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Realising the commitments of the Paris Agreement will require concerted, concrete action for many years to come. Though the vast majority of countries in the world have clear goals in the form of nationally determined contributions (NDCs), these are not action plans, nor are the goals strong enough to actually keep global average temperature from rising above 2° Celsius. So despite knowing what needs to be done, and committing to ambitious, laudable targets, many governments are now asking themselves: where do we start?In short, policy makers face a clear choice: they can lock in highly polluting infrastructure that damages the climate and human health, or chart a different course – one that delivers low-carbon growth, cleaner air and a sharp improvement in health, averting millions of preventable deaths each year from air pollution while at the same time taking significant steps towards meeting targets under the Paris Agreement. Much of this revolves around two keys: cities and electrification.Cities dominate energy demand, and by extension are responsible for a significant share of carbon emissions. As IEA’s Energy Technology Perspectives 2016 highlighted, the world’s urban areas accounted for about 64 per cent of global primary energy use and produced 70 per cent of the planet’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in 2013. These shares will rise as cities grow and urban economic activity expands. As the world seeks to make more efficient use of its energy resources, increase energy security and meet global climate targets, it is essential that cities take a leading role in the energy transition.Leadership must of course start from the top; policy at the national level must encourage the deployment of clean-energy technologies, and include greenhouse gas emission reduction targets (such as those under the Paris Agreement), carbon-pricing mechanisms, and investment in energy research, development and demonstration.But these targets must then be complemented by action at the local level. To meet their renewable energy targets, cities can invest in data collection and dissemination, sustainable infrastructure, and programmes and regulations that encourage efficient use of energy resources. This could include providing detailed solar maps, giving valuable information on expected energy yields and installation costs for buildings and houses in various neighbourhoods. On transportation and fossil fuel emissions, cities can invest in the long-term development of walking and cycling infrastructure. For energy efficiency, cities can take a leading role in adopting, monitoring and enforcing building energy codes for new construction. For example in Morocco, the host country for COP22, the “green mosque” programme has led to the renovation of about 600 mosques in towns and cities across the country to be more energy efficient, resulting in a reduction in energy use on average by 40 per cent.There is growing momentum behind the role of the city in taking action on climate and sustainability. Ten years ago the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group was established as a global network of cities that are developing and implementing policies to reduce emissions. Today, the C40 network consists of more than 75 cities, representing more than 550 million people. As part of the C40 network, the IEA’s host city of Paris has committed to DR FATIH BIROL, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AGENCY (IEA)CLEAN, EFFICIENT CITIES ARE KEY TO THE PARIS AGREEMENT“THERE IS GROWING MOMENTUM BEHIND THE ROLE OF THE CITY IN TAKING ACTION ON CLIMATE AND SUSTAINABILITY ”098 GLOBAL VOICES