Contribution of the SDGs to urban sustainability

David SatterthwaiteInternational Institute for Environment and Development

Global attention to world’s 4 billion urban dwellers

Urban areas/urbanization getting more attention

But mainly wrt economic growth and climate change mitigation

Less interest in reducing urban poverty for the billion+ in

informal settlements

Addressing urban environmental health

climate change adaptation in urban areas

SD means moving forward on multiple goals

INDIA’S MOST SUCCESSFUL ECO-CITY (and the perfect green economy)

CITY OF 400,000 INHABITANTS WITH

Low GHG emissions

Prosperity & innovation ($400 million/year)

Keeping down resource use

Maximizing waste re-use & recycling

Compact city so little loss of forest or agri land

Most trips by walking or bicycling

Diets that are not too energy-intensive

Including many vegetarians….

Dharavi

BUT

One toilet/1000 people?

Water pipes and waste water canal

SDGs Huge ambition:

Universal provision/Leave no-one behind

Combine development and sustainability

For urban areas, 3 environmental agendas: environmental health, resource use, waste reduction/management within+beyond boundaries

BUT so much on ‘what’; so little on how and by whom Such radical goals without changing the

institutions?

Without the data to measure and monitor progress?

KEY ISSUE: How to support those institutions with the willingness and

capacity to address the SDGs

Viewing the SDGs with an urban lens

1: Poverty: ambitious words, very inappropriate benchmark

2: Good general goals on food security but focus on production + rural

3-5: Good general goals (health, education, gender equality)

6: Water & sanitation: strong targets but no specifics about urban & inaccurate indicators

Drainage not mentioned but implied by 13

Solid waste collection (not mentioned) and management (11)

7: Energy/electricity (importance for SMEs)

Viewing the SDGs with an urban lens (2)

8: Growth. Huge relevance to urban (job creation, resource efficiency, sustainable consumption) but no mention

9: Infrastructure. Huge relevance to but no mention of urban

10: Inequality. Focus on income? Not on health/basic services?

11: Cities: universal basic services, safe land sites for safe housing, reducing ecological footprints

Access to schools, health care, emergency services, policing/rule of law implied by ‘basic services’ in 11

Disaster risk reduction (11.6), climate change adaptation (11b) contribution to mitigation (11b)

Viewing the SDGs with an urban lens (3)

12-15: Sustainable consumption, oceans, ecosystems – no explicit mention of urban

16: Governance. Very weak on local government and local civil society. Stress on national with occasional mention of ‘all levels’

SO WHAT DRIVES CHANGE TOWARDS MOST OF THE SDGs FOR URBAN AREAS

Capable, accountable, resourced city/municipal governments able to work with private sector and with

Organized urban poor groups/networks/federations that can work with city and municipal governments

If the SDGs took local governments & local civil society seriously?

Funds + support for city and municipal governments

Recognize city leadership here

Leaders that can listen

Recognize this level is where so much can be done

Funds for grassroots organizations/federations

Recognize huge innovation here – Urban Poor Fund International of Slum/Shack Dwellers International and Asian Coalition for Community Action

100+ city governments in partnership with urban poor organizations

So what can support SDGs in urban areas

Encourage urban governments to make formal commitment to meeting SDGs that are within their responsibilities

Redirect funding + support to local governments and representative organizations of the urban poor

Large common ground in reducing everyday risk, disaster risk and climate change risk

Mayors and city governments that are innovating in this often also innovating on mitigation (and some also on green economy)