Vincent Chauvet, Mayor of Autun, France, is calling on the French government to support his proposal to introduce regional Conference of Parties (COP) ahead of an expected official announcement on 17 July. 

France recently announced it is currently looking into the opportunity of installing regional COPs as a means to bring the green transition to the local and regional levels. At COP26 and COP27 as a member of the European Committee of the Regions delegation, Chauvet called for local and regional authorities to start organising local and regional COPs in their communities. 

“Local authorities should have a real say in the green transition. With regional COPs, they are not in charge, but it remains important to highlight that the conferences should be at the regional level as it’s the right level to hold the debate and to implement and collaborate on initiatives,” he said. 

This would ensure citizens and businesses gain ownership of the green deal and the battle against climate change helping to reach the Paris Agreement goals. Moreover, it would allow them to gather field information that could be trickled up to the national and international levels, providing concrete local know-how and best practices. 

“The EU has set itself to be a leader in COP negotiations and must thus deliver impactful actions towards its target, which implies co-creation and cooperation with local and regional authorities. In this sense, it calls on UNFCCC to cooperate with the CoR to further promote the frontrunner experience if local and regional COPs,” added Chauvet.