C40 calls its-self a network of the world’s megacities committed to addressing climate change. Also referred to as the Cities Climate Leadership Group it now represents 90 of the world’s largest cities, home to over 650 million people and making up one-quarter of the global economy. The group supports collaboration and knowledge sharing between the cities to further its aims of reducing climate change while promoting health and economic growth. A key theme is sharing data so that better data-driven decisions can be made based on large datasets.
C40 has now published a major research review showing the myriad of health benefits of cycle commuting. The key findings were presented by Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo.
Considering the improvements made to the air quality in Paris, it is forecast that schemes to tempt more commuters out of their cars will prevent 400 pollution-related deaths and 7,630 hospitalizations each year. If all of the C40 cities meet their clear air targets then this would prevent 45,000 deaths annually. They also said that if a person who used to drive to work starts walking or cycling instead (for 30 minutes a day) they can expect their risks of the most common diseases to be significantly reduced:
- Heart disease by 23%
- Stroke by 23%
- Type 2 diabetes by 15%
- Depression by 14%
- Breast cancer by 12%
- Dementia by 11%
- Colon cancer by 8%
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