173
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020
I. B. Franco et al. (eds.), Actioning the Global Goals for Local Impact, Science
for Sustainable Societies, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-32-9927-6_12
Chapter 12
SDG 11 Sustainable Cities
and Communities
SDG 11 and the New Urban Agenda: Global
Sustainability Frameworks for Local Action
Hitesh Vaidya and Tathagata Chatterji
Abstract Recent global policy discourses orchestrated under the aegis of the
United Nations, such as the Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030) and the
New Urban Agenda of UN Habitat, stress upon the need for concerted focus at the
city and the community scale – not only to achieve long-term developmental objectives but also to make direct tangible benefits to the quality of lives of the people.
The world at large is gradually taking an urban turn, as more and more people are
moving to the cities. Cities account for 55% of the population, produce 85% of the
global GDP but also 75% of the greenhouse gas emissions. The issues of global
sustainability cannot be addressed, without strongly addressing sustainability at the
urban scale. This chapter focuses on SDG 11 as the analytical framework to explore
how the transformative force of urbanization represents opportunity and challenge
to meet several other sustainability challenges, such as SDG 1 (poverty reduction),
SDG 4 (education), SDG 5 (gender equality), SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation),
SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy), SDG 8 (economic growth) and SDG 13 (climate action). The research highlights research and action points for urban governance systems to mainstream sustainability concerns through their local planning
and development mechanism.
Keywords SDG 11 · New Urban Agenda · Urban local bodies · India
H. Vaidya (*)
India Country Manager, UN Habitat, New Delhi, India
e-mail: hitesh.vaidya@un.org
T. Chatterji
Xavier School of Human Settlements, Xavier University Bhubaneswar,
Kakudia, Odisha, India
e-mail: tathagata@xub.edu.in
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020
I. B. Franco et al. (eds.), Actioning the Global Goals for Local Impact, Science
for Sustainable Societies, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-32-9927-6_12
Chapter 12
SDG 11 Sustainable Cities
and Communities
SDG 11 and the New Urban Agenda: Global
Sustainability Frameworks for Local Action
Hitesh Vaidya and Tathagata Chatterji
Abstract Recent global policy discourses orchestrated under the aegis of the
United Nations, such as the Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030) and the
New Urban Agenda of UN Habitat, stress upon the need for concerted focus at the
city and the community scale – not only to achieve long-term developmental objectives but also to make direct tangible benefits to the quality of lives of the people.
The world at large is gradually taking an urban turn, as more and more people are
moving to the cities. Cities account for 55% of the population, produce 85% of the
global GDP but also 75% of the greenhouse gas emissions. The issues of global
sustainability cannot be addressed, without strongly addressing sustainability at the
urban scale. This chapter focuses on SDG 11 as the analytical framework to explore
how the transformative force of urbanization represents opportunity and challenge
to meet several other sustainability challenges, such as SDG 1 (poverty reduction),
SDG 4 (education), SDG 5 (gender equality), SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation),
SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy), SDG 8 (economic growth) and SDG 13 (climate action). The research highlights research and action points for urban governance systems to mainstream sustainability concerns through their local planning
and development mechanism.
Keywords SDG 11 · New Urban Agenda · Urban local bodies · India
H. Vaidya (*)
India Country Manager, UN Habitat, New Delhi, India
e-mail: hitesh.vaidya@un.org
T. Chatterji
Xavier School of Human Settlements, Xavier University Bhubaneswar,
Kakudia, Odisha, India
e-mail: tathagata@xub.edu.in