C40 and Novo Nordisk partner to show benefits of green policies

The C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40) has teamed up with global health care company Novo Nordisk to establish an evidence base aimed at helping mayors push through climate change projects.

C40 will draw on Novo Nordisk’s research teams to flesh out green policies, which have benefits for the environment and the health of citizens.

Speaking exclusively to Cities Today, Mark Watts, Executive Director, C40 said: “This is not a high level academic project. We will be conducting practical assessments of what cities need to come up with for concrete proposals aimed at generating environmental, health and economic benefits.”

Novo Nordisk Executive Vice President Jakob Riis pointed out that city lifestyles are contributing to a diabetes epidemic. Two-thirds of the world’s 415 million people living with the condition can be found in urban areas. Meanwhile, the rapid rise of cities accounts for two-thirds of global energy consumption and more than 70 percent of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

“If we do not work together, we cannot solve the problem of diabetes,” said Riis. “We want to address the root cause, which is how we live in cities.”

The pair pointed to the work done in Mexico City as an example of the sort of evidence the partnership will be delivering. Once the most polluted city on the planet, a monitoring network was introduced to measure air quality, alongside new policies, which have led to a reduction in pollutants. The project is now recognised as one of the most successful and long-lasting health protection programmes in Mexico.

“Mexico City has seen first hand how policies based on scientific data from the city’s air quality monitoring system and designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions can have far reaching positive effects on the health and wellbeing of our citizens,” commented Miguel Ángel Mancera, Mayor of Mexico City.

As a leader in the field of diabetes and drawing upon its first-hand experience from the Cities Changing Diabetes programme, Novo Nordisk will act as an expert consultant to researchers exploring the health co-benefits of climate action. Key to this contribution will be the sharing of learnings from the Cities Changing Diabetes study–the world’s largest study of urban diabetes led by University College London and supported by Novo Nordisk.

Drawing once again on the example set by Mexico City, Riis pointed out the efforts that have gone into improving the water supply. Improving the quality of drinking water means people are less likely to drink sugary drinks and therefore less likely to suffer from diabetes.

Watts concluded: “Green policies provide cleaner air, new jobs, increased city revenue and many other benefits. By more clearly identifying these co-benefits, C40 believes this research will allow mayors and urban policy makers to make an even stronger case for taking climate action in cities around the world.”