The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development that the 193 United Nations Member States adopted on September 25, 2015 looks to reconcile "people, planet, and profit", acting through 17 Sustainable Development Goals and associated targets. Relatedly, on December 12, 2015, the 195 members of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change signed the Paris Agreement to deal with greenhouse gas emissions mitigation, adaptation, and finance.

Cities are responsible for more than 70% of global carbon dioxide emissions and should play a critical role in achieving the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement. SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities & Communities), for example, can act as a guiding theme to synergize progress toward SDG 6 (Clean Water & Sanitation), SDG 7 (Affordable & Clean Energy), and SDG 13 (Climate Action). Cities have also been tasked with delivering the bulk of the nationally determined contributions to the Paris Agreement that each country committed to.

Latin America and the Caribbean is the most urbanized developing region on the planet, with more than 80% of the population living in cities. What approaches to localizing climate action (e.g., systems approaches to delivery and maintenance of infrastructure, multilevel governance arrangements, pilot programs) might Latin American and Caribbean cities share with the world?