Estimating the GHG impact of city-level policies across Canada

There is an ever-intensifying conversation regarding the role that cities have in response to climate concerns. Many local governments have set ambitious targets and climate action plans, especially within Canada's major metropolitan regions. I used CIMS-Urban, a land-use model linked to an energy-economy model, to estimate the potential impact local and senior government climate efforts can have on national greenhouse gas emissions. My research suggests that local-level policies, aggregated to a national scale, can achieve significant greenhouse gas reductions. However, they will not achieve the necessary deep reductions needed for announced 2050 targets without stringent policies implemented by senior governments.