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The new climate leaders?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 February 2013

MICHELE ACUTO
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Abstract

Little interest has thus far been paid to the role of cities in world politics. Yet, several are the examples of city-based engagements suggesting an emerging urban presence in international relations. The Climate Leadership Group, despite its recent lineage, is perhaps the most significant case of metropolitan intersection with global governance. To illustrate this I rely on Actor-Network Theory (ANT) to develop a qualitative network analysis of the evolution of the C40 in the past seven years from a limited gathering of municipal leaders to a transnational organisation partnering with the World Bank. Pinpointed on the unfolding of a twin diplomacy/planning approach, the evolution of the C40 can demonstrate the key role of global cities as actors in global environmental politics. These cities have a pivotal part in charting new geographies of climate governance, prompting the rise of subpolitical policymaking arrangements pinpointed on innovative and hybrid connections. Yet, there remains some important rational continuity, in particular with neoliberalism, which ultimately limits the revolutionary potential these cities might have for international relations.

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Articles
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Review of International Studies , Volume 39 , Issue 4 , October 2013 , pp. 835 - 857
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Copyright © British International Studies Association 2013 

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References

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34 Ibid.

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38 Mayor Michael Bloomberg's opening speech, C40 São Paulo Summit (1 June 2011), emphasis added.

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