Now in line for international recognition, the City of Johannesburg has been selected as the national winner of WWF’s One Planet City Challenge (OPCC) for 2022. This year, 280 cities from over 50 countries participated, with 19 national winners named.
“WWF would like to congratulate the City of Johannesburg on being a worthy national winner. The climate actions and strategies of South African cities are on par with the rest of the world and Johannesburg was up against some stiff competition for the top national slot. We now keenly await the announcement of the international winners,” said Innocentia Modau, project manager for WWF SA’s Urban Futures Programme.
High ambition, concrete actions
The jury commended Johannesburg on the leadership displayed in publishing a new climate action plan that is comprehensive and includes a zero-emission reduction target, along with concrete actions to achieve it.
In its citation, the jury said that the city’s strategy and mitigation targets have a high ambition for the energy, building, and transport sectors. There is also a robust assessment of the city’s climate risk. The jury was further impressed with the inclusive process Johannesburg used.
Entrants were measured against rigorous criteria that included ambitious climate targets, bold leadership, ability to meet upcoming challenges, and a holistic climate action plan that is well balanced towards their goals.
