Climate Group is a nonprofit organization that works to create a world with no net carbon emissions by the year 2050. The organization operates worldwide and has offices in the United Kingdom (its main office), Europe, North America, India, and China. Climate Group manages the Under2 Coalition, which is the largest group of state and regional governments worldwide that have pledged to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to net zero levels by 2050 or before. As of 2024, the Under2 Coalition includes 178 local and regional governments, along with a larger network of national governments and regional groups that represent 1.75 billion people and 50% of the world’s economy.
History
Climate Group was started in 2003 and officially launched in 2004 by Prime Minister Tony Blair, Steve Howard (former CEO and co-founder), Jim Walker (former Chief Operating Officer), and Alison Lucas (former Communications Director). Former Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, supported the group during its launch. The organization grew from research led by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and was created to encourage more large companies and local governments to take action on climate change.
The first U.S. office opened in 2006 in Oakland, California, followed by a New York office in 2007. Additional offices opened in Beijing, Brussels, and Hong Kong in 2008, in India in 2009, and in Amsterdam in 2022.
In 2005, Climate Group started the States and Regions Alliance at COP11 in Montreal. This initiative connected state, regional, provincial, and local governments worldwide to create a global network for sharing knowledge and advancing climate action. In May 2015, before COP21, the Under2 Coalition was formed by the governments of California and Baden-Württemberg to encourage strong climate action from cities, states, and regions globally.
In 2009, Climate Group held its first Climate Week NYC summit to support efforts for a new global climate agreement at COP15 in Copenhagen. That same year, Climate Group began work on electric vehicles through EV20, a global program aimed at speeding up the use of electric cars.
In 2011, Mark Kenber became CEO, replacing Steve Howard. In 2017, Helen Clarkson became CEO after Mark Kenber left in 2016. SteelZero was officially launched on December 1, 2020, with a group of companies committed to its goals. ConcreteZero started in July 2022. Later that year, in September, EV100+ was launched as an expansion of the EV100 program, focusing on transitioning medium- and heavy-duty vehicles to zero emissions by 2040.
The current chair of the Climate Group UK board is Mike Rann AC, CNZM.
Events
Climate Group organizes many events around the world, including Climate Week NYC, the biggest climate event each year. This event happens in New York City and includes about 600 activities, which can be attended in person, online, or through a mix of both. It takes place at the same time as the United Nations General Assembly and is coordinated with the United Nations and the City of New York. This allows leaders from governments and other organizations to attend and take part.
Since 2009, Climate Week NYC has happened every September. It brings together leaders from business, government, and civil society to share examples of climate action around the world. In 2024, the event featured 212 speakers from different countries and had over 6,000 people attending in person or online. More than 900 events were held in New York City during the week. This was the largest Climate Group event so far, reaching 31.6 billion people through media and having over 955 million views of the hashtag #ClimateWeekNYC.
Climate Group also hosts the US Climate Action Summit and the Climate Group Asia Action Summit. These events bring together leaders and experts from specific regions to work on important climate goals.
The US Climate Action Summit started in 2021. It brings together leaders from business, politics, and other sectors to support climate action in the United States. The event happens in Washington, DC, and focuses on creating clear results for climate policies and business efforts. The Leaders’ Forum, the main event of the summit, gathers more than 200 climate leaders. This event includes large discussions on stage and smaller meetings where leaders can talk in detail about important topics.
COP
Climate Group actively participates in the COP process, especially through the Under2 Coalition, which includes states and regions worldwide. The first Under2 Coalition General Assembly took place at COP21 in Marrakech in November 2016. Since then, the group has met annually to encourage collaboration between national and regional governments globally. At COP29, the main focus of UN climate talks was finance, specifically the amount needed to keep global temperature increases below 1.5 degrees Celsius. Extreme weather events, such as wildfires and floods, have damaged infrastructure and affected lives, making climate finance more important than ever. After negotiations, developed countries pledged 300 billion U.S. dollars annually, with a goal of increasing this to 1.3 trillion U.S. dollars by 2035. However, COP29 did not take action on a commitment made in 2023 to move away from fossil fuels.
During the second week of COP29, at the ninth Under2 Coalition General Assembly, Governor Jay Inslee of Washington State gave a keynote speech, emphasizing the importance of state-level leadership. He noted that recent U.S. elections and the new administration would not stop progress but could speed up climate action. He stated, "We are not just subnationals, we are supernationals, because we always act faster than the federal level. This election can help us take climate action more quickly."
At COP29, subnational governments in the Under2 Coalition shared creative ways to fund and plan climate solutions. Lombardy’s Minister of Environment and Climate, Giorgio Maione, discussed the "Next Generation Budgets" project, created with North Rhine Westphalia’s government.
At the Subnational Climate Action Leaders Exchange (SCALE) event, leaders launched the Zero Emissions & Resilient Buildings (ZERB) Accelerator to reduce emissions from buildings. Under2 Coalition members, including Maryland, Washington State, and Bogotá, supported the SCALE initiative, highlighting the need for better coordination between local and national governments.
During COP29, Climate Group signed a letter organized by the We Mean Business Coalition and Mission 2025, urging G20 leaders to take strong action at their summit. This letter stressed the importance of setting ambitious climate goals and increasing financial support for climate efforts.
At COP28 in 2023, members of the Under2 Coalition made several important announcements to address climate change. For example, Catalonia and California started a global partnership to help countries adapt to and reduce climate impacts. Scotland pledged funding for clean energy in three African countries, and New South Wales shared a report on nature-based solutions through the Net Zero Futures Policy Forum, showing examples of progress in Australia.
Membership
The climate group connects a global network of more than 800 businesses, governments, and other signatories.
More than 420 members are creating enough demand for renewable electricity to power a country larger than France.
Nearly 130 companies in almost 100 countries are working to switch their vehicle fleets to electric vehicles (EVs) by 2030. These companies also plan to install EV charging stations for employees and customers by that year. This effort includes a commitment to 5.6 million electric vehicles by 2030.
Over 120 members have implemented energy efficiency measures that have reduced CO2 emissions by more than 320 million metric tonnes. This amount is greater than the combined annual emissions of France and Switzerland.
Climate Group Programmes
Climate Group focuses on important areas such as energy, transportation, heavy industry, and food. Its programs include:
RE100 is a global program that brings together leading companies working to switch completely to electricity from renewable sources, like wind and solar. Its goal is to help create electricity systems with no carbon emissions and show governments and investors how important it is to support this change.
EP100 is a global program for companies that want to improve how efficiently they use energy. These companies track and share their progress. So far, members have saved US$1.2 billion and reduced their emissions more than the total emissions from Denmark, Italy, and Portugal in one year.
EV100 is a global program for companies that want to increase the use of electric vehicles (EVs) and make them the usual choice for transportation by 2030. Members are helping to increase demand for EVs, influence policies, and make EVs more affordable for everyone.
EV100+ started in 2022. It is a program for companies that want to switch their large vehicles, such as trucks and buses, to zero-emission models by 2040 in countries like those in the OECD, China, and India.
The Future Fund began in 2017. It has collected US$1 million from members of the Under2 Coalition and supported 15 projects to help build climate-related skills. It also helped 21 people work on climate projects, brought 88 regions from developing and emerging countries into the Under2 Coalition, and allowed 65 regional representatives to attend international climate events, such as COPs and Climate Week NYC.
Funding
Climate Group operates on its own and is not controlled by any companies or government groups. It uses income from many different sources to fund its work. When it was started in 2004, it received most of its support from charitable organizations, such as the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, the DOEN Foundation, the John D and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation. Climate Group is registered with the Fundraising Regulator. According to its 2022-2023 annual report, the three main sources of funding were: government and foundation grants (50%), income from event sponsorships, including Climate Week NYC and other smaller events (25%), and money from memberships and partnerships (25%).