HONOLULU — The City and County of Honolulu improved its environmental leadership grade, moving up from a B grade for 2022 to an A-minus grade for 2023, according to a news release. This was an even more significant improvement from the C grade it received in 2019.

The international nonprofit CDP (formerly known as the Carbon Disclosure Project), in partnership with the international non-governmental organization Local Governments for Sustainability, gives out the grades to participating jurisdictions. 

The City’s Office of Climate Change, Sustainability and Resiliency takes part in CDP’s annual reporting and disclosure process, which encourages jurisdictions to become leaders on environmental transparency and action.  

In order to decide on the grades, CDP evaluates each jurisdiction’s assessments of its climate risks, plans for adapting to risks, strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and actions to achieve equitable climate change mitigation.

According to the City and County of Honolulu’s news release, the improved grade was in large part because of the result of the City’s Climate Action Plan adopted in 2021, and the City’s climate adaptation strategy, known as Climate Ready Oahu, which will be adopted by the Honolulu City Council this year. 

As a result of the improved grade, Honolulu joins 119 other cities “considered world leaders in setting and meeting ambitious climate resiliency goals,” said Matthew Dosner, executive director and chief resilience officer of the Office of Climate Change, Sustainability and Resiliency.

A list of the cities that received A grades can be found on the CDP’s website.  

To get an A grade, the City will need to meet greenhouse gas emission reduction goals established by the Paris Climate Agreement.