Sustainable Development Goal SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

[Music] [Music] you [Music] did you know half of humanity 3.5 billion people lives in cities today and by 2030 it's estimated that 6 out of 10 people will be city dwellers the world cities occupied just 3 percent of the planets land but account for 60 to 80 percent of all energy consumption and 75 percent of the planet's carbon emissions close to 95 percent of urban expansion in the coming decades will take place in the developing world rapid urbanization is exerting pressure on fresh water supplies sewage the living environment and public health a rapidly growing urban

world is experiencing congestion a lack of basic services a shortage of adequate housing and declining infrastructure 30% of the world's urban population lives in slums and in sub-saharan Africa over half of all city dwellers are slum dwellers hello and welcome to the video on SDG 11 making cities and human settlements inclusive safe resilient and sustainable while SDG 11 refers to human settlements increased urbanization and the importance of cities continues to grow as we saw in the introduction so why our city is important they are important as they provide the density interaction and networks that makes

us more creative and productive they are also the key social and economic organizing units of our time bringing together people jobs and all the inputs required for economic growth in this video you will first be given a broad overview of SDG 11 and its associated targets we will then delve into two key areas firstly the growth and rollout of the Smart City concept and secondly the importance of systems thinking in achieving SDG 11 it's clear from the introduction that planning and developing solutions to complex urbanization challenges requires the commitment and action on the part of

a number of stakeholders these include urban planners architects property developers the construction industry local governments citizens and the other major groups identified by the UN who have a stake in the achievement of the SDGs the targets related to this SDG seek to address some key areas these include affordable housing Transport Systems human settlement planning safeguarding our cultural and natural heritage preparing for natural disasters the per capita environmental impact of cities in terms of air quality and waste management and providing more green spaces for citizens all the while strengthening the institutions and structures that deliver these

outcomes it's clear that a key trend in sustainable cities will be the massive rise in technology specifically with the Internet of Things in the future everything in a city from the electricity grid to the sewer pipes to roads buildings and vehicles will be connected to the network governments and researchers since the 1990s have been using the term smart cities because it could help certain cities to distinguish and promote themselves as innovative a smart city is an urban area that uses different types of electronic data collection senses to supply information which is used to manage assets

and resources efficiently examples of smart city initiatives include the city of Barcelona where a new bus network based on data analysis of the most common traffic flows and the integration of multiple smart city technologies allows buses to run routes with the most green lights in Stockholm the green IT program seeks to reduce environmental impact through IT functions such as energy-efficient buildings thus minimizing heating costs traffic monitoring thus minimizing the time spent on the road and development of eServices which minimize paper usage an alternative use of smart city technology can be found in Santa Cruz California

where local authorities analyze historical crime data in order to predict police requirements and maximize police presence where it's required it's important to remember that the challenge of sustainable cities is not simply about developing new technological solutions to long-standing problems rather the success in this sphere will be achieved only by balancing the demands of social and economic development with careful Environmental Management and innovative urban governance also thinking about the other 16 SDGs it's clear that SDG 11 has a potential for inter linkages and taking a real systems approach for example natural disasters and other climate impacts

are endogenous to development they are not a separate issue to be considered independently thus bringing together SDG 11 and 13 or effective inclusive development in cities will need to take into account the needs of people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups thus bringing together SDG 11 and 10 indeed it's important to take a systems approach to the implementation of SDG 11 and other SD G's which suggests that sustainability can only be achieved by first recognizing then balancing the trade-offs among various goals across environmental economic and social systems for the next segment Paul Strickland from Latrobe

University will give you an overview of Bhutan and the country's experience with urbanization how they've planned for it and the country's pioneering role in the development of the gross national happiness indicator bouton officially known as the kingdom of Bhutan is a small country in the Himalayas which shares borders with China and India after the Maldives it is the least populous country in the region with a population of roughly 800,000 the country is the last remaining Buddhist monarchy in the Himalayas and stretches from subtropical Plains on the border of India to sub-alpine Himalayan heights in the

north near the Tibet Autonomous Region in 2008 booter made the transition from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy zonker is the official national language and timbu is the capital city Booton has experienced rapid urbanization the proportion of urban population grew from 5.5 percent fifty years ago to forty point one percent in 2017 between this period the urban population grew annually at an average of 6.1 percent while rural population grew at 0.63 percent urban population growth is largely concentrated in Tim Pugh and Perrault the two largest urban centres currently more than 40 percent of the country's urban

population lived in Tim Pugh this skewered population distribution also has implications on resource allocation for social services such as health care and education in addition to the spatial imbalance there is a disparity in age-wise population distribution the country's population structure is predominately young with more than 40% of the population under 20 years of age this implies that the population growth rate will exacerbate in the near future the government of Bouton's vision in the country Bouton's 2020 a vision for peace prosperity and happiness provides a strategy for the country's distinct path of development over the next

decade up to the year 2020 it recognizes the country's unique challenges as it undergoes a profound and rapid demographic transition from a largely reliant rural economy to an urban society and reinforces the government's policy to promote balanced and equitable economic development I think this quote from our former prime minister on the concept of gross national happiness is a good starting point basically GNH is a philosophy that guides the government of Bhutan the country's development policies plans and programs have been guided by this development philosophy it includes an index which is used to measure the collective

happiness and well-being of the population it is different from gross domestic product by valuing collective happiness as a goal of governance by emphasizing harmony with nature and traditional values as expressed in the nine domains of happiness and the four pillars of G in age the sustainable development concept and principles are entrenched in the G n H development philosophy for example a forest cover of at least 60% of the land at all times is mandated institutional structures and policy instruments are being continually strengthened at all levels to create better conditions for planning and implementing sustainable development

along the lines of G in H concept in Bouton's favour is that G and H is not based on political fad but he's born out of something more profound and enduring the country which only saw the emergence of an embryonic private business centre 20 years ago continues to nurture a deep sense of spirituality that is alive in the people and their relationship with nature the key lesson learned from the Bhutan experience was the critical importance of adapting development efforts to local philosophies because happiness and environmental conservation are the core elements of every policy in Bhutan

the strategies had to adapt these as their ultimate goal this led to a broad acceptance among political institutions and civil society five key initiatives are integrated rural urban planning and regionally balanced urban development so as to create regional urban hubs providing markets for adjoining rural areas this will disperse urban population and the economic opportunities equitably across the country whilst alleviating population pressures on ecosystems and social infrastructure resulting from high urban concentrations in the few existing cities human settlement policy planning including enhancement of energy efficient housing and climate change adaptation by way of land use zoning

based on the levels of vulnerability to climate induce natural disasters solid waste management enterprises using recycling methods and with an affirmative action that creates opportunities for gainful employment and poverty reduction whilst reducing pressure on the landfills and other disposal facilities there exists encouraging examples of how some business enterprises have innovatively linked waste management philanthropic and livelihoods green construction industry promoting design and production of eco-friendly housing materials for installation roofing lighting water storage rainwater runoff management and so on green architecture and landscaping also have great potential embedding conservation cultural inherited education principles in all levels of

learning in the Bhutanese education system this includes teaching modern household hygiene practices establishing international standard health services and capping the number of international visitors to only accept economically high-yield tourists with low impact on the cities and the natural environment [Music] you [Music]