Items tagged:
Cities
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The often forgotten role of small and intermediate urban centres
Much of the world’s urban population lives and works outside large cities, yet often the economic, political and social importance of these urban centres, including their support to rural development and policy innovation, is given too little attention
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Outside the large cities
David Satterthwaite looks back on research carried out in small and intermediate urban centres, over nearly five decades
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Urban Crises Learning Fund
Urban areas are increasingly the sites of humanitarian crises, from natural disasters to conflict and displacement. Through a programme of research, documenting and learning from experience and development of tools and approaches, IIED is working to build the knowledge and capacity to respond of humanitarian actors working in urban areas, and of urban actors facing humanitarian crises
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African Cities Research Consortium
The African Cities Research Consortium brings together a range of international partners to explore and tackle the complexity around urban development in some of Africa’s biggest cities
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How regional and national capital cities influence urban change
David Satterthwaite discusses how building government institutions in capital cities contributes to urban change
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COVID-19 highlights three pathways to achieve urban health and environmental justice
The pandemic is an opportunity for cities to dramatically rethink use of housing, transport and public spaces in ways that would serve all citizens, especially the socially vulnerable
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The global geography of world cities
Various lists and indicators are used to determine which cities are deemed ‘world cities’. David Satterthwaite examines different indicators and discusses which cities come out on top
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Internal and international influences on urban change
David Satterthwaite takes a closer look at drivers and influences of urban change
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What drives the world’s changing urban geographies?
David Satterthwaite discusses how evolving economies and new technologies have changed the shape of urban centres
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Urban poor community voices take to the stage at the World Urban Forum
Stories from urban poor communities inspired international audiences at the 10th World Urban Forum
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Which cities went up or down the ranking of the world’s largest cities?
IIED senior fellow David Satterthwaite is curating a series of blogs and interviews on global urban change. In this blog he looks at rapidly growing cities that moved into the list of the top 100 cities, and those that fell off the bottom of the list
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City leaders need to rise to the climate change challenge
City leaders from around the world are meeting in Abu Dhabi for the 10th World Urban Forum on sustainable urbanisation (8-13 February). IIED director Andrew Norton and Maimunah Mohd Sharif, executive director of UN-Habitat, highlight the need for leaders to work with residents of informal settlements in order to prepare for the impacts of climate change
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Continuity and change in the world’s 20 largest cities
David Satterthwaite looks at changes in the rankings for the world's largest cities, revealing which cities have surged up the top 20, and which have fallen
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The world's 100 largest cities from 1800 to 2020, and beyond
In the first of a new blog series, IIED senior fellow David Satterthwaite looks at the world’s 100 largest cities, and how their changing distribution reflects social, political and economic shifts across the globe
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Q&A: blog series explores the transition to a predominantly urban world
IIED has launched a series of blogs that will examine different aspects of global urban change, including analysis of the social, political and environmental factors that cause cities to thrive or decline. David Satterthwaite highlights what to expect
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The transition to a predominantly urban world
This is a series of blogs and interviews, curated by IIED senior fellow David Satterthwaite, that will examine different aspects of global urban change, including analysis of the social, political and environmental factors that cause cities to thrive or decline.
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Learning from community planning following the Haiti earthquake
IIED has created an online learning archive to document community planning in post-earthquake Haiti
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‘Participatory’ adaptation plans aren’t working for migrants in cities
A paper in the latest issue of the journal Environment and Urbanization highlights how urban plans for adapting to climate change often leave out migrant populations living in informal settlements. Guest bloggers Eric Chu and Kavya Michael call for a rethink.
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African cities can raise more money. Kenya and South Africa offer useful lessons
Africa's cities are expanding at an unprecedented rate. Sarah Colenbrander and Ian Palmer highlight research that shows how Africa's national governments can support cities and unlock vital investment.
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The Ethiopian informal settlement jigsaw puzzle: an opportunity to re-sort the pieces?
Informal settlements are increasingly housing Ethiopia’s growing population – laying bare gaps in policy that must be addressed
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Urban crises conference: time to put learning into practice
An international conference on how best to respond to humanitarian crises in urban areas ended with calls to put research into practice and to improve engagement with local communities
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Bloomberg and public health: did he get it right?
While welcoming the support from Michael Bloomberg for a new city-focused global public health initiative, David Satterthwaite and Sarah Colenbrander raise concerns about what is not included
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Stronger Cities Initiative
Urban crises challenge the traditional ways of working for humanitarian organisations. The International Rescue Committee, Norwegian Refugee Council and World Vision worked together to develop a suite of tools and practical guidance notes to promote improved responses to urban crises
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Urban Crises Learning Partnerships
Two learning partnerships have helped IIED to address gaps in knowledge, skills and understanding among national and international humanitarian actors and local and national governments, in order to provide a better basis on which to prepare for and respond to humanitarian crises in urban areas
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Sustainable cities: the nexus between resilience and resource efficiency
A new report explores how cities can increase their resilience and resource efficiency – but highlights possible tensions between these two environmental agendas
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How risk accumulates in African cities – and ways to break the cycle
At a meeting of community organisations in Ibadan, Nigeria, local government officials and academics explored how to deal with the risks facing Africa's urban poor. Challenging long-held assumptions about how African cities work – and who holds the power – will be key to tackling the build-up of risk
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Urban Africa Risk Knowledge (Urban ARK)
Urban ARK is a partnership of 12 policy and academic institutions, led by Kings College London. It seeks to open up an applied research and policy agenda for identifying risks in urban areas in sub-Saharan Africa
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Show me the money!
Ahead of a side event at Habitat III, Anna Walnycki highlights how funding is needed for grassroots upgrading of informal settlements in the face of evictions
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Will Africa have the world's largest cities in 2100?
A new report suggests that most of the world's largest cities in 2100 will be in Africa – including many with over 40 million inhabitants. This blog suggests growth in numbers will hinge more on the extent of economic development
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The shifting power of cities
Population predictions for the world's largest cities in the 21st century (part 2): New figures show the population of the world's largest cities set to soar. This rapid growth calls for better, more sustainable cities
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Cities on the twenty-ninth day
Population predictions for the world's largest cities in the 21st century (part 1): rapid urbanisation, if managed sustainably, could ease the pressure of exponential growth set for urban areas
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IIED at Habitat III
IIED and its partners will be at Habitat III, which takes place from 17-20 October in Quito, Ecuador
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Jack of all trades, master of the urban agenda
This year's Barbara Ward Lecture will be given by Debra Roberts, who says more needs to be done to join the dots between the 'New Urban Agenda', being prepared for Habitat III, and the realities of implementation at the local level
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Fieldnotes from two cities in India: learning about social learning and climate uncertainty
How can urban planners deal with the unpredictable future impacts of climate change? IIED researchers visited two Indian cities to see how a learning-based approach can help
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Ten essentials for the New Urban Agenda in one page
Ten concise points respond to the current draft of Habitat III's New Urban Agenda which is lengthy, dense and gives too little attention to the key roles of local government and civil society
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New film tracks city's recovery from deadly typhoon
The documentary "Lessons from a storm" follows Tacloban City's recovery after Typhoon Haiyan
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People with disabilities struggle in Malawi's cities
How can the Sustainable Development Goals help children with disabilities in Malawi's cities?
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An urban approach to 'leaving no one behind'
Taking an urban approach can help identify who is at risk of 'being left behind' and how this can be avoided
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Revealing the hidden refugees in African cities
A growing number of refugees and displaced people are living in cities in East Africa and the Horn of Africa – but governments are slow to recognise and meet their needs
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Can we transform our cities?
Can cities prosper while meeting their responsibilities for acting on climate change? This is the focus of a new book by IPCC authors, co-edited by IIED's David Satterthwaite
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Indonesian civil society discusses its urban future
Guest blogger John Taylor reports back from Indonesia's third Urban Social Forum, where citizens came together to imagine the kind of cities they want to live in
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Comparing approaches to riverbank vulnerability in Indonesia
What lessons can be learned from two markedly different cases of vulnerability among urban riverbank settlements in Indonesia?
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Wanted: more inclusive, resilient, sustainable cities
Eighty per cent of Latin Americans live in urban areas. The result is a complex and challenging urban agenda that needs to be addressed through integrated and inclusive policies. An IIED and IIED- América Latina workshop in Buenos Aires, Argentina, looked at examples of Latin American cities that are striving to become more inclusive, resilient and sustainable, from across the region
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New Urban ARK website launched
A new website profiles a research and capacity building programme focusing on urban disaster risk reduction in sub-Saharan Africa
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Ten urban planning principles every humanitarian should know
As cities are increasingly where humanitarian action responds to crises, can urban planning principles help humanitarians intervene more effectively?
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The SDGs don't adequately spell out cities' role in implementation
The new development framework lays out a groundbreaking vision on the common good. But it doesn't say enough about how this is to be achieved, by whom and with what funding
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Should cities invest in climate mitigation?
There are compelling economic opportunities for cities to reduce their carbon footprints – but will these measures be enough to stay below 2 degrees of warming?
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Helping low-income groups in Karachi, Bangkok and Kathmandu to take advantage of urban density
IIED worked with local partners to seek out alternative routes to density, that don't force people to choose between being displaced to distant peripheries or being crowded into unhealthy "slums" or apartment blocks
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Stopping rural people going to cities only makes poverty less visible, and stripping migrants of rights makes it worse
There is growing concern that rural migrants transfer poverty to urban areas, but excluding them is not the solution. Ensuring full citizenship rights to all groups and proactive planning for urban growth are more effective ways to reduce disadvantage and poverty
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New approach paves way to manage violence in cities in the global South
Violence in African, Asian and Latin American cities can no longer be seen as a problem that can be challenged and overcome through development programmes, says new research in Environment and Urbanization
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Let's see what the BRICS teach us about urbanisation and economic growth
Our new interactive visualisation demonstrates the dynamics of urbanisation and economic growth in different countries. The visualisation shows that countries have very different dynamics from each other, which has implications for their economic, social and even environmental prospects.
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Cities: an interactive data visual
This interactive data visual – now updated to cover all cities with 500,000-plus inhabitants – illustrates the scale and speed of urban transformation that research by IIED has sought to document and describe
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Presenting the case for environment and urban integration
Watch a video presentation to the World Urban Forum 7 by IIED's David Dodman to unveil a report that supports decision-makers' efforts to integrate the environment in urban planning and management
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Offer extended: Free access to papers on cities and climate change
The new edition of the journal Environment and Urbanization focuses on ways cities can increase their resilience to climate change.
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Climate resilient cities: a role for the media
Journalists can remind city officials and urban residents about ‘hidden finance’ for climate resilience, and ensure the money gets well spent, says David Dodman.
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ELLA - sharing Evidence and Lessons from Latin America
Read how ELLA’s online Learning Alliances are sharing Latin American experience with sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
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Study identifies political leadership as No. 1 issue in managing disaster risk
A new study of a major urban safety campaign launched by the UN two years ago has found that political leadership is more important than a city’s wealth when it comes to protecting the lives and economic assets of cities and towns from disasters.
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Urban poor transform slums in 100+ cities in 15 Asian nations
The lives of hundreds of thousands of people in Asian cities have been transformed thanks to an innovative project that enables the urban poor to improve their living conditions in partnership with city governments.
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Climate change study provides greenhouse-gas emissions for 100 cities in 33 nations
Study asks 'whose greenhouse gas is it anyway?' and urges a broader look at cities and climate change
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Low2No helps show how to build sustainable cities
‘Low-carbon growth’ seems to be mentioned all the time with regards to environment and development policy. As a theory this is great, but how can the theory be made more concrete? What might the practice of low-carbon growth look like when applied to urban environments?
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Let's get compact
The future sprawls before us — urban sprawl, that is. John Vidal of the UK Guardian says that in 50 years, we could see ‘vast “mega-regions” which may stretch hundreds of miles across countries and be home to more than 100 million people’.In fact, they’re here already: the gargantuan Hong Kong-Shenhzen-Ghaungzhou conurbation, to take just one example, houses more than 120 million people.Whether in-migration to these regions is a trickle or a flood (and the downturn has apparently had a mixed effect on migration to cities), the urban pull remains powerful, as the poor chase jobs and escape degraded rural environments or conflict.
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Addressing the needs of urban children and adolescents
Not enough is known about practical and effective ways of addressing children's interests within urban development. Their concerns are rarely taken into account in most planning decisions, community development projects or housing and neighbourhood upgrading schemes.
