Saporta Report: Mayoral climate coalition announces 2025 leadership team, includes Mayor Dickens as vice-chair

Climate Mayors, a nationwide coalition of over 350 mayors dedicated to climate action, announced their 2025 leadership team on Monday, Jan. 6 — which includes Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens as a new vice-chair along with Mayor Lauren McLean of Boise, Idaho.

During the kickoff event, Dickens expressed his excitement about being a vice-chair alongside Mayor Lauren McLean of Boise, Idaho.

“Local leadership can really deliver on bold, equitable solutions to address the climate crisis and improve quality of life for all of our residents,” Dickens said.

Hoodline: Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego Takes the Helm as Chair of Climate Mayors, Championing Sustainable Urban Policy on National Level

Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego steps up to a new leadership role, this time on a national stage. The City of Phoenix issued a press release sharing that Mayor Gallego, who has served as the Vice-Chair since 2021, will now lead the Climate Mayors network as its Chair. She takes the reins from Mayor Justin M. Bibb of Cleveland, Ohio, and is set to infuse the role with her experience in building resilient and sustainable urban systems against the backdrop of climate change.

Mayor Gallego is not unfamiliar with the arid challenges of the Southwest, nor with the policy-making arena. She ascended to Phoenix's mayoralty in 2019 and won her bid for re-election last November—and sustainability was at the core of her platform. Alongside mayors from Boise and Atlanta, Mayor Gallego is aiming to enhance green initiatives and align supports for cities, large and small, enabling them to tackle weather extremities and champion accessibility to indispensable resources like clean water.

In her statement obtained by the City of Phoenix, she said, “The effects of climate change are on our doorstep, and we must continue prioritizing the creation of resilient, safe, and sustainable communities where anyone can get ahead. Our leadership team will advance climate action from the local level while simultaneously advocating for the support of national leaders.”

Determined to see cities have a greater impact, Mayor Gallego has laid out clear goals for her one-year tenure as Chair. She plans to foster partnerships with private and philanthropic entities to boost federal efforts, tackle the realities of extreme heat through a regional approach, and bolster climate actions at a local level. It's a tri-pronged blueprint that addresses immediate and overarching environmental concerns.

AZCentral: Gallego takes reins of national mayors' climate group, secures $15M for EV charging ports

Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego will be the next chair of Climate Mayors, a community of nearly 350 mayors who have organized to help each other lead city responses to climate change across the nation.

The appointment was announced Monday afternoon by Kate Wright, executive director of Climate Mayors, and outgoing chair Mayor Justin Bibb of Cleveland, Ohio. Gallego has been a member of the group since taking office in 2019 and has previously served as a vice-chair.

Two new vice-chairs, Mayor Lauren McLean of Boise, Idaho, and Mayor Andre Dickens of Atlanta, Georgia, have also joined the 2025 leadership team. Arizona is represented in the organization by five other mayors: Becky Daggett of Flagstaff, Scott Jablow of Sedona, Corey Woods of Tempe, Regina Romero of Tucson and Jorge Maldonado of Nogales.

Climate Mayors, which formed in 2014 and now represents 46 states with bipartisan leadership, aims to support the "economic, health and resiliency benefits to communities" by helping cities maintain momentum on climate action despite nationwide setbacks or delays. The approach aligns with what legal scholars have previously told The Arizona Republic about cities and states often achieving more success on emissions reduction goals, due to greater flexibility in local rules and regulations, compared with countries that repeatedly fall short of national benchmarks and international agreements.

Gallego's leadership in the group could result in Phoenix securing more federal funding to advance local climate initiatives, as well as a greater national focus on regional climate impacts like extreme heat and water shortages. During a call with reporters Monday, Bibb discussed how his involvement as chair seemed to benefit Cleveland. Both Bibb and Gallego welcomed news on Monday of new federal electrification funding for their cities.

The new role could also invite increased scrutiny and elevated standards for Gallego's climate progress in her own city.

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Mayor Dickens picked for a leadership role in climate-focused mayors network

Dickens’ appointment comes as the federal government is expected to pull back from the global climate change fight under President-elect Donald Trump.

With the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump likely to scale back federal efforts to limit climate change, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens has been tabbed to help lead a bipartisan coalition of U.S. mayors focused on addressing the global problem at the local level.

On Monday, Dickens was named the vice chair of Climate Mayors, a network of almost 350 mayors from cities and towns that are home to 46 million Americans. Founded in 2014, the group aims to advance local, climate-friendly policies and “build political will for federal and global climate action.”

Dickens said he was honored to step into the role at “such a critical time,” adding that cities are on the front lines of the climate fight.

“We are innovation hubs and the closest level of government to our residents, so we’re really uniquely positioned to implement impactful climate solutions,” Dickens said during a virtual news conference Monday.

Dickens will serve alongside Mayor Lauren McLean (D) of Boise, Idaho, who was picked as a co-vice chair. Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego (D) was named Climate Mayors’ chair.

CNET: For Progress on Climate and Energy in 2025, Think Local

With its sprawling canopy of magnolia, dogwood, southern pine and oak trees, Atlanta is known as the city in the forest. The lush vegetation helps offset the pollution from the commuter traffic as people pour in and out of the state capital every day, so that city dwellers can breathe fresh, clean air.

"When you fly into the city of Atlanta, most people are like, what is this? I can't even see the city because I see trees," Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens tells me.

The mayor's office has been buying up land, laying out trails and protecting the green terrain from development. It's just one small part of the city's ambitious climate plan that ranges from prioritizing the electrification of vehicles to building out rooftop solar, in the name of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030.

Those emissions are directly responsible for the global heating of our planet, which is causing changing climate patterns and more frequent, unpredictable extreme weather events. Cutting those emissions will help us avoid many of the worst impacts on our health, homes, safety and livelihoods. There are some steps we can take in our own homes and lives, such as installing heat pumps and properly recycling our waste, but to make a difference on the scale needed it's the job of businesses and governments everywhere to reduce emissions, with our nation's leaders at the helm.

Dickens, who drives a Rivian EV, is far from the only American mayor committed to a green future for his city. In fact, he belongs to a bipartisan network of 350 "Climate Mayors" across the country, representing 46 states and 60 million American citizens.

Bloomberg: What Can US Cities and States Do for the Climate Under Trump? Plenty

The Climate Mayors is a bipartisan network of roughly 350 mayors working to drive change locally but also the federal level. In the West, cities including Phoenix and Salt Lake City, which have been struggling with water shortages in the Colorado River basin, “are starting to get together to share best practices on what individual cities can do to better manage water,” said Mark Gold, the director of water scarcity solutions at the National Resources Defense Council. “This concept of trying to move towards self-sufficiency to build climate resilience is something that we’re talking about at length,” Gold said.

Earth Matters: Local activists and leaders could undermine Trumpistas' anti-climate, anti-eco moves

For instance, at Energy News Network, Dan Haugen points to the potential for a collision between mayors and the new administration in an interview with Justin Bibb, chair of Climate Mayors, a bipartisan group of city leaders determined to keep climate on the agenda regardless of what the White House does.

“It’s going to be incumbent upon mayors, and also Republican governors and members of Congress who have seen the benefits of these investments, to make the business case to the Trump-Vance administration,” Bibb said. “I don’t want to cede our innovation in the EV sector to China. I don’t want to cede our innovation around green energy and renewables to Europe. We have to make the case … on why these investments are important for America’s national security and America’s economic competitiveness.”

Bibb said Exxon Mobil CEO Darren Woods has publicly urged Trump not to abandon U.S. leadership on climate change, and there are hopes that some prominent Republicans will press the president-elect in the same direction.

On the day after the election, Climate Mayors, America Is All In, and the U.S. Climate Alliance issued the following statement: “America’s climate-leading states, cities, Tribal nations, businesses, and institutions will not waver in our commitment to confronting the climate crisis, protecting our progress, and relentlessly pressing forward. No matter what, we’ll fight for the future Americans demand and deserve, where our communities, our health, our environment, and our economy all thrive. We will not turn back.”

Smart Cities Dive: ‘We’ve been here before’: What Trump’s win could mean for local climate action

“[Mayors] are going to double down on our commitment, passion and vigor to continue to address these issues, especially at the local level,” said Cleveland, Ohio, Mayor Justin Bibb, who is the chair of Climate Mayors. “We’ve been here before, when President Trump was first elected in 2016 and pulled out of the Paris Accords,” a legally binding international treaty to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

It will likely be more difficult for local governments to take on ambitious climate projects under a second Trump administration than it was under the Biden administration, said Amy Turner, director of the Cities Climate Law Initiative at Columbia University’s Sabin Center for Climate Change Law. But the next four years won’t be the first time that U.S. cities lack a strong federal partner on this front. In fact, the Biden administration is the first strong federal climate partner cities have ever had, Turner said. Even so, Biden’s climate track record isn’t spotless, with the U.S. breaking global records for crude oil production under his administration.

Fast Company: The Biden administration launched 66,000 infrastructure projects. Pete Buttigieg talks about what’s next

I think local government is hugely important, and state government will be very important as well. None of the projects we’re talking about, these 66,000 projects, none of them was conceived here at headquarters. And none of them is being delivered directly by the federal government. We provide the funds. It’s really the state, the city transit agencies, tribes, and others who are making it happen. So I do think that they will continue to lead the way. I remember a few years ago when a number of cities came together on the Climate Mayors—not just U.S. cities, but cities around the world that were tired of waiting for their respective national capitals to catch up on sustainability—and realize that between them they had most of the world’s GDP anyway. I do think you’ll maybe see a renewed season of leadership from the ground up to make sure that things keep happening even if it’s less steady here in Washington.

Energy News Network: Climate mayors’ top priority under Trump: Defend the IRA

“It’s going to be incumbent upon mayors, and also Republican governors and members of Congress who have seen the benefits of these investments, to make the business case to the Trump-Vance administration,” Bibb said.

The stakes in his city include a $575 million commitment to help mining company Cleveland-Cliffs transition to green steel production, as well as a $129 million regional grant that’s funding solar projects on brownfields and former landfills. Tax incentives under the law spurred an area welding equipment company to launch a line of electric vehicle fast charging stations. 

“I don’t want to cede our innovation in the EV sector to China. I don’t want to cede our innovation around green energy and renewables to Europe,” Bibb said. “We have to make the case … on why these investments are important for America’s national security and America’s economic competitiveness.”

To make that case, Climate Mayors hopes to enlist allies, including Republican elected officials and business leaders. Bibb noted that Exxon Mobil CEO Darren Woods has publicly urged Trump not to abandon U.S. leadership on climate change.

“I think it’s going to be [about] having the right kind of conversation to make the case to this incoming leadership in the White House,” Bibb said.

And if that doesn’t work, expect Climate Mayors to keep pushing for ways to act collectively to advance climate and clean energy. For example, the organization announced a commitment this summer by more than 350 mayors to electrify half of their fleets and increase EV chargers by at least 500% by 2030.

“We’ve been here before. We’ll get through this,” Bibb said, but “it’s going to be a lot harder if we don’t have a federal partner in Washington, D.C.”

Business Green: Trump's re-election is a hurdle rather than dead-end for climate action

More innovation, activism and cooperation at all levels of society can transcend political divides in the US, argues the Climate Crisis Advisory Group's Alice Hill from the Council on Foreign Relations

Donald Trump's re-election matters when it comes to climate change. Historically the largest producer of emissions and currently the second largest polluter after China, the United States plays an outsized...

World Resources Institute: Trump May Thwart Federal Climate Action, but Opportunities for Progress Remain

Some states are poised for even greater action before Trump takes office. In California, voters overwhelming approved  Proposition 4, a $10 billion bond measure that will help the state prepare for the impacts of climate change. Just after the election, California’s Governor Newsom announced a special session  of the state legislature to take steps “to safeguard California values”— including the fight against climate change — ahead Trump’s second term. A day later, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) approved  updates to the state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), designed to accelerate the development of cleaner fuels and zero-emission infrastructure to help the state meet legislatively mandated air quality and climate targets.

At the same time, voters in Washington state upheld  a new law that forces companies to cut carbon emissions while raising billions to support programs such as habitat restoration and climate preparation. Maryland’s Governor Moore issued a wide-ranging executive order  earlier this year directing state agencies to develop climate implementation plans to ensure the state could continue working towards its ambitious climate change targets , which aim for net-zero carbon by 2045.

In parallel, cities have long played a crucial role in advancing climate policies and will continue to do so. Climate Mayors , which started as a network of 30 mayors in 2017, is now a bipartisan network of nearly 350 U.S. mayors driving climate action in their communities. These cities continue investing in public transportation, green infrastructure and local emissions-reduction initiatives — all of which will continue to mitigate the impacts of climate change and build more sustainable urban environments with or without federal action on climate.

Bloomberg Law: States Embrace Climate Leadership as Trump Heads to White House

Environmental progress will largely depend on a state’s political affiliation if federal rules loosen, said Bob Martineau, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation from 2011 to 2018. Blue states like California will scramble to bolster environmental protections, Martineau said. Red states, meanwhile, could feel emboldened to roll back policies.

Cities can also step in. Justin Bibb—the Democratic mayor of Cleveland and chair of the Climate Mayors organization—released a statement reaffirming 350 mayors’ commitment to local climate action “in the absence of national leadership.”

Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell (D) pointed to energy efficiency, green job opportunities, and severe weather event preparation as key going forward.

“Every election is a climate election at this point, and it is more clear than ever that cities must lead,” O’Connell said in an emailed statement.

Boston Globe: ‘We are still in’: Cities and states vow to uphold climate goals as Trump returns

“Cities and states have been at this a lot longer, and started a lot earlier, because we see the reality on the ground,” said Brian Swett, chief climate officer for the city of Boston. “We know here in Boston that we need to be leaders, if other folks are going to be willing to follow.”

Even before Trump’s first election, Boston joined the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance — a group of 22 cities around the world, including London, Berlin, Melbourne, and Amsterdam — that have committed to carbon neutrality in the next 10 to 20 years.

Mayor Michelle Wu is also part of a bipartisan group of nearly 350 mayors across 46 states known as the Climate Mayors, who are committed to climate action. Last week, after Trump’s victory was announced, the Climate Mayors announced, “No matter what, we’ll fight for the future Americans demand and deserve, where our communities, our health, our environment, and our economy all thrive. We will not turn back.”

Context News: US cities seek to ‘Trump-proof’ inequality action ahead of vote

Still, U.S. cities gained significant experience in filling a perceived gap in federal policy during the first Trump administration, Cleveland Mayor Justin M. Bibb said in an interview.

"We've been here before," said Bibb, who also chairs the national Climate Mayors group of more than 500 cities.

"America's mayors and Climate Mayors will work to continue to ensure that we take full advantage of the incentives, as we need to make sure we're addressing the climate crisis at the local level. We're already planning for either scenario," he said of the election outcome.

Wisconsin Examiner: How three big White House bills fixed streets and met climate priorities in one city

Climate change was a priority of Mason’s from when was first elected seven years ago. He committed the city to following the Paris Climate Accords.

Former President Donald Trump was in the White House at the time and withdrew from the accords in 2017. With federal policymakers uninterested in addressing climate change, Mason said, he looked elsewhere for support.

He joined the bipartisan Climate Mayors organization, municipal chief executives concerned about what many viewed as the central environmental concern of the time. He found the group invaluable for sharing ideas and learning what could work.

“You hear people, ‘Oh, you can’t do police cars that are electric,’” Mason said. “And then you go to a conference, and here’s 12 that are using electric vehicles as police cars.”

KIRO 7: First electric firetruck in the state coming to Redmond

The City of Redmond prepares to receive the state’s first electric fire truck as it looks to electrify its municipal fleets.

With the city’s goal of electrifying at least 50% of its fleet by 2035, the Redmond Fire Department will receive its first electric fire truck by the end of the year.

In August, the mayor of Redmond joined 350 U.S. mayors in a collaboration to increase the electrification of its government fleet.

“Electrifying municipal fleets and building our charging infrastructure is key to building a green economy in Redmond,” said Mayor Birney. “By investing in sustainable transportation alongside fellow Climate Mayors, we not only reduce emissions, but also lay the foundation for new opportunities for innovation and sustainability in our community.”

Governing: Hundreds of Mayors Agree to Set the Pace for Electric Vehicle Adoption

A bipartisan group of 350 mayors hopes to lead by example, committing to collectively electrify at least half of their fleets by 2030 and increase EV chargers by at least 500 percent by 2035.

They are members of Climate Mayors, a peer-to-peer network of city leaders in 48 states working together to address climate challenges. The majority are Democrats, but the group also includes Republicans. The announcement is meant to be a market signal to American makers of cars and light-duty trucks.

425 Magazine: City of Redmond Joins Initiative to Electrify Municipal Fleets

Climate Mayors is a bipartisan network of mayors from across the United States committed to climate action. The goal is to electrify at least 50% of municipal fleets by 2030 and increase electric vehicle charging infrastructure by 500% by 2035, with at least 40% of charging investments to benefit disadvantaged communities, a release said. 

"Electrifying municipal fleets and building our charging infrastructure is key to building a green economy in Redmond,” said Redmond Mayor Angela Birney in a press statement. “By investing in sustainable transportation alongside fellow Climate Mayors, we not only reduce emissions, but also lay the foundation for new opportunities for innovation and sustainability in our community.” 

Axios: Justin Bibb and Climate Mayors embrace EVs

Why it matters: Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb chairs Climate Mayors, which was established in 2014.

The group believes that wider EV adoption delivers vast benefits, including cost savings, cleaner air, and good-paying jobs in a burgeoning industry.

Driving the news: The nearly 350 mayors also committed to dramatically increasing electric vehicle (EV) chargers in their communities.

Part of the group's pledge is ensuring that 40% of the new charging infrastructure benefits disadvantaged communities.

Between the lines: The pledge is a response to the Biden administration's goal to make 50% of all new vehicle sales electric by 2030.

What they're saying: "I'm excited by our collective commitment," Bibb said in a statement. "Transportation accounts for tons of toxic emissions, and it's up to us to lead by example by prioritizing clean technologies."

Reality check: As of last year, Cleveland's EV registration rate was among the lowest in big cities nationwide.

EVs accounted for only 2.2% of new vehicle registrations in the metro area, up marginally from 1.9% in January the previous year.

The big picture: Ohio plans to spend $169 million in federal dollars to install EV charging stations across the state over the next five years.