No influence at all. They can make suggestions, that’s it, and hope people play along.
Sorry, you’re saying that the city council has ZERO impact on climate change?
Sure, they can make suggestions on more high level policy, but they have a big impact on more local policies. The AAA bike network has increased mode share of people commuting by bikes rather than cars. They can increase the amount of homes and density in the city, decreasing the reliance on suburban sprawl, cars commuting and deforestation. Etc, etc..