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Addressing Mayors and other city leaders in New York on the eve of the SDG summit, Naoko Ishii, GEF Chairperson and CEO, said, "cities are finally recognized as key drivers of the change needed to deliver sustainable development.”
At an event hosted by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, she noted that city leadership is central to the success of the SDGs. “The role of cities is so central in this endeavor,” she said.
In a rapidly urbanizing world, how we design and build the cities of the future will play a critical role in protecting the global commons, Earth’s shared natural resources that have provided for the stable conditions enjoyed by humanity for millennia.
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Cities drive economic growth, producing 80% of the world’s GDP. Not surprising, they also consume two-thirds of the world’s energy, and account for over 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
If planned and managed well, compact, resilient, inclusive and resource efficient cities can drive development, growth, and the creation of jobs while also contributing to a healthier, better quality of life for residents and the long-term protection of the global environment.
Conversely, poorly managed and rapidly sprawling urban areas will exacerbate problems by undermining access to basic needs such as water and clear air, while threatening food security and increasing the exposure and vulnerability of their populations to a growing number of extreme weather events.
Climate change is adding to the urgency for city planners to promote sustainable and resilient urban planning and management. Almost half a billion urban residents live in coastal areas, increasing their exposure to the growing risk of life-threatening storm surges and sea level rise.
Helping cities reduce their footprint on the global environment and making them more resilient to the adverse effects of climate change needs a multi-level effort. One of the solutions is collaboration with a broad spectrum of local and global institutions to support city leaders around the world in improving urban planning, attracting investments, and exchanging knowledge.
The recently launched GEF’s Sustainable Cities Program does just that. It helps cities innovate and focus investments on urban planning and management. This changes their trajectory toward more sustainable pathways and enhances climate and disaster resilience.
“On an increasingly crowded planet, action is urgently needed to tame the drivers of global environmental degradation and prosper within planetary boundaries. [And we are] committed to help countries deliver on that potential,” said Naoko Ishii, GEF CEO & Chairperson.
“Our new sustainable cities initiative will do two main things”, said Ishii. “It will help city leaders integrate sustainability into city design and planning solutions, and support global knowledge sharing among networks of Mayors and other city experts.”
Aiming to benefit 23 cities in 11 developing countries over the next five years, the GEF will help mobilize US$1.5 billion to support low-carbon public transport, clean water supply, green buildings, air pollution and GHG emissions reduction, waste management, and resource efficiency. It will also help protect biodiversity and ecosystems around urban areas.
The initiative, to be implemented in partnership with The World Bank and a wide range of other institutions, will demonstrate how innovative and focused investments in urban planning and management can start changing the trajectory of cities towards more sustainable pathways, while enhancing their resilience to a rapidly changing environment.
The program will take a holistic view of all aspects of urban sustainability, including access to services like public transport and clean water supply, green buildings and other interventions designed to mitigate greenhouse gases and air pollution emissions, promote resource efficiency, adequate waste management, ecosystem and biodiversity protection, and climate resilience. Many of these pioneer cities bring the prospect of promoting integrated sustainability planning to a much wider array of urban areas in their home countries and beyond.
The results of such interventions stretch quite far. They make existing conditions more favorable for healthier lives and well-being for all, give access to affordable and renewable energy, create jobs, and foster sustainable industrialization and innovation.
