The Urban Transitions Mission (UTM) supports a growing cohort of cities to accelerate their journey towards net-zero in a global and thriving environment. UTM engages cities in a regular dialogue, the to help identify support, guidance and tools, brokering access to knowledge from global partners across sectors, and connecting with national governments. Thanks to the creation of a global community of practice and its engagement, cities engaged in the Mission are able to connect, exchange and learn from each other how to strengthen their climate strategies.
Since 2023, the Urban Transitions Mission has already laid the foundations of 105 cities’ climate journey to holistic and people-centred net-zero pathways, mobilizing cross-sector partnerships to prioritize solutions enabled by clean energy and systemic innovation.
During the past two years, UTM carried out over 40 tailor-made trainings and knowledge transfer opportunities following their needs, and launched a dedicated knowledge-sharing platform (the Urban Transitions Mission Center) to host additional exchanges and robust resources. Additionally, UTM worked to expand its Global Innovation Alliance to catalyze opportunities for UTM cities to learn, act, and scale up their action, teaming up with financial institutions, research, academia, national governments, and the private sector. This resulted in over 25 pilot actions that will help cities act as innovation hubs in specific areas.
UTM connects, informs, and leverages the Global Research Action Agenda (GRAA) which identifies and tackles the data, information, and technology gaps that cities and local governments are prioritizing on their climate action journey.
Through its annual UTM Global Innovation Summit, UTM regularly brings together mayors, local leaders, and technical experts from UTM cities. Focused on fostering partnerships, the summit facilitated collaboration among national policymakers, international organizations, private sector stakeholders, and academia. The event provides a unique platform for UTM cities to network, exchange successful approaches, and address challenges in implementing climate-neutral and net-zero pathways through clean energy and systemic innovation.