Sweden joins the Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP)
The Coalition for High Ambition and Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP) has achieved a significant milestone by welcoming Sweden as its 76th endorsing country, marking the coalition’s largest membership since its launch at COP28 in Dubai in 2023. This expansion reinforces CHAMP’s growing global influence in advancing ambitious urban climate action.
CHAMP was established to accelerate collective climate action, strengthen multilateral cooperation, and ensure that national governments work in concert with their cities and regions toward ambitious emissions reduction targets and sustainable urban development. The coalition’s continuous growth is essential for maintaining influence in international climate negotiations, ensuring geographic diversity, and advocating for more ambitious climate targets. Each new member enhances the coalition’s capacity to channel resources to vulnerable areas and share successful adaptation and mitigation practices.
The addition of Sweden, representing Scandinavia’s clean-technology leadership, sends a powerful message that climate resilience requires both innovation and inclusivity, with engagement from every global region. Sweden brings decades of pioneering climate action to CHAMP. The country has set one of the world’s most ambitious targets: achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045. Central to Sweden’s approach is its carbon tax policy, introduced in 1991 and now standing at €134 per tonne in 2025. Combined with the Climate Act of 2017 and oversight from an independent Climate Policy Council, Sweden has established one of the most transparent and robust climate governance systems globally.
Sweden has also positioned itself at the forefront of green industrial innovation. The HYBRIT project is developing the world’s first fossil-free steel production technology, with potential to transform one of the most carbon-intensive industries. Swedish companies are additionally advancing the sustainable battery sector, supporting the clean-energy transition across Europe.
At the urban level, Swedish cities demonstrate practical climate solutions. Stockholm, a C40 Cities member and Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM) signatory, along with Gothenburg (also a GCoM signatory), are recognised for eco-districts, smart grids, and biofuel-powered transport systems. Nationwide waste-to-energy systems provide heating and electricity to hundreds of thousands of households.
Sweden becomes the 13th of 27 European Union member states to join CHAMP, meaning all Scandinavian countries are now coalition members. By endorsing CHAMP, Sweden reaffirms its historic climate leadership whilst contributing practical experience to a coalition built on shared solutions. The coalition’s expanding membership strengthens its ability to advocate for ambitious climate targets and ensure that multilevel partnerships, connecting national governments with cities and regions, remain central to global climate governance.
