Building Climate-Ready Cities Now
WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities
Helping cities make big ideas happen. Project of World Resources Institute. Producer of TheCityFix.com
The world’s cities are not only economic and cultural dynamos; they are also on the frontlines of climate change. We’ve spent hundreds of years building around deltas and rivers, valleys and plains. Now, the climate system is changing so dramatically that many urban areas are suddenly in the path of destruction, putting millions at risk and disrupting communities.?
The past month saw record flooding in southern Brazil that inundated hundreds of cities and displaced millions of people, and flash floods sweeping through Nairobi and surrounding communities, killing hundreds. It’s a vivid reminder of how important building resilience in cities is now. The effects of climate change are here – and they pose some of the biggest risks in urban areas.?
The solutions to make cities more “climate-ready” will come from all over the world and look different in different places. As we see with the finalists for the 2023-2024 WRI Ross Center Prize for Cities , urban changemakers are responding and working to reshape their communities to be better prepared.??
From Oslo to Fortaleza, the five Prize finalists this cycle have all demonstrated remarkable impact on accelerating momentum for climate-ready communities. They are re-thinking schoolyards to build resilient community spaces, restoring urban waterways not only in a physical sense but culturally, integrating informal neighborhoods in thoughtful ways, and much more.?
In these challenging times, we are inspired by these examples of truly innovative urban leadership.
- Rogier van den Berg Global Director, WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities
?? Around Our Network
The government of Canada has awarded a three-year project co-managed by WRI with support from Cities4Forests that will implement watershed restoration, tree planting and conservation efforts in Dire Dawa, Kigali and Johannesburg. These actions will directly benefit 2.2 million people in high flood risk areas and indirectly benefit 7 million more urban residents across Africa.
Learn more →??
“[These cities] have distinct mobility barriers, but also share circumstances and concerns with many cities around the world. Their involvement in the Challenge will allow them to find an area to address and ask some of the world’s best innovators to help them tackle it,” said Ben Welle, WRI Ross Center Director of Integrated Transport and Innovation.
Learn more →?
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced $900 million in funding, which includes support to bring more electric school buses to students. WRI’s Electric School Bus Initiative continues to work with the EPA and local partners to assist with the equitable implementation of the Clean School Bus Program.
Integrated solutions for biodiversity restoration and waste and water management can build climate resilience in public places, but complexities of land ownership and sociopolitical conditions can impact their long-term success. To address these obstacles, WRI India and local stakeholders explore collaborative maintenance and development models.
Learn more →?
As the world plans for COP29 – dubbed “Finance COP” – there are major opportunities for vulnerable countries to secure the resources and commitments crucial for transitioning to low-emissions economies and building resilience against the impacts of climate change.
??? What's Next
领英推荐
?? What's New From TheCityFix
Mexico made safe streets a constitutional right; now comes the implementation. WRI research shows that small modifications can make a big difference in protecting pedestrians.
Cities are at the heart of climate action, but they don’t operate in a vacuum. For local governments to effectively tackle the “triple planetary crisis” of climate change, air pollution and biodiversity loss, an “all-hands-on-deck” approach is needed to scale up multi-level governance and unlock transformative action.
While most attention focuses on drier conditions and water shortages, cascading effects impact food and energy production, air quality, public health and more. WRI experts examine the ripple effects for three countries: Colombia, Indonesia and South Africa, and suggest systemic interventions to build resilience to future reoccurrences.
Learn more →?
?? Social Post of the Month
?? Join Our Team
?? Subscribe by email
↓ Get WRI Ross Center Monthly delivered to your email inbox each month ↓
Supply Chain Expert & Project Lead @ GEM-AFRICA CONSULT LTD. Group Owner @ CENTRE FOR SUSTAINABLE AFRICA AGENDA Founder @ AIR FIT AFRICA
5 个月DECARBONIZING AFRICA’S CITIES The Centre for Sustainable Africa Agenda(CSAA) kindly seek Collaborations/Partnerships with the WRI ROSS CENTRE FOR SUSTAINABLE CITIES for the project: YOUTH CYCLE FOR CLIMATEACTION IN AFRICA'S CITIES: WHY? The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates: 1. Each year in Africa over a million people die prematurely from transportation emissions whilse the continent spends over €200 billion on emission diseases like cardiovascular/ lung complications 2. Over 65% of Africa’s population will live in her cities by 2060 PROJECT OBJECTIVE To create a Culture of Cycling in Africa to ensure 40% decarbonization of Africa's cities by 2030 [email protected] [email protected] +233 540727527