Plan Cantonal du Climat
Just a few days before the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris, the Conseil d’Etat of Geneva adopted a Cantonal Climate Plan, the goal of which is to reduce the canton’s CO2 emissions by 40% by 2030 in relation to 1990 numbers. According to 2012 analyses, the canton of Geneva releases around 4.3 million tons of CO2 per year, nearly 10 tons per inhabitant. (République et Canton de Genève 2015) The largest polluter is the building sector, which contributes 46% of the emissions. (Ibid.) Heating in particular in this sector should be reduced by 30% according to the canton’s climate plan. The plan is not, however, the only document that has been produced addressing a strategy for reducing Geneva’s carbon footprint. Noé 21, a local organization whose aim is to identify, evaluate, and promote climate change solutions, had already released its own plan for local emissions reductions in 2009. In it, Noé 21 proposed a plan that would apply recommendations made by the IPCC for industrialized countries: a 40% reduction in CO2 by 2020, and a 95% reduction by 2050. Noé 21 released a follow-up report the year after on what if anything had improved. The conclusion: Geneva was not on track to meet IPCC goals. Nevertheless, Noé 21 concluded at the time that “solutions exist for reducing emissions across the board by 2020 and that these solutions are both technical and behavioral. What is missing, at the moment, is the will to take action – the political will, but also the will of each inhabitant of Geneva.” (Noé 21 2010: 24)
See also: biophilic cities, sustainable development goals
Related interview: Philippe de Rougement