The first C40 Large Cities Climate Summit was hosted by the Mayor and Deputy Mayor of London in October 2005. The purpose of the meeting was to create long-term international collaborations among large cities in order to drive down carbon emissions and encourage cities to work with businesses and national governments to accelerate action on climate change. The 2005 summit included representatives of large cities such as Beijing, Chicago, Johannesburg, New York, Paris and Sao Paolo, as well as exemplar cities, such as Seattle and Stockholm, which were on the forefront of efforts to reverse climate change. As an outcome of the summit, the C40 Large Cities Climate Leadership Group was formed and entered into a partnership with the Clinton Climate Initiative, led by former United States President William J. Clinton.

New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and a group of private corporate underwriters that are engaged in efforts to address climate change and encourage the use of renewable energy and green construction will host the summit on behalf of the C40 and the Clinton Climate Initiative. The event is being organized by the Partnership for New York City, with support from New York Global Partners, Inc., the Climate Group, the Rockefeller Brother’s Fund & ICLEI USA.

The sponsors are inviting the mayors of select cities, as well as those cities’ chief climate or energy official and a few business leaders, with the expectation of about 250 delegates in total. Throughout the four-day event, delegates will share best practices, identify collaborative projects and chart future actions relative to reversing dangerous climate change and realizing economic development benefits.