Cities 1.5

The winds of change are blowing through the world’s maritime hubs…despite some national governments’ efforts to the contrary. While the shipping industry carries 90% of global trade, it also leaves a heavy carbon trail in its wake. In this episode of Cities 1.5, we explore the high-stakes transformation of our global ports: once seen as industrial hotspots of pollution, these urban harbours are emerging as the front lines of the green transition. We dive into the groundbreaking "Green Shipping Corridors" that are linking sustainable cities, and the bold shift toward zero-emission fuels. From local air quality to global supply chains, discover how cities are turning the tide on emissions and steering the industry toward a 1.5°C future. It’s time to rethink the horizon: clearer skies and smoother sailing ahead.
Featured guests: 
Eric Garcetti, C40 Ambassador for Global Climate Diplomacy and former Mayor of Los Angeles
Alisa Kreynes, Director of Ports and Shipping at C40
Featured clips:
The Shipping Forecast - BBC Radio 4
Global shipping emissions vote on a knife edge at IMO - BBC Business Today
Links:
Greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution from global shipping, 2016–2023 - The International Council on Clean Transportation
A guide to the IMO’s Net-Zero Framework - Global Maritime Forum
Landmark deal to cut global shipping emissions in tatters after US pressure - BBC News
Ports and Shipping - C40 Knowledge Hub
Green shipping corridors programme - C40 Cities website
From Los Angeles to Shanghai, the port cities collaborating to cut shipping emissions - Reuters
Green Ports Forum - C40 Cities website
Why should we talk about a 'just and equitable' transition for shipping? - UN Trade and Development
Rescuing shipping's Net Zero Framework - Climate Analytics
Cities take the global stage to showcase climate action at the IMO for the first time - C40 Cities website
If you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/
Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeries
Cities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/
Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.
Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.
Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/
Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/
Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

From fossil fuel lobbying to coordinated political disinformation campaigns, vested interests have built a profitable disinformation infrastructure designed to spread confusion, polarize debate, and exhaust the public. The good news is that the world is waking up. For the first time in the history of the COP, a Declaration on Information Integrity was agreed upon, with governments committing to address climate disinformation and promote accurate, evidence-based information globally.
But we need to go further upstream - instead of simply fighting falsehoods, we need to build ecosystems where truth can take root and flourish. In this episode, we look to Brazil and speak to an individual who was integral in bringing information integrity both to COP and the international agenda. She makes the case for cities as one of the most powerful forces in reclaiming the narrative, building the infrastructure of truth from the ground up - one community at a time.
Featured guest: 
Thais Lazzeri, Investigative Journalist and Founder of FALA
Links:
Declaration on Information Integrity on Climate Change - UNESCO
Integrity Information Observatory - Oii
Mentiro Tem Preco (Lies Have a Price)
Climate Information Integrity
5 Million Acts for Truth - FALA
Tomorrow is today - YouTube (Portuguese)
500 Grams of Life - Thais Lazzeri (Portuguese) 
‘Democracy on the line’: Brazil’s election and the Bolsonaro disinformation ecosystem - Columbia Journalism Review
Environmental and Climatic Disinformation in Northern Brazil: Dynamics and Impact in the Context of COP-30 - Heinrich Boll Stiftung
Environmental journalism and the struggle against disinformation in Brazil - Frontiers in Communication
If you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/
Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeries
Cities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/
Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.
Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.
Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/
Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/
Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

As our lives become increasingly digital, the infrastructure powering them is sparking a global debate: we need data centres, but at what cost to the climate and our access to energy? These massive facilities are the backbone of everything from streaming to AI, yet they consume staggering amounts of electricity and water, often straining local grids and and in some cases, threatening to derail decarbonisation efforts.
In this episode of Cities 1.5, we explore how Ireland became the "canary in the coalmine" for this issue. With data centres projected to consume nearly 30% of the nation’s electricity by 2030, the Irish experience serves as a critical warning – and a roadmap – for cities worldwide. We examine the tension between economic ambition and climate mandates, questioning how urban leaders can manage the rapid expansion of digital infrastructure without derailing net-zero goals. Join us as we dive into the lessons learned from the frontlines of the data centre boom and what they mean for the future of sustainable cities.
Featured guest: 
Professor Hannah Daly, Professor of Sustainable Energy at University College Cork
Links:
Ireland’s data centre boom is driving up fossil fuel dependence - The Irish Times, by Professor Hannah Daly
Data Centres Metered Electricity Consumption 2024 - Central Statistics Office
Energy for who? Data centres and the grid - Friends of the Earth Ireland
How Big Tech wrote secrecy into EU law to hide environmental toll - The Journal Investigates
What Ireland’s Data Center Crisis Means for the EU’s AI Sovereignty Plans -  AlgorithmWatch
Ireland’s data centre policy reset: The end of the blanket moratorium -  KPMG Ireland
Google’s Dublin data centre blocked amid energy usage concerns - Tech Monitor
Data Centres Ireland – Energy, Growth and the Grid Debate - Enable Research
If you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/
Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeries
Cities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/
Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.
Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.
Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/
Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/
Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

Ready for a ride? In this episode, we’re celebrating the inaugural World Public Transport Day, created by the International Association of Public Transport (UITP), along with its global partners, and we explore why public transport is the beating heart of our cities. From the "rolling focus groups" on Melbourne’s iconic trams to the colorful jeepneys of the Philippines, we share personal stories of connection from urban centres across the globe.
But it’s not just about the journey: we dive into the hard policy making it happen. Discover how Mexico City’s Metro uses unique icons to bridge literacy gaps, how Salvador is empowering women through "Women behind the Wheel," and how Amman’s new electric fleet is clearing the air. Hop on for a celebration of the journeys that move us all!
Special thanks to Mariana Batista, C40 Senior Manager for Public Transport, for her assistance in providing both translation and production support for this episode.
Featured guests: 
Nobuntu Ciko Duze, Deputy Director of Transport Systems Management, Johannesburg
Nick Reece, Lord Mayor of Melbourne
Jim Duran Mayerstein, Senior Manager, Zero-Emission Bus Rapid Deployment Accelerator (ZEBRA) at C40
Sonto Ziqubu, C40 Executive Office Coordinator
Adriana de Jesus Ferreira, Bus Driver and Mulheres no Volante beneficiary
Yousef Al Shawarbeh, Mayor of Amman
Mark Watts, Executive Director of C40 Cities
Links: 
The Transit City that could’ve been - The Ethnic Aisle
Zero emission transport - C40 Cities
Transport Sector Analysis - International Energy Agency
Completing the Trip - World Resources Institute
I got inked by the world’s oldest tattoo artist - CNN Style
Mexico City’s Metro Icons - Mexican Routes
Infographic: Joburg by taxi - Brand South Africa
Women Behind the Wheel project - Salvador City Hall
If you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/
Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeries
Cities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/
Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.
Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.
Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/
Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/
Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

Cities aren’t just structures. They’re people. In the rapidly urbanising cities of the global majority, many of those people are migrant workers.  They often work informally, with limited protection when shocks hit. At the same time, they are vital to propping up and rebuilding cities after climate disasters. In this week’s Cities 1.5 podcast episode, host David Miller speaks to Ritwika Basu, an environmental social scientist and urbanist who researches this invisible labour in small and medium-sized cities in India.
Featured guests:
Ritwika Basu, Environmental Social Scientist and Urbanist, and one of the guest editors of the Journal City Climate Policy and Economy’s soon to be released Special Issue on Adaptation and Resilience in Cities of the Majority World: Advancing Equity and Justice in Practice, and Author of “Hidden Infrastructure of Urban Resilience: Labor, Precarity, and Economic Adaptation in India” which will be released to open access on April 15, 2026.
Links:
Resilient Cities (and how to build them) - Cities 1.5
Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy
Resources on Urban Climate Resilience - C40 Knowledge Hub
Good Green Jobs and Labour Migration: Opportunities for Urban Leaders - C40 Knowledge Hub
If you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/
Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeries
Cities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/
Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.
Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.
Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/
Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/
Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/