Celebrating 25 years of ICLEI in Europe: The road towards a sustainable future

By Gino van Begin, Secretary General, ICLEI

A quarter century after the European Secretariat of ICLEI–Local Governments for Sustainability was set up, transformative action by its network of cities, towns and regions continues to define new ways of thinking and acting to advance sustainable development across Europe

Over the past 25 years, ICLEI has demonstrated that environmental action is inextricably linked with more sustainable economies and more equitable social dynamics.

The idea to establish a network of local governments was born in 1989 when 35 local government leaders from Canada and the United States jointly decided to establish local laws to address a pressing issue: rapid dep...