SDG #11: Sustainable Cities & Communities

SDG #11 - SUSTAINABLE CITIES & COMMUNITIES

Overview

Cities are hubs for ideas, commerce, culture, science, productivity, social development and much more. At their best, cities have enabled people to advance socially and economically. With the number of people living within cities projected to rise to 5 billion people by 2030 and with 70% of the population projected to live in cities by 2050, it’s important that efficient urban planning and management practices are in place to deal with the challenges brought by urbanization.

Many challenges exist to maintaining cities in a way that continues to create jobs and prosperity without straining land and resources. Common urban challenges include congestion, lack of funds to provide basic services, a shortage of adequate housing, declining infrastructure and rising air pollution within cities.

Rapid urbanization challenges, such as the safe removal and management of solid waste within cities, can be overcome in ways that allow them to continue to thrive and grow, while improving resource use and reducing pollution and poverty. One such example is an increase in municipal waste collection. There needs to be a future in which cities provide opportunities for all, with access to basic services, energy, housing, transportation and more.

Urban Populations Living In Slums

The proportion of the urban population that lives in developing country slums fell from 39 per cent in 2000 to 30 per cent in 2014. Despite some gains, the absolute number of urban residents who live in slums continued to grow, owing in part to accelerating urbanization, population growth and lack of appropriate land and housing policies. In 2014, an estimated 880 million urban residents lived in slum conditions, compared to 792 million urban residents in 2000.

Expansion Of Urban Areas & Cities

As more and more people move to urban areas, cities typically expand their geographic boundaries to accommodate new inhabitants. From 2000 to 2015, in all regions of the world, the expansion of urban land outpaced the growth of urban populations. As a result, cities are becoming less dense as they grow, with unplanned urban sprawl challenging more sustainable patterns of urban development.

Solid Waste Management & Air Quality

The safe removal and management of solid waste represents one of the most vital urban environmental services. Uncollected solid waste blocks drains, causes flooding and may lead to the spread of water-borne diseases. On the basis of data from cities in 101 countries from 2009 to 2013, 65 per cent of the urban population was served by municipal waste collection. Air pollution is a major environmental health risk. In 2014, 9 of 10 people who live in cities were breathing air that did not comply with the safety standard set by WHO.

SDG MEDIA ZONE

Urbanization Trends Around The World

Today, more than 50% of the world’s population lives in cities. Raf Tuts, Coordinator of the Urban Planning and Design Branch of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), discusses how Goal 11 can help us take advantage of this transformative opportunity and make cities more sustainable.

Building Resilience Using The Global Goals

Building resilience is crucial for building sustainable cities. Technical Specialist Daniel Schensul from the United Nations Population Fund speaks to why cities are vulnerable to climate change and natural disasters, and how the Global Goals can help.

Connected Cities Of The Future

Information and communication technologies accelerate progress towards each SDG. Connected cities using digital technologies can improve all aspects of life within them, including transportation and sustainable urban planning.

BUSINESS RESOURCES FOR SDG #11

Businesses, together with Governments at various levels, and civil society organizations and citizens are collectively engaged in pursuing ambitious objectives to make cities more competitive, safe, resource-efficient, resilient and inclusive. Key areas of need in achieving progress on Goal 11 are:

Identify and agree on the best strategies to achieve key SDG targets.
Support capacity and skills development in key stakeholder groups towards the delivery of key targets.
Create innovative delivery models and projects for integrated city infrastructure to attract and securing financing.
Use systems-based approaches that consider buildings, energy, mobility, telecommunications, water, sanitation and waste management services.
Conduct ongoing and inclusive multi-stakeholder engagement efforts to build consensus, and improve community resilience and sustainability.

Businesses can help cities navigate these challenges and turn a high-level vision into practical and implementable action plans. Business can play a vital role not only in providing specific infrastructure, technology, services and financing solutions, but also in contributing to the strategy that will support the overall optimization of urban systems to create inclusive, safe, sustainable and disaster resilient cities. Cities seeking to realize their sustainability objectives can benefit from engaging with business early in the planning and strategy development process, leveraging the capability of business to identify innovative and cost-effective solutions to complex, cross-cutting urban sustainability challenges.

GRI, UNGC Release 'Practical Guide' for Companies to Report Their Impact on the SDGs

Many companies already act and report on climate change, water management and labor conditions. This guide can help companies take stock of their current actions and discover additional priorities to contribute to achieving the SDGs (read more).

KPMG: How to Report on the SDGs & Global Goals

4 in 10 of the world’s largest companies already reference the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in their corporate reporting, suggesting that business interest in the SDGs has grown quickly since their launch in September 2015 (read more).

Project Breakthrough: Growing The Businesses of Tomorrow

If we are going to achieve a sustainable future, as outlined by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the role of business will be critical. In fact, if viewed in the right way, achieving the SDGs presents huge market opportunities for businesses (read more).

AWARD QUESTIONS FOR SDG #11

1) Media Package

Program Photographs & Illustrations (Max. 10 Images)
Detailed Project Description (Max. 500 Words)
Optional: URL/Link to Supporting Video

2) Financial & Strategic

In order to determine financial performance & potential for scalability, please answer the following questions:

Please describe how the SDG business initiative is linked to your company’s core competency/competencies.
Please provide an overview of the business case associated with your SDG business initiative.
Please provide evidence of planned program expansion over the coming quarters and/or fiscal years.

3) Magnetism & Inspiration

How has your business initiative been a source of magnetism and inspiration? Please provide examples of your company’s influence on each of the following:

Industry Impact
Corporate Culture
Key Stakeholder Groups

4) SDG Impact Metrics

What progress has your organization made towards achieving SDG #11? Please select and provide one (or more) supporting metrics to help evaluate your social & environmental impacts (see below for a list of possible options to select from).

Please describe how has your company has:

Improved access to safe/affordable housing by reducing the proportion of urban populations living in slums and/or informal settlements (by % of slum population, total # of individuals, reductions in the size & extent of slums, etc).
Improved access to safe, affordable & low-carbon transportation solutions for urban populations. Please provide details regarding: user base as % of urban population, total # of subscribers/customers, # of trips completed/km traveled, etc.
Reduced the environmental impact of cities through technological improvements or service innovations related to recycling or solid waste processing. Please provide details regarding: tons of material diverted from landfill & recycled, total diversion rate %, total # of customers/individuals serviced, etc.
Other KPI (please insert and describe).

OPTIONAL: Please provide a description/overview of 3rd party assurances relating to the verification of the metrics and figures provided above.

EXPLORE THE GLOBAL GOALS