The European Commission’s Covenant of Mayors held its first political board meeting on 10 February at the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) in Brussels (Belgium) in the presence of European Commission Vice- President Maroš Šefčovič, former UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres, Member of the European Parliament Claude Turmes and European Committee of the Regions Vice-President Karl-Heinz Lambertz. The launch of the European Covenant of Mayors Board reaffirms the initiative as a unique political movement steered by mayors.
“There is no choice to be less ambitious or to be less involved. The only answer is to let cities play a bigger role in political commitments, especially here in Europe. The role of this policy board is to represent this leadership and to be a clear voice for cities and their ambitions,” said Vice-Mayor of Växjö (Sweden) and ICLEI Europe REXCom Member Asa Karlsson Björkmarker, speaking at the event. The European Covenant of Mayors Board is also linked to the board of the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy, the world’s largest coalition of cities and local governments leading the fight against climate change.
"The EU Covenant of Mayors is definitely one of Europe's major success stories. It shows that when mayors share a vision of a low-carbon future and roll up their sleeves, things get done. Never before have so many cities joined forces, eager to inspire each other and committed to collectively taking the path to a low-carbon future. Setting up a board of mayors will strengthen the EU Covenant's impact even more, in Europe as well as globally, through the Global Covenant of Mayors," said European Commission Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič.
For more information, visit covenantofmayors.eu.