In this report, ESCAP explores the future of urbanization in Asia and the Pacific, focusing on the dynamic shifts in the region’s urban landscape. It highlights the region’s demographic transformations, including population ageing, and the persistent challenges of urban poverty and inequality. The analysis covers urban areas of all sizes, …
Delhi has become the world’s second most populous city in 2014 after Tokyo, more than doubling its population since 1990 to 25 million, according to a UN report. The 2014 revision of the World Urbanisation Prospects launched on Thursday said that India is projected to add the highest number of …
More than half of the world's seven billion people live in urban areas, with the top "mega cities" - with more than 10 million inhabitants - being Tokyo, Delhi, Shanghai, Mexico City and Sao Paulo, according to a United Nations report on Thursday. That proportion is expected to jump, so …
Half the world's population lives in urban areas. It is therefore important to identify characteristics of the built environment that are beneficial to human health. Urban greenness has been associated with improvements in a diverse range of health conditions, including birth outcomes; however, few studies have attempted to distinguish potential …
According to this 2014 revision of the World Urbanization Prospects produced by the UN Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs Africa and Asia are urbanizing faster than other regions and the largest urban growth will take place in India, China and Nigeria. These three countries will …
The urban heat island (UHI), a common phenomenon in which surface temperatures are higher in urban areas than in surrounding rural areas, represents one of the most significant human-induced changes to Earth’s surface climate. Even though they are localized hotspots in the landscape, UHIs have a profound impact on the …
The majority of the world’s major cities have disclosed that climate change presents a physical risk to the businesses operating in their cities. This real and current threat is driving local governments to take concrete action in response finds this fourth CDP Cities Annual Report released by CDP in partnership …
The total area under forest cover now stands at 697,888 sq km of geographical area, an increase of almost 1% over 2011 India’s forest cover continues to hold steady at 21% of the country’s geographical area despite pressure from increasing population, urbanisation and industrial use, and increased demand for cattle …
Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) yesterday unveiled a Tk 2,041.87 crore budget for the 2014-2015 fiscal year, keeping a plan for the construction of the 9.5km elevated bus rapid transit (BRT) and expressway from Gabtali to Azimpur in the capital but without proposing any allocation. A firm, Maisha Construction, has …
The Kamrup (Metro) district has recorded at least 19 cases of Japanese Encephalitis and two cases of dengue since June. With the monsoon here, there are fears of more such outbreaks. Dengue has been confirmed in two patients, one of whom was also diagnosed with Japanese Encephalitis on Friday. "The …
The Environment Protection Agency (EPA) has fined the Maldives Road Development Corporation (MRDC) by an amount of MVR739,500 for constructing roads in Addu without conducting the prerequisite Environment Impact Assessment (EIA). The EPA said that it has ordered the MRDC to pay the fine within a period of 30 days.
Having kicked off the greenery campaign along the Maitighar-Tinkune road, the Kathmandu Valley Development Authority ( KVDA ) is set to take it on to other major roads under the “City Beautification Project” in a bid to give the Capital a greener look ahead of the 18th Saarc Summit in …
France has proposed to give India a 1 billion euro ($1.4 billion) credit line to fund sustainable infrastructure and urban development projects, Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Tuesday. The credit line would be available over three years and would be delivered through the French Development Agency, Fabius, who began …
Delhi with fast-growing rate of urbanisation is the second most water-stressed cities in the world according to this new research published in Global Environmental Change Journal which has mapped 500 large cities to determine how global urbanisation is affecting water supplies. Kolkata (6), Chennai (18), Bangalore (19) and Hyderabad (20) …
Urban growth is increasing the demand for freshwater resources, yet surprisingly the water sources of the world’s large cities have never been globally assessed, hampering efforts to assess the distribution and causes of urban water stress. We conducted the first global survey of the large cities’ water sources, and show …
ICLEI Canada and the Toronto and Region Conservation launch their latest resource on biodiversity, biodiverCities: A Primer on Nature in Cities. With the majority of the world's population living in urban areas, its time to ask how they can become more livable, sustainable and resilient. biodiverCities explores why biodiversity should …
In the last 30 years, China’s record economic growth lifted half a billion people out of poverty, with rapid urbanization providing abundant labor, cheap land, and good infrastructure. While China has avoided some of the common ills of urbanization, strains are showing as inefficient land development leads to urban sprawl …
Pakistan’s population is growing and becoming more urbanized. By 2020, Karachi and Lahore will each have a population of well over 10 million people and several other cities will have a population of at least one million. These trends offer both risks and opportunities. Badly managed urban centers with poor …
This report summarizes key findings that arose from the first systematic study of this scale to look at how cities are approaching climate change planning and implementation. The study covers both adaptation and mitigation efforts. It provides an overview of who is involved in addressing climate change, what measures they …
This publication explores the vulnerability and capability assessment (VCA) in light of growing institutional VCA experience and changing risk patterns, in particular to assess its relevance in addressing issues linked to climate change and to conducting a VCA in an urban area. The VCA is composed of a set of …
Cities worldwide generated more than 1.3 billion tons of solid waste in 2010. As drivers of economic activity and recipients of millions of rural migrants every year, cities expect to see this number to grow to 2.2 billion tons annually by 2025 –the equivalent weight of the Great Pyramid of …
