Over 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions are produced in urban areas, making local climate leadership critical. Since the 1990s, local government policies have advanced climate action, but today’s complex information environment poses increasing obstacles to the development and impact of local climate policies.
This report examines the challenges of communication around local climate action—especially when local policies face the spread of false or misleading information, whether intentional (disinformation) or unintentional (misinformation). We examine the actors involved, techniques used, and the impacts on policy development and implementation, and we propose a framework for local governments to respond.
Ultimately, we argue that robust communications around climate must go beyond providing accurate information, and should aim to promote public trust, foster dialogue with communities, and address their genuine concerns. Local governments must pair effective policymaking with proactive communication at every stage of climate policy development.
Local governments, working with communities, businesses, and civil society groups, have often taken the lead on tackling climate change. Now, they must do the same to build better climate conversations.
Report Credits
Authors: Divija Madhani, Ghassan Hamzeh, Madalen Sides, Nicolas Côté, Chris Tenove, Heidi Tworek
Additional Research: Nishtha Gupta, Mark Shakespear
Report Design: Oliver McPartlin
Graphic Design: Divija Madhani
Additional acknowledgments are available in the report.
Citation: Madhani, D., Hamzeh, G., Sides, M., Côté, N., Tenove, C., Tworek, H. (2025). Municipal Matters: Building Capacity for Local Climate Conversations. Vancouver: Centre for the Study of Democratic Institutions, University of British Columbia.
Publication info: Copyright © 2025; Centre for the Study of Democratic Institutions; University of British Columbia. This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0).