The City of Melbourne, Melbourne Centre for Cities and Melbourne Climate Futures are pleased to be co-hosting this timely public event exploring how global climate science, city leadership, and local action are shaping the road to COP31.

As climate impacts accelerate, cities are on the frontline experiencing rising heat, flooding, and growing pressure on infrastructure, communities, and systems. Yet cities are also where some of the most immediate and effective climate solutions are developed and delivered.

Join us for a timely and engaging public event exploring how global climate science, city leadership, and local action are shaping the road to COP31 and what this means for Melbourne and cities worldwide.

Drawing on the latest insights from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), including emerging “overshoot” findings, this event will unpack:

What the latest climate science tells us about cities, including risks, adaptation limits, and compounding impacts

Why cities are first responders to climate change—and critical solution hubs across transport, buildings, energy, and nature

How cities can influence ambition, finance, and delivery within the COP31 agenda

Who is most vulnerable—and how youth and community-led action is shaping climate responses

This event brings together global, national, and local perspectives to explore how cities can lead in this decisive decade and help shape the COP31 agenda from the ground up.

Event format

Keynote presentations

A fireside conversation on what this means for Australia and COP31

A panel discussion featuring city leaders, researchers, and youth voices focused on what cities must do now

Speakers include:

Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece, City of Melbourne

Mark Watts, Executive Director, C40 Cities
Jess Miller, Deputy Lord Mayor, City of Sydney

Cathy Oke, Director, Melbourne Centre for Cities

Kaj Lofgren, CEO, Regen Melbourne

Clancy Lester, BeesAndBlossoms and Youth Climate Action Fund Grantee 2025
Samuel Hickman, member of the Youth Advisory Council on International Climate Change
Elmira Jamei, Associate Director of Research Engagement and Impact at the Victoria University Institute for Sustainable Industries and Liveable Cities
Krista Milne, Director of Climate Change and City Resilience, City of Melbourne

Light refreshments will be provided.

This event is proudly delivered in partnership with:

Melbourne Centre for Cities

Melbourne Climate Futures

Contact the host of Cities, Global Climate Science and Action