SDG #11 Sustainable Cities and Communities
Currently, over half the world’s population is living in cities, and this number is expected rise significantly over the coming decades. Cities are hubs for new ideas, culture, science, human and economic development and they play a big role in the fight against climate change.
By 2050, this urbanization trend is expected to show an increase of 80 per cent of humanity living in cities and urban residents growing by nearly 73 million every year. Additionally, it is estimated that these areas account for 70 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product, generating economic growth and prosperity for many. Although, with this increase in numbers, it is necessary for governments and institutions to generate plans and manage issues regarding the impacts created. Urban planning, transport systems, sanitation, water, waste management, disaster risk reduction, and education are all examples of relevant issues to sustainable urban development.
In this article we will look closely into the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 11 – Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable – examining the targets and indicators, progress towards achieving the goal in line with the 2030 Agenda and the benefits from achieving this goal and some examples, towards a more sustainable future.
Targets and indicators
The targets and indicators for SDG 11 focus on safe and affordable housing, basic services, green and public spaces, and transport systems for all, keeping special attention to the necessities of those in vulnerable situations and strengthening efforts to protect cultural and natural heritage. Additionally, these look at planning and management for a sustainable urbanization, looking at the proportion of cities with a direct participation structure of civil society that operate regularly and democratically.
SDG 11 aims to reduce the number of people and economies affected by disasters, again focusing on protecting the most vulnerable and decreasing the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, paying attention to air quality and waste management. This goal plans to strengthen national and regional development planning in order to support positive economic, social and environmental links between areas, and support the least developed countries to build sustainably using local materials.
The SDG aims to increase the number of cities and human settlements adopting and implementing policies and plans in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 towards inclusion, recourse efficiency, mitigation, and adaptation to climate change and resilience to disasters.
Progress
On one hand, the rapid urbanization has resulted in an increase in the number of people living in slums, inadequate and overburdened infrastructure, and services and air pollution. This number has been rising, representing 1 billion people, 24 per cent of the population. Many of these people have few or no access to adequate housing, running water at home, no waste management systems, limited access to healthcare, etc. The number of people living in slums is most prominent in Eastern and South-Eastern Asia (370 million) and the COVID-19 pandemic had direct and indirect impacts with increasingly more people living in slum-like conditions and worsening of life-quality.
Additionally, according to data collected in 2019, only half of the world’s urban population has convenient access to public transport, an urban basic need. On average, all regions worldwide registered a general increase in the build-up areas – presence of buildings per person – except sub-Saharan Africa and Eastern and South-Eastern Asia.
Despite this however, there is a noticeable progress that has been made worldwide. As of March 2021, 156 countries have developed national urban policies, with almost half of them already in the implementation phase. According to The World Bank, mortality rates amongst children have dropped by more than half, in the last 27 years, due to improved facilities, and the total population living in slums has generally decreased in sub-Saharan Africa and South-Eastern Asia.
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is mostly devastating in poor and densely populated areas, especially for the 1 billion people living in slums worldwide. Cities are on the front line in regard to coping with the impacts of the pandemic and the United Nations have developed UN-Habitat, an agency for housing and urban development, working with governments responding to these impacts. The response plan aims to: support local governments working on solutions, provide data for informed decisions, and mitigate economic impact.
Sustainable Cities
Stockholm, Sweden is one of the most environmentally friendly cities in Europe and an international role model of global environmental and climate action. The Swedish capital was awarded “European Green Capital” in 2010 and ranks third in the Sustainable Cities Index. Stockholm is an example for other cities to follow, with the development of their first sustainable project in 1976, and many policies since. With extremely ambitious environmental and climate plans, each additional policy makes the sustainability goals increasingly higher and more demanding. The current Environment Programme covers the period 2020-2023 and aims for: becoming fossil free by 2040, clean air and low noise levels, recourse as a smart city, free of toxics and a climate positive city. Alongside this programme, a Climate Action Plan was developed. More information can be found here.
Stockholm continuously works toward the goal of becoming a more sustainable city, but the progress of their goals will be determined by the active choices of its citizens. Also, international cooperation and technological innovation is an important factor that strengthens innovation, collaborations, and communication.
Singapore is another worldwide leader when it comes to sustainable development. The first step towards Singapore becoming a more sustainable city was the Singapore Green Plan, released in 1992, which targeted air and water quality, waste, recycling, amongst other, issues that have been met. In 2002, the government developed a ten-year plan with a national approach of integrated planning and close attention to detail, and, in 2009 Sustainable Singapore Blueprint (SSB) – released by the Ministry of the Environmental and Water Resources and the Ministry of National Development (MND) – developed five-year plans towards a liveable and more likable city-state and determined the key strategies for Singapore’s long-term sustainable development.
With a focus on opportunities for “green” growth, in topics such as clean energy, waste and urban management, and clean mobility, the National Climate Change Strategy and a Cleantech Hub were developed in 2012. The National Climate Change Strategy encourages the adoption of low-emission vehicles and implemented schemes in order to help consumers make more informed decisions when purchasing vehicles; determined minimum energy performance standards for appliances such as refrigerators and air conditioning; implemented the Energy Conservation Act, which requires companies in the energy sector to employ “energy managers” to control and report the companies’ energy use, greenhouse gas emissions and implement energy efficiency improvement plans. The city-state supports research institutes in order to improve technology and has several incentive schemes and programs to promote energy efficiency.
Singapore’s success has derived from a combination of hard work and the use of a comprehensive mix of regulations, financial incentives, demonstration programs, capacity building, and consumer education awareness. Additionally, these policies aim to create better job opportunities for the citizens, driven by innovation and creativity and flexible labour market policies. For Singapore to continue to grow and prosper, it must continue to upgrade the ambition and innovation of its approach to sustainability.
Rain Vortex at Jewel Changi Airport in Singapore
Global urbanisation is on the rise and, with over half the world’s population living in cities, sustainable urban development is vital for the implementation of a sustainable future. Real progress has been made so far, with 156 countries implementing sustainable urban planning, but there is a significant amount to be done into the future. In particular, the impact of COVID-19 means it is even more important that countries and multinationals come together to achieve these goals.
https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal11
https://sdg-tracker.org/cities
https://datacatalog.worldbank.org/dataset/world-development-indicators
https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/cities/
https://international.stockholm.se/city-development/the-eco-smart-city/
