Cities

“The global effort for sustainability will be won or lost in the world’s cities where urban design may influence over 70% of people’s ecological footprint.”

Everywhere in the world, cities are booming. Urban population is now over 3 billion - and the numbers are still rising. By 2050, the world will be predominantly urbanized. This boom in urban population is impacting on nature. Although occupying only 2% of the world’s land resources, cities are responsible for 75% of our world’s natural resources consumed and waste produced.¹  City dwellers’ demand for water is also higher  than that of their rural counterparts.

Cities have the potential to manage resources more efficiently and protect ecosystem services. This website provides plenty of examples where increasing green spaces in cities had increased quality of life, while also providing locally generated ecosystem services such as air filtration, micro-climate regulation, noise reduction, rainwater drainage, sewage treatment and recreational and cultural services.²

1. Klein Goldewijik and Van Drecht (2006) in OECD – Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (2008).‘Environmental Outlook to 2030’. OECD, Paris. [↩]
2. TEEB for Local and Regional Policy Chapter 4.Page 67 [↩]