
