Local government approaches for climate governance: The case of Adana Metropolitan Municipality

Cities are exposed to harmful effects on the environment and atmosphere, such as greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption due to climate change. However, it has been observed that it has great potential in tackling this problem. Cities and local governments are turning into actors that can be more effective and take action more quickly in preparing plans and policies regarding climate change. In this direction, it has emerged that networks that provide information and expertise to guide and support cities are needed in order to prepare action plans and develop new practices on the issue of climate change. Within the framework of this need, transnational municipal networks (TMNs) bring together local governments from different countries in order to strengthen the cooperation of cities. It is noteworthy that TMNs bring together local governments to achieve a scientifically informed and collaborative solution to climate change. Moreover, efforts to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions are a matter of collective action at many scales and levels. In this study, the reasons why local governments have voluntarily committed to climate change mitigation and adaptation to TMNs in recent years, how international norms are framed locally, and whether there is an effective climate governance within the scope of commitments in TMNs are evaluated within the framework of the polycentric governance approach. For this purpose, the study is based on three basic questions, what are the socio-economic reasons behind the participation of local governments in transnational municipal networks? To what extent does the signatory of local governments to transnational networks affect their actions on an urban scale? To what extent does Adana Metropolitan Municipality follow a polycentric approach model while preparing the climate action plan for mitigation and adaptation? in the example of Adana Metropolitan Municipality, it researches its experiences on climate change in general and the climate governance model while preparing the climate action plan. Qualitative research method was used in the study. Data were obtained from semi-structured interviews and secondary data sources. In the semi-structured interviews, there are 10 participants selected from the contacting institutions by purposeful sampling and snowball sampling method. The common feature of these 10 people is that they were both active and passive in the preparation process of the climate action plan after Adana Metropolitan Municipality signed the network. Secondary data sources are corporate documents, news, reports and website content. The data were evaluated by case and content analysis.