Data is increasingly being used to accelerate the development of innovative climate mitigation and adaptation initiatives worldwide. Local and regional governments, civil society, private sector and research organisations have been working to use and explore the different sources of data to plan and execute integrated climate action strategies, improving environmental quality, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and enhancing local climate resilience.

The changing climate and unforeseen shocks such as the Covid-19 pandemic have made cities rethink their climate and resilience planning processes. Cities need to be prepared to respond faster and provide transparent information to the citizens that can bring tangible improvements on the quality of life: mobility, housing, air quality, public spaces, etc. For this, new sources of data and information that could provide input to facilitate their decision-making process is crucial.

This session aims to open the debate on the need for cities for integrated climate action under data-driven decision-making processes. We will hear from practitioners how data can enhance integrated climate action and facilitate better decision-making processes at a local level.  Cities and key stakeholders will share their experiences in turning data into actionable insights to identify and implement innovative projects to improve local environmental quality, enhance sustainable mobility and provide healthier public spaces in cities.

ICLEI and Google will take the opportunity to present for the first time a report with the results of a methodological assessment on how data from the Google Environmental Insights Explorer (EIE) tool could support integrated climate action based on a deep dive assessment conducted in nine European cities.