The social and economic systems of cities are built under ecosystems both from within and outside of them. The urban environment refers to that intersection between the natural, built and socioeconomic environment. This ecosystem provides different services to cities both in its centre and in its periphery that help moderate the urban microclimate, improve air quality, recreation opportunities, improve citizen's health, and moderate extreme weather events among others.
16. Urban ecosystems and resource management
The World Urban Forum will return to the African continent after more than 20 years since it was held in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2002. This event is considered a high-level, open, and inclusive platform convened by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) to address the challenges of sustainable urbanization. This year, the Twelfth Session will take place in Cairo, Egypt, from November 4 to 9, 2024.
MINURVI Ministerial Meeting (Brazil, 2024)
The meeting of the Forum of Ministers and Highest Authorities of Housing and Urbanism of Latin America and the Caribbean (MINURVI): Climate Resilience and Sustainable Growth in Human Settlements in Latin America and the Caribbean, will be held on Thursday, August 1, and Friday, August 2, 2024, in Brasília, Brazil. The meeting will primarily focus on climate resilience and sustainable growth in human settlements in Latin America and the Caribbean.
During the event, topics will include biodiversity and climate change resilience in human settlements in Latin America and the Caribbean, Build Back Better: an approach to post-disaster recovery for more resilient cities, and land and climate change. Additionally, a ministerial debate will be held to exchange and share experiences, best practices, and proposals to promote urban resilience.
The meeting will feature a diverse group of participants, including ministers and high-level authorities from Latin American and Caribbean countries, academics, and civil society representatives to foster a richer discussion.
The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), in collaboration with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the World Bank (WB), is conducting an evaluation of the damages and losses caused by the historic floods in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
The Circular Economy: a cross-sectoral strategy for sustainable development
Event information
The project "Inclusive, sustainable and smart cities in the framework of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Latin America and the Caribbean", of the cooperation program between ECLAC, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), focuses on strengthening the technical and institutional conditions to promote sustainable development in the field of action of urban connectivity. The project has as its structuring axis the big push for sustainability approach, according to which the post-COVID-19 recovery of cities should be characterized by better environmental practices, more qualified jobs, production with a higher technological content and coordination between private investments and a strategic vision formulated by the States.
The concept of circular economy has been gaining more and more relevance, especially because of its cross-cutting nature across economic sectors. The transition to a circular economy implies a profound change in the way we produce and consume, as well as the development of economic models that create value in a sustainable manner. For this reason, the objective of this event is to update the state of the art of the implementation of the circular economy in the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) region, presenting studies and initiatives in the region in different sectors. It will also present cases of development and implementation of technologies and policies in this area, as a way of sharing experiences, contributing to the fulfillment of global decarbonization goals.
The agenda will be developed as follows:
Block 1: State of knowledge or progress of the circular economy (CE) in the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) region.
Block 2: Technologies and initiatives for circularity in various sectors.
Block 3: State of progress towards circularity in cities and countries - technologies and policies
Block 4: Policies needed to accelerate the implementation of CE in LAC (contrasting technologies and policies)
Latin America and the Caribbean is the most urbanized region of the developing world. United Nations Secretary General António Guterres has said that "cities are where the battle against climate change will be won or lost". Cities are the engines of economic growth, but also the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, and their dynamism is present in the midst of the great inequalities of our societies.
The United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), together with the Government of the City of Buenos Aires, C40 and ENEL, organized the side event "Cities Collaborating Towards Circularity: Latin American and European Experiences", in the framework of the C40 World Summit of Mayors, held in the City of Buenos Aires, Argentina, from October 19 to 21, 2022.
As part of a space for the exchange of experiences and ideas, the side event "Collaboration of cities towards circularity: Latin American and European experiences", promoted collaboration and coo
The Division for Sustainable Development and Human Settlements (DDSAH) of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) participated in the event "Unlocking the potential of Green Growth and Climate Finance Innovations" at the Global Green Growth Week 2022, organized by the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), presenting the activities carried out during the year 2022 in the framework of the Declaration of Circular Cities of Latin America and the Caribbean.
On March 29 and 30, an event entitled "The circular economy: a cross-sectoral strategy for sustainable development" was held as part of the project "Inclusive, sustainable and smart cities in the framework of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Latin America and the Caribbean", a cooperation program between the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
The circular economy has been gaining increasing rel