Hayward wins third A-List recognition as global leader among cities in climate protection

HAYWARD, Calif., Dec. 27, 2021— Hayward has been recognized as one of 95 cities worldwide and among five in the San Francisco Bay Area on the 2021 CDP Cities A List for its ambition, leadership, and transparency on climate action.

The CDP A-List designation was announced last month and it is the third time in four years that Hayward has earned the honor.

The designation recognizes the City for moving Hayward electricity customers to entirely carbon-free sources of power including all municipal accounts; for municipal investment in on-site renewable energy generation and recycled water infrastructure; for commitment to developing zero-net-energy facilities including Hayward’s new library; for new building standards to phase out reliance on natural gas; and the adoption of the Hayward Regional Shoreline Adaptation Master Plan in 2021.

Other Bay Area cities that made the A-List for 2021 were San Francisco, San Jose, Piedmont, and Fremont.

CDP, formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project, is a not-for-profit charity based in the United Kingdom that runs a global disclosure system for investors, companies, cities, states, and regions to manage their environmental impacts.

Every year, more than 600 cities report their climate data through CDP’s environmental disclosure platform and in so doing demonstrate commitment, transparency, and ambition in climate protection.  All disclosed data is made available free of charge on CDP’s Open Data Platform.

In 2018, CDP began to score cities from A to D based on their disclosures for how effectively they are managing, measuring, and working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and for adapting to climate risks.  That year, Hayward was one of just seven percent of cities who reported their environmental data through CDP to receive a grade of A. Since then, Hayward has received two more A-List designations.