资源环境科技发展态势分析平台

Cities have always had to conform to their natural surroundings. Traditional Moroccan housing was designed with open air courtyards to help with ventilation in the dry and hot climate. While in Iceland, turf houses covered in grass— the original “green buildings”— offered superior insulation in cold weather compared to those made only of wood or stone.

Nature-based solutions have played a crucial role in cities’ design for centuries, but rapid urbanization is putting natural resources to the test.

The UN estimates that over the next 30 years, an additional 2.4 billion people are likely to live in urban areas, 68 per cent of the global population in 2050, with most of this shift occurring in the global south. Currently, a third of city inhabitants are estimated to live in slums and informal settlements, often without access to proper housing and basic services. Poor and unplanned urbanization impact resource use, biodiversity and climate.

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) cities’ unit is releasing a new set of guidelines for policymakers and city practitioners for integrated and sustainable neighbourhood design with an emphasis on community needs. These guidelines aim at guiding policy development and practical application in new developments and in the regeneration of existing neighbourhoods.

“Sustainable cities and communities start with sustainable neighbourhoods,” said Martina Otto, head of the cities’ unit at UNEP. “By emphasising the importance of local context, design and integration, we aim to inspire stakeholders involved in urban planning to think sustainably about the daily needs of people in their neighbourhoods. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the climate, nature and pollution crisis, reconsidering present urban development paradigms is all the more important and mixed-use, green and interconnected neighbourhoods are a stepping stone for the needed transformation.”