Global Cool Cities Alliance is a non-profit dedicated to advancing policies and actions that increase the solar reflectance of our buildings and pavements as a low cost way to promote cool buildings, cool cities, and, most importantly, to mitigate the effects of climate change through global cooling.

Global Cool Cities Alliance will accelerate a world-wide transition to highly reflective, cooler, healthier cities. Its mission is to advance policies and programs that increase the solar reflectance of our buildings and pavements to promote cool buildings, cool cities, and, most importantly, to mitigate the effects of climate change through global cooling.

The Global Cool Cities Alliance (GCCA) will pursue this mission through the development of five different program areas which together are designed to ensure that a range of mechanisms, from municipal action to advancements in research and development, act in concert to accelerate the adoption of cool roofs. Specifically, GCCA will work towards the following goals:

100 Cool Cities – Recruit and obtain commitments from 100 major cities – “100 Cool Cities” – across the globe by 2015, with widespread installation of cool surfaces by 2020.

Corporate Leadership – Support the voluntary adoption of cool surfaces by commercial and industrial building owners, with 20 major global corporations actively committed to cool roofs and pavement installation by 2013.

Building Codes and Specifications – Promote the inclusion, by 2015, of cool surfaces – mainly white roofs – in the building and pavement codes of key US states and major foreign countries.

Financial Mechanisms – Develop financial mechanisms, by 2015, that broadly support the installation of cool surfaces in the US and other key countries.

Research and Development – Ensure that information about cool surface research, development, and demonstrations is broadly disseminated.

The Global Cool Cities Alliance was launched in the summer of 2010 and is currently working to build its programs. Already, GCCA has secured five founding city members (Athens, Chicago, New York City, Singapore, and Taipei) representing three APEC economies: the United States, Singapore, and Chinese Taipei.