THE PROJECT

What is Moving for Climate Now?

Moving for Climate NOW is a cycling route supporting the Climate Summits (COPs) that aims to promote alliances between people from different organizations to convey a message about the urgency of joining to accelerate climate action.

It consists of a cycling expedition which, since 2015, has departed from a symbolic city and ended in the region in which the UN’s Climate Summit is to be held.

This route in electric bicycles consists of a 7-10-day trip, during which participants have the opportunity to discuss climate action before arriving at the headquarters of the COP, where they deliver a manifesto. First it was Bilbao – Paris (COP21) in an initiative promoted by Iberdrola employees, and then, already under the motto of Moving for Climate NOW, Seville – Marrakech (COP22), Paris -Bonn (COP23), Vienna- Katowice (COP24) and Salamanca-Madrid (COP25). In 2021, it has been the turn of Edinburg – Glasgow (COP26).

Our objective is to deliver a message stressing the need for unity and immediate action against climate change, promoting the transition towards a more efficient energy model that eliminates CO2 emissions. Every year the cycling route is combined with discussion sessions on specific themes. Thus, as well as pedalling, participants reflect on the different aspects of the climate challenge.

The cycling route allows to connect relevant actors in climate change from different nationalities and organizations (multilateral institutions, academics, environmental NGOs, policy makers, civil society, etc.), to build an inclusive, participatory and transparent dialogue, to show their action during the bike tour, and bring their voices to the Climate Summits to support and encourage the negotiating parties there to act with ambition and urgency.

This initiative is organised by Iberdrola, with the strong institutional support of UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) and the organising COP.

In all editions, Moving for Climate Now has obtained the CeroCO2 label and the UN Climate Neutral NOW certificate, which certify it as a carbon neutral event.

The United Nations Global Compact is the biggest voluntary corporate sustainability initiative in the world. It has two goals: On the one hand, to implement 10 universally accepted principles to promote corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the areas of human rights, labour regulations, the environment and the fight against corruption in corporate activities and strategies; and, on the other hand, to see that the private sector contributes to the United Nations’ goals, currently the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

At the international level, it has over 13,000 signatories. In Spain, it has more than 2,600 signatories, which makes it the country with the largest presence in the initiative.

The Global Compact is working for sustainable development through multistakeholder and public-private alliances. As a United Nations initiative, it pursues the organisation’s development goals, being one of the main goals the fight against climate change, which is essential for the development of people, societies, the planet, prosperity and justice.

Iberdrola, a leading company in clean energy, is committed to a sustainable energy model and convinced that there is no time to lose in the fight against climate change. Iberdrola foresaw the energy transition almost 20 years ago with a strategy focused on clean energies. Today, we are investing in renewable energies, storage, smart grids and digitalisation, all of them key to the transition towards a decarbonised energy model.

We must act now, and we have to do it together, adding the efforts of all economic and social players. The transition to a low-carbon economy is now unstoppable, and the electricity sector must be one of the key players in this transition.
For all these reasons, we believe that the creation of multidisciplinary alliances such as Moving for Climate NOW are necessary to send a key message to society: humanity is facing its biggest challenge, and to guarantee the future of the coming generations, and we have to combine forces from all areas to act with determination and urgency against climate change.