In this first episode of the City Climate Innovation: Special episodes of the ClimateTalks Podcast – Cities on a Mission – we shed light on the critical need for urban research and innovation, kicking off with GCoM Research and Innovation Technical Working Group co-chair Valentina Palermo, Scientific Project Officer at the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) who shares what urban practitioners are saying through the lens of the City Research and Innovation Agenda (CRIA) and the Global Research and Action Agenda (GRAA) – two key outcomes from the Innovate4Cities 2021 Conference, launched and discussed at ICLEI World Congress 2021-2022. Coming from the Global Clean Energy Action Forum in Pittsburgh, USA we also have Rosalinde van der Vlies, Director of the Clean Planet Directorate in the European Commission’s DG for Research and Innovation and Mission Innovation Vice Chair, and Giorgia Rambelli, Director of the Urban Transitions Mission – unpacking the Mission Innovation Urban Transitions Mission (UTM), a joint effort that aims to mobilize cities worldwide to advance their climate action planning, increase their ambition and implement systemic and innovative approaches to a net-zero, resilient, and people-centered urban future. They will go into more detail on what UTM will bring to the stage and its priorities for the first year. These guests join hosts Ben Jance, Cathy Oke, and Andy Deacon.