Are Cities Finally at the Table? The Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP) and the Integration of Local Authorities into Global Climate Governance.

Local governments, including cities, have been identified as both the most vulnerable to climate change and key actors in climate change mitigation and adaptation. However, global climate governance remains structurally focused on nation states, with sub-national actors participating only indirectly or through parallel networks of cities such as C40, ICLEI or the Global Covenant of Mayors. The launch of the Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP) at COP28 marks a potentially significant shift in this architecture, proposing a systematic, state-led framework for integrating cities and local authorities into national climate ambition processes, including the formulation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and climate finance structures. This article assesses whether CHAMP represents a significant reconfiguration of global climate governance towards multi-level cooperation, or whether it is primarily a symbolic and diplomatic initiative dominated by states. The study is organised within four research questions. First, it investigates what actors participate in CHAMP and how the initiative distributes roles between states, city networks, multilateral organisations, and subnational governments. Second, it asks whether CHAMP shifts attention towards cities and local authorities. Third, this paper examines whether national governments engaged in CHAMP are integrating local perspectives differently in their NDCs and climate frameworks. Finally, the article assesses CHAMP's potential to transform global climate governance. CHAMP can serve as a meeting point between bottom-up climate actions by cities and top-down state climate diplomacy. The empirical material is drawn from multiple complementary sources, including CHAMP’s official partnership and activity reports, UNFCCC documents emerging from COP28, COP29 and COP30 as well as public statements delivered by CHAMP authorities and participating actors. The analysis is further supported by national policy documents, including NDC submissions, climate strategies, and subnational consultation guidelines. In terms of methodology, the article uses a mixed qualitative methodology: structured content analysis of documents and comparative case studies of entities that have adopted CHAMP. The paper also uses social network analysis theory to map relationships between countries, cities and transnational organisations. The author argues that although CHAMP remains within the framework of state authority, it represents an important experimental extension of multi-level climate governance by incorporating local authorities into national planning and global diplomacy. The long-term significance of CHAMP will depend on the degree of implementation of this initiative, particularly in the global South, where local authorities struggle with serious capacity and funding constraints. Implications for future research on state-city climate policy governance and implementation in the context of accelerating climate change impacts are presented in the paper's conclusion.