Cities 1.5

Cities 1.5 is a podcast featuring progressive policy conversations with urban leaders taking action to limit global heating to 1.5 degrees. Hosted by David Miller and developed by University of Toronto Press, this podcast serves as a platform to discuss the most pressing policy and underlying economic issues facing cities in their effort to lead on transformational climate action. The podcast is an extension of the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy (https://jccpe.utpjournals.press), which publishes timely, evidence-based research that contributes to the urban climate agenda and supports governmental policy towards an equitable and resilient world. Join Editor-in-Chief and host David Miller as he speaks with mayors, city policymakers, economists, youth leaders, and scholars, among others, who are implementing and fighting for ambitious, near-term climate action.

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Cities 1.5

TEASER: Season 6 of Cities 1.5 is coming soon!

December 16, 2025 • University of Toronto Press

In the face of the accelerating climate crisis, rising authoritarianism, and geopolitical shifts, national governments are faltering…but cities are stepping into the void and taking the lead.

Season 6 of Cities 1.5 will delve into how municipal-level actions and powerful coalitions are creating a carbon-free future, promoting resilience, and enabling a new economic system based on wellbeing over profit. We’ll explore how cities are countering disinformation, fear, and inertia by spearheading significant local climate initiatives and forming new alliances, daring national governments to follow in their footsteps. Because the future won’t wait - so we need to decide now who will lead, and whether we want to move towards disaster … or resilience.

If you want to learn more about the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, please visit our website at https://jccpe.utpjournals.press/

Listen to the Cities 1.5 five-part miniseries “Going Steady with Herman Daly: How to Unbreak the Economy (and the Planet)" here: https://lnk.to/HDMiniSeries

Cities 1.5 is produced by the University of Toronto Press and the C40 Centre, and is supported by C40 Cities. Sign up to the Centre newsletter: https://thecentre.substack.com/

Writing and executive production by Peggy Whitfield.

Narrative and communications support by Chiara Morfeo.

Produced by Jess Schmidt: https://jessdoespodcasting.com/

Edited by Morgane Chambrin: https://www.morganechambrin.com/

Music by Lorna Gilfedder: https://origamipodcastservices.com/

[00:00:00] [music plays] David: The world is changing…and it's changing even faster than predicted. Rising authoritarianism. Old alliances fracturing. Democracy under pressure. Seismic geopolitical shifts. And behind the headlines, a stark reality: the climate crisis is accelerating. As always, cities are on the front lines. They’re where hurricanes make landfall; where heat waves kill; where disinformation erodes public trust.

[00:00:37] But while national governments hesitate, cities are showing that global change must be accomplished through local action. Powerful coalitions are forming to create a carbon-free future, and new narratives are emerging to counter fear, division, and inertia. In season six of Cities 1.5, we'll be exploring the paradigm shift already underway - with help from the leaders, alliances, and ideas that are reshaping the future from the municipal level up.

[00:01:11] The question is no longer whether we need change. It's who will lead, who will resist, and whose narrative will become the blueprint that the world follows…into disaster, or toward resilience. [music fades out]

David Miller

Host