Linking green city politics with green business

In the light of cumbersome national energy transitions, cities across the world are increasingly taking the lead in promoting renewable energy on the municipal level. Whereas cities in Europe and the United States are the most prominent pioneers of this trend, the need for renewable energy in Western cities is in fact less urgent. Energy savings often have a much greater priority for these city leaders. This is in contrast to cities in emerging markets, which are on a fast trajectory to become the megacities of tomorrow. Where population growth is imminent and economic development unimpeded, the living standards for many will increase. As a consequence, cities in many developing economies face the growing challenge to meet rising energy needs. For these cities, it is crucial to find adequate solutions for this additional demand despite the major costs involved. This chapter examines cities in developing countries to try to determine which of them have been able to stimulate green growth, in which the development of green energy businesses and green energy policies are mutually reinforcing. The authors assess current renewable energy trends across 36 cities and show that until today only a few cities have been able to create such synergies.