Last Mile Sustainability: Exploring the Contradictory Spaces of Green Municipal Bonds

As the international community attempts to meet the 1.5 degree Celsius goal set out by the Paris Agreement, continued geopolitical gridlock and reliance on fossil fuels have left a major gap for countries to meet their climate targets. It is clear that this effort will require all countries and sectors to commit to a net-zero emissions economy, yet individual nations and corporations are not acting fast enough to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, cities are on the frontlines and increasingly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change—from deadly heatwaves scorching London to rising sea-levels engulfing the sinking city of Jakarta. With more than two-thirds of the world's population expected to live in urban areas by 2050 according to the United Nations, how are cities adapting to climate change? Nico explores the contradictory use of green municipal bonds and climate finance, one of the fastest growing sectors in the economy, as a way for cities to achieve net-zero emissions and bring about just transitions on the ground.

Nico Jimenez is a second-year PhD student in the Department Geography at the University of British Columbia. His research is concerned with the changing form and function of urban governance. Situated at the nexus of urban political economy and political ecology, his work examines how cities are shaped in relation and response to state policies, market processes, and prescient crises. Originally from Vancouver (Coast Salish Territory), Nico received his BA (First Class, Honours) in Geography and Political Science from UBC and MPhil in Geographical Research from the University of Cambridge. In his spare time, you can find Nico reading C.S. Lewis, eating sushi, in community, or on the dance floor.