- Cancún, Mexico Selected as Host City for Adaptation Futures Conference 2027 and Innovate4Cities Marketplace
- REDCiC is one of the scientific organizers supporting the event
Christchurch, New Zealand (October 16, 2025) – Cancún, Mexico, has been officially designated as the host city for the Adaptation Futures Conference 2027 (AF27). The Conference also features a partnership with the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy (GCoM) - the world’s largest alliance for city climate leadership - which will co-convene a first-of-its-kind
‘Cities Track’ and Innovate4Cities Marketplace within the framework of the event. The partnership aims to address climate change adaptation and sustainable urban development, with significant impact across Latin America.
The announcement was made during the closing session of the current Adaptation Futures event in Christchurch, New Zealand, highlighting the region’s growing leadership in advancing climate resilience and fostering international collaboration.
Adaptation Futures 2027 will bring together scientists, policymakers, practitioners, and urban innovators from around the world to exchange knowledge, present evidence-based strategies, and advance solutions to the pressing challenges posed by climate change.
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As part of the dignified hand-over ceremony between New Zealand and Mexico, a symbolic exchange of gifts took place to mark the passage of trust and the strengthening of shared ambitions. Mexico honoured New Zealand with a thoughtful presentation of the Mayan Tree of Life — a gift steeped in ancient meaning and timeless hope. Rooted in the heritage of the Maya, the Tree of Life, Ceiba, or Yaaxché, rises in the center of the Mayan universe. It is the sacred tree that unites nature, spirituality, and creation itself. Its roots reach deep into the underworld, its trunk upholds the earth, and its branches stretch toward the heavens. A bridge between worlds — divine, human, and ancestral — the Ceiba embodies life, strength, adaptation, and eternal renewal.
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As part of the Conference, the Global Covenant of Mayors and its Innovate4Cities initiative will partner to develop a ‘Cities Track’ focused on climate-resilient development, Indigenous knowledge, care for vulnerable populations, and synergies between adaptation and mitigation action, among other critical topics. Through the ‘Cities Track’, GCoM will activate the Innovate4Cities Marketplace - providing a distinguished forum at the nexus of science, policy, and practice to co-generate of knowledge, identify
opportunities to support city climate action and sustainable urban development, and engage partners across levels of government, academia, business, and civil society.
With its world-class infrastructure, extensive accommodations, and exceptional connectivity, Cancún offers an ideal environment to host these landmark events, reinforcing Latin America’s position as a hub for international dialogue on climate adaptation and sustainable urban futures.
These events underscore the region’s commitment to addressing climate challenges and advancing innovative, evidence-based solutions for resilient and sustainable cities.
