By Kay Scrimger
October 18, 2010

Conference of Mayors President Burnsville Mayor Elizabeth B. Kautz outlined the array of comprehensive strategies that U.S. mayors are using to fight climate change during the 82nd Plenary Session of the Committee of the Regions (CoR) of the European Union (EU) on October 5 in Brussels.

This was Kautz' third time to speak before CoR, the EU's assembly of local and regional officials from its 27 member nations. The first was in October 2009 in Brussels, followed by an address to the CoR in December 2009 at the United Nations COP 15 Climate Protection Conference in Copenhagen.

Kautz emphasized the goals that U.S. mayors have in common with European local and regional leaders. “I am here to build on and strengthen our relationship, our resolve, and our intent to work together to achieve sustainable development, a green economy, and environmental protection. We know that economic development and climate protection go hand in hand, as evidenced by your cities and regions and ours in the United States,” she said.

She praised the continuing joint efforts of the Conference of Mayors and CoR to make national and international leaders fully aware of the crucial role that regional and local officials play in climate protection.

“Last year at the 81st Plenary Session of the Committee of the Regions, we were all -On the Road to Copenhagen.- We joined together here in Brussels and later in Copenhagen to forcefully remind national leaders making key decisions about the climate protection strategy for the planet that mayors and regional officials are the key to climate protection,” Kautz said. “And we will continue to work together – now and in the future – to emphasize our central importance in this effort,” as climate negotiations continue.

U.S. mayors work hard to shape our nation's climate protection agenda.

For example, Kautz said, “As the world well knows, the United States did not ratify the Kyoto Protocol.

“But on February 16, 2005, the day when the Kyoto Protocol took effect in 141 countries, including those represented here today, 141 mayors of the United States, symbolizing the 141 committed nations signed the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, committing them to local action to reduce global warming.

“I am proud to say that that number of signatories has grown to 1,044 mayors, representing more than 84 million Americans.”

Mayors in the U.S. are:

• Pushing for programs that protect our environment;

• Partnering with business to find innovative solutions to environmental challenges; and

• Taking serious action to mitigate global warming.

Kautz gave specifics of programs in a number of cities, including:

• The Solar Boston Program, which has increased solar capacity in that city by 300 percent;

• Cleveland's commitment to reducing energy and fuel consumption by ten percent over the next three years, with its public power company agreeing to supply 25 percent of energy from advanced and renewable sources by the year 2025;

• Chicago's green roof program, a model for the nation;

• Los Angeles' reduction of CO2 by 1.6 million tons by building 1,280 megawatts of solar power;

• Greener Denver Business Program to educate local companies and connect them to resources that help reduce their impact on the environment while at the same time saving money; and

• Her own city of Burnsville, having adopted a Sustainability Guide Plan; developed a strong program to increase solar energy capacity and is capturing methane gas from its landfill in order to power homes and businesses and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Kautz also extended congratulations to the European Commission's Covenant of Mayors, modeled on the U.S. Mayors' Climate Protection Agreement, through which European cities and towns pledge their commitment to strong climate protection measures.

Recognizing their shared goals in climate protection, the U.S. Conference of Mayors and CoR of EU signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on October 5. The ceremony took place before several hundred regional and local leaders as well as leading European Union officials.

As stated in the introductory statement, the aim of the MOU is engagement in “joint efforts aimed at tackling climate change and bridging the experiences of the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement and of the EU Covenant of Mayors.”

The two entities pledge to cooperate closely in order to:

• Raise awareness of the importance of climate protection among citizens and local leaders;

• Join local and regional forces in global climate policy-making;

• Exchange best practices in fighting climate change; and

• Sharing results of their cooperation.

The MOU signatories are Kautz; Mercedes Bresso, President of CoR of the European Union and Councillor of the Piemonte Region, Italy; U.S. Conference of Mayors CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran; and Gerhard Stahl, Secretary General, CoR of the European Union.

In a press conference following the signing ceremony, Kautz and Bresso answered questions about the MOU and the goals of cooperation between the two organizations as well as about climate change efforts in Europe and the United States.

Kautz had a breakfast meeting October 5 with CoR President Mercedes Bresso and with the U.S. Ambassador to the European Union William E. Kennard.

Kautz took the opportunity to share information about the Conference of Mayors 2010 Metro Economy Agenda with Kennard, appointed by President Barack Obama, including the Conference of Mayors energy and transportation agenda, as well as other issues.

Bresso and Kautz also discussed U.S. mayors' and European local and regional leaders' climate protection efforts with the Ambassador.

“On behalf of U.S. Mayors, I was glad to have the opportunity to meet with Ambassador Kennard and to learn more about our U.S. Mission to the European Union. His support and interest in transatlantic cooperation between the Conference of Mayors and the Committee of the Regions of the European Union is welcome and appreciated,” Kautz said.

Later in the morning, President Kautz, President Bresso, and President Nichi Vendola of the Region of Puglia, Italy, engaged in a fast-paced question-and-answer session with about 60 high school students, both American and European, studying in Brussels.

A celebration called “Signing Up for Climate Action” followed at noon in which Presidents Bresso and Kautz discussed the MOU to be signed later that afternoon. The Brussels American School Pep Band contributed peppy music to the celebration, attended by members of the U.S. community in Brussels, European Union officials, CoR mayors and regional leaders, exhibitors, and pupils from the U.S. and European schools in Brussels.

The Plenary Sessions of the CoR take place within a four-day festive and educational array of thirty'six workshops, organized by companies, financial institutions, associations, and the CoR; a media center; and a large exhibition, in which local and regional governments and companies showcase projects, demonstrate best practices, present public-private partnerships showing the green economy, and offer examples of green solutions.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors exhibit area offered the opportunity to demonstrate its programs and discuss its many activities with the many hundreds of local and regional leaders, businesspeople, and other participants in “Open Days.”

In addition to the Conference of Mayors exhibit, Kautz also visited a number of the other exhibits, including those of international businesses. “We were pleased to have the opportunity to meet with local leaders as well as business representatives from a variety of international companies,” she said.

“Our continued cooperation with the Committee of the Regions of the European Union, signified by the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, is very important,” Kautz said.

“We have a significant message – local leaders are central to climate protection. We are more committed than ever to climate protection strategies in our own communities and nations and to joining with local leaders in Europe and elsewhere to exchange ideas and best practices and thus to continue to learn from each other.”