While EU member states have already adopted some of the most progressive sustainability measures to date, for some local officials, the steps taken thus far simply don’t go far enough.

London mayor Boris Johnson took the matter into his own hands recently, in a move that could inspire a wave of municipal-level sustainability programs across the world.

Rather than focus on broad-sweeping market regulation, Johnson’s plan concerns itself largely with the situation on the ground. Shade trees are to be planted in several strategic locations, to ease thermoregulation on hot days, improve air quality in the immediate vicinity, and absorb ground water to prevent flooding. The plan also calls for water metering systems, and more efficient homes, to cut citywide demand by some ten percent.

London has reason to focus on the water-related aspects of global warming: 15% of the city -- worth roughly $293 billion dollars -- lies within easy reach of global warming-related floods. Meanwhile, in Europe’s last major heatwave, more than 600 residents of the city died from heat-related causes. Improved shade and water availability will protect Londoners from the effects of global warming, while reducing the factors that cause it.