3 Ways to Unlock Financing for Urban Climate Action
3 Ways to Unlock Financing for Urban Climate Action
In climate negotiations, as elsewhere, the question of money takes center stage. How will existing and future commitments be paid for, and who will invest in potentially capital-intensive infrastructure projects? Estimates vary depending on a range of factors, but aggregating ...
How Can Countries Make Progress at COP23? Work with Cities
How Can Countries Make Progress at COP23? Work with Cities
At this week’s climate conference in Bonn, Germany, the pressure is on many national governments to continue implementation of the Paris Agreement despite the United States’ intention to withdraw. But they’ll have help from the world’s cities. Bonn is shaping ...
Voices of Efficiency: Dubai's Quest to Improve Energy Performance Starts with Benchmarking
Voices of Efficiency: Dubai's Quest to Improve Energy Performance Starts with Benchmarking
Dubai is blazing a new path for cities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by calling attention to energy consumption in buildings and highlighting the lack of data available to benchmark usage rates and measure progress. In 2016, Dubai joined ...
How Cities Can Harness the Good – and Avoid the Bad – of the New Mobility Movement
How Cities Can Harness the Good – and Avoid the Bad – of the New Mobility Movement
This article was first published in TechCrunch. In late September, London made headlines when it stripped popular ride-hailing app Uber of its license to operate in the city. The wall-to-wall coverage that followed the decision was a sign, if any more ...
Meet the Experts: Q&A with Brenda Medeiros
Meet the Experts: Q&A with Brenda Medeiros
In 2008, Brenda Medeiros joined WRI Brasil as one of its first interns. Today, she serves as its Urban Mobility Director, focusing on the optimization of public transport systems. With degrees in both civil and transportation engineering, Medeiros earned her Ph.D.in public ...
Beyond Uber: How the Private Sector Is Disrupting Mobility
Beyond Uber: How the Private Sector Is Disrupting Mobility
In August 2017, Uber passed the 500 million rides mark in India. In under four years, the company has expanded to 29 cities and worked with close to half a million drivers. India’s homegrown competitor, Ola Cabs, is growing just ...
Jon Kher Kaw on Transformative Solutions for South Asia’s Growing Cities
https://www.flickr.com/photos/sammu/5439556618/
Jon Kher Kaw, a senior urban development specialist at the World Bank, believes the most pressing challenge for urbanization in South Asian cities is accommodating the overwhelming number of new residents. Reflecting on his wealth of experience working with cities ...
China’s Clean Air Challenge: Time to Cut Maritime Pollution
China’s Clean Air Challenge: Time to Cut Maritime Pollution
While cars and trucks are often blamed for air pollution, it’s time to bring ships into the equation. The maritime sector—mainly ships and ports—contributes a large share of air pollutant emissions in coastal cities and casts a deathly pall over ...
Are Trains Better Than Bus Rapid Transit Systems? A Look at the Evidence
https://www.flickr.com/photos/harshilshah/35180014721/in/photolist-VAJLHX-XpTK3d-CkU699-ZpcTYW-YqPw6t
The world’s great public transit systems: Tokyo’s Metro, London’s Tube, Hong Kong’s MTR…and Mexico City’s bus rapid transit corridors? Trains are often seen as the pinnacle of modern urban transport infrastructure. They’re green and efficient, supported by permanent, complex track ...
Fortaleza and São Paulo Experiment with Street Transformations
Fortaleza and São Paulo Experiment with Street Transformations
Who has the right to the city? While giving priority to pedestrians may seem obvious, many cities have been built around reliance on the automobile and now struggle to reclaim streets for pedestrians or fail to see the value in ...