Three Stories of How the Internet of Everything Is Changing Transport
Three Stories of How the Internet of Everything Is Changing Transport
With the arrival of new and powerful technologies, and the declining costs of these technologies, some new possibilities are emerging for cities and their transport systems. For example, the Internet of Everything (IoE) can benefit cities by connecting people, processes, ...
Improving Street Lighting Can Be an Easy Win for Cities. Here’s Why National Governments Are Critical
Improving Street Lighting Can Be an Easy Win for Cities. Here’s Why National Governments Are Critical
Lighting represents about 15 percent of global power consumption and 5 percent of worldwide greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Street lighting alone represents about 3 percent of world electricity consumption. Extensive programs that replace obsolete street lighting systems—incandescent, mercury vapor, and ...
Friday Fun: Three Museums That Engage Visitors to Think about the Future of Cities
Friday Fun: Three Museums That Engage Visitors to Think about the Future of Cities
It’s not often that you encounter museums dedicated to urban planning and development. But they do exist, and they are presenting panoramas of urban areas, both historically and spatially. While many museums have traditionally focused on presenting valuable objects and ...
Public Space in Cities – What’s the Measuring Stick?
Public Space in Cities – What’s the Measuring Stick?
The famed American landscape architect and Central Park designer Fredrick Law Olmsted said that parks are the “lungs of the city.” However, many cities around the world—from growing Addis Ababa to sprawling Mumbai and dense Sao Paulo—currently lack adequate public ...
4 Priorities for a Conversation around Habitat III
4 Priorities for a Conversation around Habitat III
Habitat III in Quito Ecuador this October will be an opportunity to galvanize local leaders to forge strategies for sustainable, equitable and resilient urban growth. But the stakes are high, and the conversation among policymakers and local leaders is still ...
How Can Africa Deliver on Its Ambitious Vision for Habitat III?
How Can Africa Deliver on Its Ambitious Vision for Habitat III?
From February 24 – 26, 2016 African ministers and stakeholder representatives from numerous civil society organizations gathered in Abuja, Nigeria to discuss African priorities for Habitat III, the U. N.’s 20-year urbanization conference that takes place in October. At the end ...
Friday Fun: New Bike Infrastructure Projects from Hong Kong, Germany and Kuala Lumpur
Friday Fun: New Bike Infrastructure Projects from Hong Kong, Germany and Kuala Lumpur
The benefits of cycling—both for cities and people—are well known. For individuals, cycling can be an efficient, safe and cheap form of mobility as well as a good source of physical activity, helping to reduce obesity and other health risks. ...
In China and Beyond, Action Plans Provide a Path for Improving Building Efficiency
In China and Beyond, Action Plans Provide a Path for Improving Building Efficiency
On February 23 the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) launched the Energy Efficiency in Buildings laboratory (EEB Lab) in Shanghai. In a city where 18.4 percent of emissions come from buildings, the EEB Lab is engaging local stakeholders ...
New Research Shows How BRT Ridership Is Making Bogota a Healthier City
TransMilenio BRT in Bogotá, Colombia. Photo by Mariana Gil/EMBARQ Brazil.
Physical inactivity is one of the ten leading risk factors for death worldwide. Approximately 5.3 million people die prematurely every year due to cardiovascular diseases, breast and colon cancer and diabetes and other illnesses associated with sedentary lifestyles. According to The ...
New Data Shows São Paulo's Carfree Movement Reduces Air and Noise Pollution
New Data Shows São Paulo's Carfree Movement Reduces Air and Noise Pollution
Major changes in thinking never happen easily. Projects that change established structures and routines typically encounter significant resistance along the way. Changing entrenched thinking, therefore, often requires finding ways to demonstrate the positive impacts of change. Paulista Aberta is one ...