First Meeting of Mayors Forum on Urban Nature and Biodiversity
Urban Nature Program, co-led by the World Bank, UNEP, and ICLEI, with the support of the GEF, in collaboration with Inter-American Development Bank, C40 Cities, World Resources Institute, International Union for Conservation of Nature, Climate Change Champion Team and WBCSD, aims to scale up financing to support cities and subnational governments in implementing their actions for nature-positive development promoted under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).
The Mayors' Forum, which is part of the Urban Nature Program, convenes mayors and senior leaders of cities and sub-national governments to demonstrate action and ambition on the global stage and spearhead the role of cities in protecting the nature of the planet and achieving the targets set out in GBF. The first meeting of the Forum provides an opportunity for cities to reinforce their shared version of urban nature, raise ambition, and call for investing in green and blue infrastructure. The COP16 schedule is available on the CBD website.
Following the event, a comprehensive summary was produced to highlight the key insights, conclusions, and actionable next steps identified by the Urban Nature Program and its partners. This summary captures the collective commitment of the Forum to advancing urban biodiversity and reinforces a shared vision for a nature-positive future in cities worldwide.
Download the meeting summary here
Download the presentations here
Agenda
Welcome and Opening Remarks
- Alejandro Char, Mayor of Cali, Colombia
- Marie-Andree Mauger, Deputy Mayor of Montreal, Canada
Overview of Urban Nature Program
- Xueman Wang, Program Manager, GPSC, World Bank
Keynote speech – Call for Action
- H.E. Ms. Razan Al Mubarak, High-Level Champion UNFCCC COP28, President of IUCN
Vision and Ambition – from Mayors
- The mayors will demonstrate their city's commitment and action to urban nature and biodiversity, especially the action in implementing Target12 of the Global Biodiversity Framework - Enhance Green Spaces and Urban Planning for Human Well-Being and Biodiversity.
- Moderated by Gregor Robertson, Former Mayor of Vancouver, Canada
Support from financial institutions and partner Organizations
- Ming Zhang, Global Director, World Bank
- Maria Camila Uribe, Sector Principal Leader, IDB
- Doreen Robinson, Chief for Wildlife. UNEP
- Aloke Barnwal, City Lead, GEF Secretariat
- Ingrid Coetzee, Director: Biodiversity, Nature & Health, ICLEI
Conclusions and Next Steps
- Marie-Andree Mauger, Deputy Mayor of Montreal, Canada
- Xueman Wang, Program Manager, GPSC, World Bank
List of Speakers -City Mayors
| City / Entity | Country | Full name | Title |
| Barranquilla | Colombia | Alejandro Char | Mayor |
| Bogota | Colombia | Carlos Fernando Galán | Mayor |
| Cali | Colombia | Alejandro Eder | Mayor |
| Del Carmen | Philippines | Alfredo M Coro II | Mayor |
| Douala IV | Cameroon | Edouard Hervé Mony Mpah | Mayor |
| Kisumu | Kenya | Peter Anyang' Nyong'o | Governor |
| Kochi | India | Anil Kumar | Mayor |
| Montreal | Canada | Marie-Andree Mauger | Deputy Mayor |
| Nagoya | Japan | Midori Sugino | Deputy Mayor |
| Nansana | Uganda | Regina Nakkazzi | Mayor |
| Ecuador | Samborondón | Juan José Yúnñez Nowak | Mayor |
| Seattle | USA | Adiam Emery | Deputy Mayor |
| Siranjganj | Bangladesh | Tofazzal Hossain | Administrator |
City Participants
| City | Country | Full name | Title |
| Berlin | Germany | Britta Behrendt | Permanent Secretary for Climate Protection and the Environment |
| Mendoza | Argentina | Sebastián Fermani | Secretary of Environment |
| Mexico City | Mexico | Jorge Liber Saltijeral Giles | Director of International Cooperation |
| Paris | France | Francois Moreau | Head of Ecological Agency |
| Quezon | Philippines | Baltazar Avelino | Head of Parks Development and Administration Department- Department head |
| Los Angeles (LA) | USA | Doug Walters | Chief Sustainability Officer |
| Ningbo | China | Zhu Jianrong | Deputy Director General of Ningbo Municipal Ecology and Environmental Bureau |
