Cities and urban centres play a key role in addressing climate change. They are essential to reducing global carbon emissions while being highly vulnerable to climate risks. Cities account for 70% of global carbon emissions and are highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change with USD 4 trillion worth of urban assets in jeopardy before 2030. As only 15% of climate finance reaches cities through traditional mechanisms, innovative financing solutions are urgently required.

The City Finance Lab is a dedicated platform supporting the development of innovative, replicable and scalable financing solutions which increase investment in climate-resilient, low-carbon and green urban projects for sustainable cities.

The City Finance Lab:

• supports financing innovations by bringing together leading city finance experts from public, private and philanthropic organisations to develop and improve their ideas.
• stimulates the scaling up and replication of these innovative urban financing solutions.
• mobilises public and private finance for the sustainable transitions of cities.

The 2018 selected and supported innovative financing solutions can be found here.

Technical advisory

The City Finance Lab organises an annual call for the most promising innovative financing solutions.

Submitting an idea to the City Finance Lab yields two major benefits for the proponent:

• selected ideas receive technical advisory from leading city finance experts, as well as in-kind macro-level guidance from leaders of prominent public, private and philanthropic sector organisations.
• selected ideas become part of a network that can provide political and financial support and showcase their ideas to stimulate scaling and replication.

Submit an idea

Read more about the City Finance Lab

Background

Cities and urban centres are key to tackling climate change. They are essential to reducing global carbon emissions while being highly vulnerable to climate risks.

How it works

The City Finance Lab provides tailored technical advisory to innovative financing solutions and stimulates scaling and replication.

Supported initiatives

The City Finance Lab supported five innovative financing initiatives for cities in its first cycle.

Submit an idea

The two-step submission process of the City Finance Lab ensures that proposals are aligned with its objectives.

Supporters

The City Finance Lab Committee is made up of high-level city finance experts from leading public and private sector organisations.

Get involved

The City Finance Lab aims to accelerate the development of innovative financial solutions to mobilise EUR 500 million over the next five years for the investment in climate-resilient, low-carbon and green urban projects for sustainable cities.