Cities 1.5
Episodes
TRAILER: Cities Won't Wait
23 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As geopolitical power shifts, cities are rising to lead this urban century while nations cling to outdated systems. Season 6 of Cities 1.5 explores ho...
TEASER: Season 6 of Cities 1.5 is coming soon!
16 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the face of the accelerating climate crisis, rising authoritarianism, and geopolitical shifts, national governments are faltering…but cities a...
HOT TAKE: It’s Grand Ol’ Bargain, Alright (for Canada’s fossil-fuel companies)
11 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to Cities 1.5 Hot Takes: Dispatches from the Frontlines of the Climate Crisis. Hot Takes brings you fast, focused coverage on breaking news an...
Inside the C40 World Mayors Summit: The battle for cities, truth, and a fossil-free future at COP30 and beyond
02 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the first episode of our two-part World Mayors Summit special, we heard from mayors around the world about the power of convenings like the Summit ...
Inside the C40 World Mayors Summit: Cities throw down the gauntlet
18 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this first instalment of our two-part special from the C40 World Mayors Summit, Cities 1.5 takes you inside the flagship gathering of the world’s...
TRAILER: Join us at the C40 World Mayors Summit
04 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cities 1.5 is back with a special two-part series focused on the C40 World Mayor's Summit in Rio de Janeiro, convening just ahead of the upcoming...
Going Steady with Herman Daly: 'The seeds Herman planted'
16 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We’re joining podcasts around the world in tandem with the 80th United Nations General Assembly, to ask a vital question: where do we find hope in c...
Going Steady with Herman Daly: ‘¡No pasarán’/ É Proibido Proibir’
09 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We follow Herman Daly into one of the last places you’d expect to find a rebel economist: the World Bank. We will hear how the academic work of Herm...
Going Steady with Herman Daly: ‘For the common good’
02 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We rejoin Herman Daly in the late 1970s - a tumultuous time for our renegade economist. Partnering with theologian John Cobb Jr., Daly began to re...
Going Steady with Herman Daly: ‘The canary has fallen silent’
26 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We follow Herman from the lecture halls of Louisiana to the forests of Brazil – and through a period of global upheaval and personal transformation....
Going Steady with Herman Daly: ‘There are limits to everything’
19 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Herman Daly was a founding father of ecological economics: more than half a century ago, he warned that the pursuit of endless economic growth was dri...
TRAILER: Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)
05 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Is it time to retire the concept of growth as the sole measure of prosperity? This summer, join host David Miller for a special miniseries dedicated t...
TEASER - Going Steady: Happy Birthday, Herman Daly
22 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Herman Daly would have turned 87 years old on July 21st, 2025. While he is no longer with us, his ideas have lived on - shaping an economic future tha...
Knowledge is Power
13 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For hundreds of years, people have been pondering the power of information. In this past season of Cities 1.5, we’ve seen examples of cities from ar...
Brick by Brick: Cities and the future of clean construction
06 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The building and construction sector is responsible for a mind-boggling 37% of global greenhouse gas emissions. The kinds of construction materials we...
Why we need to adopt a Care Economy
29 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Capitalism is an illness: it’s killing our planet, and by extension, us. Economic instability and environmental concerns are symptoms that can only ...
Resilient cities (and how to build them)
22 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cities around the world are on the frontlines of climate disaster. In Lisbon, Portugal, unprecedented flooding has required the construction of signif...
Out of the frying planet and into the fire: Stories from the frontlines of climate-driven migration
15 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As global temperatures and sea-levels rise, so to does the frequency of climate-driven migration. The search for a safe, healthy, and prosperous place...
Cities as Urban Laboratories: Time to re-think what prosperity really means?
08 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As the world enters yet another period of unprecedented political and environmental tumult, it is becoming even more clear that our current economic s...
The Fate of the Inflation Reduction Act in the Second Era of Trump
01 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The United States of America’s second withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord under the Trump administration has enormous implications for both int...
Risky business: How disinformation fanned the flames of the LA wildfires...and why insurance could help mitigate future climate impacts
25 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Risk is an integral part of the human experience…but risk also needs to be managed if we are to live safe, healthy and happy lives. The recent wildf...
Dark Machines: AI, Climate Action, and the Future of Our Cities
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We live in the age of technology…in the blink of an eye, the Internet and social media have created new opportunities, jobs, and possibilities for c...
Economic Power, Urban Change: Women who are leading the way forward
11 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In times of uncertainty, leadership is key...but so is vision. As the climate crisis deepens, and people across the world are facing economic hardship...
TRAILER - Cities 1.5: It’s Time to Speak Truth to Power
25 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The world is standing on the brink…the deepening impacts of the climate crisis, rising inequality and increasing levels of economic turmoil are af...
How to protect people and planetary health: Lessons from the Peruvian Andes and New Orleans
10 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this final episode of Season 4 of Cities 1.5, David has conversations with two formidable and inspiring women who are fighting to protect the healt...
Fighting for a Biodiverse Future: How Canadian climate leaders are preserving ecosystems from their own backyards
03 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In a very Canadian episode of Cities 1.5, David discusses the urgent need for both local and global climate action with a focus on biodiversity with M...
C40 x UN Live: Portals to a flourishing world
26 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Cities 1.5, David revisits and follows up on a very special collaboration between C40 and Museum for the United Nations - UN Live w...
How to protect people and planet from misinfluencers in the Age of Disinformation
19 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Cities 1.5, David Miller speaks with Pragyna Senapati of Ripple Research about the pervasive impact of climate-related dis- and mis...
The pan-African transition from fossil fuels to clean energy
12 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Cities 1.5, David speaks with two urban climate leaders about the critical issue of energy access in Africa. Despite Africa's ...
Extreme Heat: The Silent Killer
05 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Extreme heat has a profound impact on human health - and the health of the planet, and all who live on it. In this episode, we hear firsthand accounts...
There’s no place like home...
29 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Cities 1.5, David Miller and his expert guests explore the multifaceted global housing crisis, as well as its ties to the climate c...
What does a good life mean for you?
22 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Cities 1.5, David and his guests from countries on opposite sides of the equator, South Africa and Scotland, explore how urban init...
What is the climate crisis doing to our bodies and brains?
15 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This episode delves into the intersection of the climate crisis and public health, with a particular emphasis on how the former is impacting on our bo...
A cwtch for the planet and future generations
08 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Cities 1.5, host David Miller speaks with Sophie Howe, the world's first Future Generations Commissioner about her role and th...
TRAILER - Cities 1.5 Season 4: Our Planet is Sick
01 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The climate crisis is making both the planet and its inhabitants critically ill - and it's also amplifying public health issues and creating new ...
TRAILER - Cities 1.5: The Clock is Ticking
24 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In 2016, the Paris Agreement was adopted by 194 national governments and the EU with the aim of limiting global heating to 2 degrees Celsius above pre...
Lessons in Wellbeing Economics: Engaging local communities to bring Academic Principles into Urban Practice
21 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This past January, our editorial counterparts at the the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy published an issue dedicated to Ecological Economi...
Building our way to a cleaner planet: How cities are leading the way
14 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Energy consumed by buildings accounts for almost half of cities’ carbon emissions on average. Because buildings can last over 100 years, increasing ...
Arctic impacts: The human cost of melting ice
07 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Last episode of Cities 1.5, we took you into the Arctic region through the perspectives of a world-renowned scientist and seasoned canoeist and river ...
Arctic impacts: Knowledge from the north
30 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Arctic is heating at four times the rate of the rest of the planet, and is a key indicator region for mapping the impacts of the climate crisis. G...
Solved: How the World’s Greatest Cities Are Fixing the Climate Crisis
23 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cities 1.5 Host David Miller’s book Solved: How the World’s Greatest Cities Are Fixing the Climate Crisis has just been released to paperback in a...
Fighting fossil fuels: Decarbonising cities with data mapping
16 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
By 2035, global fossil fuel use must be reduced to 50% of 2020 levels - or else we will face uncertain and serious consequences. But the fossil fuel...
TRAILER - Introducing Solved: How the World’s Great Cities Are Fixing the Climate Crisis
11 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Next time on Cities 1. 5, it's a special takeover episode! Acquisitions Editor at University of Toronto Press, Jodi Lewchuk, interviews David abo...
Funders Focus: Philanthropic efforts that are driving the fight against climate breakdown
09 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cities stand on the frontline of the climate crisis - so they must also work to create frontline policies that support the global systems change requi...
Disinformation thrives in times of crisis
02 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Efforts to address the climate crisis are under siege beneath a rising tide of mis- and disinformation, with smear campaigns often funded and coordina...
Do we all breathe the same air?
26 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Being able to breathe clean air should be a human right but, according to the World Health Organization 99% of the world’s population lives in areas...
Herman Daly’s Great Debates: The enduring vitality of Ecological Economics
19 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Ecological economics lies at the heart of the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy and C40’s mission. It recognises that the former gold stand...
Last-minute pledges and sobering science: Where is the World, Post-COP28?
12 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Last year's COP28 conference ended with a historic first: after dramatic and tense negotiations lasting deep into the night, representatives from...
Why Women are Saving the Planet
05 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The UN Women slogan for International Women’s Day 2024 is “Invest in women: Accelerate progress,” and in support of this goal we’re opening Se...
TRAILER - Cities 1.5 Season 3: Our Post-COP World & Beyond
27 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This past December, COP28 signalled the beginning of the end of the fossil fuel era. 150 heads of state came to the consensus that in order to halve e...
From global warming to global boiling: The dangerous present & future of the world’s climate
28 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has been warning us for decades that record-breaking, hot, fire- and smoke-filled summers like th...
Camino de Ecologia: Latin American Cities Innovating to Save the Planet
21 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In the face of enforced mass migration, the rising cost of recovery from increasing climate disasters, and an uncertain future without drastic and imm...
A Tale of Two Cities: A Global North & South Case Study in Resilience
14 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”: the first line of the Charles Dickens novel A Tale of Two Cities is an idea that the two ci...
Planting 1 million trees to turn the temperature down: How cities in the Global North and South are battling extreme heat
07 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
July 2023 was the hottest month globally since records began. Combine that with several months filled with a series of extreme weather events - from h...
How Cities can Divest
31 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Climate breakdown is happening, and the cost of ignoring this phenomenon will be far greater than the cost of immediate action. We know that green inv...
Beyond Growth: How cities can put people and planet first
24 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
C40 and the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy are providing an opportunity for cities to rethink conventional economic systems, like capitali...
Neoliberalism and its Discontents: Is Ecological Economics the Answer?
17 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The traditional economic concepts that the Global North has been using since WWII assume that there is an infinite planet and that pollution has no ec...
Climate communications: How to shift the narrative?
10 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we discuss what cities can do - and are already doing - to combat climate change, while also considering how cities can communicate t...
How Cities Can Strive for Climate Justice and Resilience
03 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Striving for Climate Justice and Resilience is one of the most important goals at the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy and C40 Cities. The f...
Live at London Climate Action Week: Public Transport x Good Green Jobs
26 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There’s a crucial link between good green jobs and public transport - in London, and around the world. This episode features a live podcast conversa...
How Cities can Climate Budget
19 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As we aim toward a 1.5 degree future, we need to fundamentally shift the way we lead our cities. One substantial change is that cities need to look to...
Small But Mighty: Edge Cities That Are Leading the Way for Climate Change
12 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
According to the UN, cities generate up to 75 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions - so we know that cities are the key to unlocking many of our...
TRAILER - Cities 1.5 Season 2: How Cities Can Save the Planet
29 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Cities 1.5 is returning for Season 2 — and we’re STILL dedicated to maintaining rising global temperatures to a maximum of 1.5º Celsius.Starting ...
TRAILER - Cities 1.5 Returns This September
27 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Cities 1.5 is returning for a second season — and we’re STILL dedicated to maintaining rising global temperatures to a maximum of 1.5º Celsius.St...
Inspiring Voices of Youth Climate Activists Demanding Action
28 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Global youth activists have emerged as the most inspiring voices in the climate movement. They have organized and campaigned to demand concrete and am...
Rethinking Economics to Create Shared Prosperity
21 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As the impacts of climate breakdown intensify, the cost of living crisis takes hold globally, and levels of inequality remain stubbornly high, it begs...
Equity Needs to be at the Heart of Climate Action
14 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As vulnerable and marginalized communities bear the brunt of the impacts from climate change, ensuring they have an active role in climate solutions i...
The Dirty Truth about “Natural” Gas
07 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The dirty truth about “natural” gas is that there’s nothing clean or green about it - in fact, it's as dirty as coal. From a carbon emissio...
Climate is a Jobs Issue: How Cities Are Leading the Way
31 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In the global transition away from fossil fuels to a world fueled by renewable energy, new green industries and job opportunities are emerging. As new...
Keeping 1.5 Degrees Alive
24 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
1.5 degrees Celsius is a vitally important figure. In the 2015 Paris Agreement, global leaders set a target to limit global warming and hold the overa...
TRAILER - Cities 1.5: The 1.5 Degree Mission
03 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the Cities 1.5 podcast — a show dedicated to maintaining rising global temperatures to a maximum of 1.5º Celsius.Each Tuesday, join host...