Work

Crisis as catalyst? Exploring cities’ climate emergency declarations for transformative urban governance

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Deep into the ‘Climate Decade’, radical and swift action to avert and prepare for climate disaster remains absent in cities, hindered by pervasive institutional barriers. In this perspective, we propose capacities for transformative urban governance as a lens to study the diffuse, institutional impacts of local governments’ declarations of ‘climate emergency’. We aim to illustrate an alternative approach to evaluating trans-municipal policy phenomena such as Climate Emergency Declarations – one that moves beyond linear assessments of policy progress and instead focuses on changes in urban governance arrangements. Drawing on existing scholarly reviews, we explore whether and how Climate Emergency Declarations reshape underlying governance conditions to support the pursuit of transformative change. In doing so, we foster a dialogue between reviews of Climate Emergency Declarations and Urban Transitions and Transformations research. This allows us to derive strategic directions for advancing transformative urban governance through Climate Emergency Declarations. Furthermore, Climate Emergency Declarations open new research avenues within Urban Transitions and Transformations scholarship to engage with the fear, grief, and conflicts arising from the urgency and threats associated with the climate crisis. Transformative governance capacities to assess cities’ Climate Emergency Declarations (CEDs). CEDs offer opportunities for institutional learning beyond linear policy progress. Transformative urban governance capacities support critical reflection on changes in urban governance. CEDs open research directions on fear, grief, and conflict in transformative urban governance.

Source: Urban Transformations

DOI: 10.1186/s42854-025-00081-x

Authors: Katharina Hölscher, Emilia Smeds, Jonas Torrens, Kathryn Davidson, Tessa de Geus, Niki Frantzeskaki

Institutions: Utrecht University, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, The University of Melbourne

Language: English

Topic: Sustainability and Climate Change Governance

Subfield: Global and Planetary Change

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Sustainable cities and communities, Climate action, Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,140