In his address on this year’s World Cities Day, UN-Secretary General António Guterres recognised that “cities have borne the brunt of the pandemic” and called upon governments to “prepare cities for future disease outbreaks”. Authorities cannot waste this opportunity to build back better by simultaneously addressing the increasing economic hardship for the urban poor and climate change impacts. This will help prevent not only future health risks but also the increased risk of urban violence and insecurity.
Now in its second decade, the ambitious African Union–led restoration initiative known as the Great Green Wall has brought close to 18 million hectares of land under restoration since 2007, according to a status report unveiled by the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) at a virtual meeting on Monday, 7 September.
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is hosting “Green Cities to build back better for SDGs – A new powerful venture”, to be held on the occasion of the 75th Session of the UN General Assembly.
In 2021, on a date to be determined, the UN Secretary-General will convene a Food Systems Summit with the aim of maximising the co-benefits of a food systems approach across the entire 2030 Agenda and meeting the challenges of climate change.
“Food in the time of crises – how to feed the world without eating the planet?” That is the title for this year’s Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) digital conference, which will be broadcasted from Bonn, Germany.
Human mobility plays an important role in the shaping of the world's urban centers. These four infographics, prepared by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), highlight urban human mobility trends, focusing on Africa and Europe.
As water is the most disruptive element in the ongoing climate crisis, how land is managed plays a major role in taming this disruption. This publication shows that avoiding, reducing and reversing land degradation can have positive long-term gains in water security.
Today’s violent conflicts are proving deadlier and more difficult to resolve than ever before. In addition, there is a growing recognition of the role of climate change in exacerbating conflict risks. In light of these, a new report by UNU-CPR aims to support the UN and its partners in developing climate-sensitive conflict prevention approaches.
With cities continuously more threatened by climate change-induced disasters, urban planning’s reflex response is to protect cities against nature. But what if the solution lies in working with nature instead against it? Architect Kongjiang Yu invites readers to imagine what cities could look like if they took into account ancient wisdom on spatial planning.
Nature and its vital contributions to people are deteriorating worldwide, and the goals for conserving and sustainably using nature and achieving sustainability goals cannot be met by current trajectories, unless transformative changes are made.
The mission of the Munich Security Conference is to “address the world’s most pressing security concerns”. These days, that means climate security: climate change is the ultimate threat multiplier, and anyone discussing food security, political instability, migration, or competition over resources should be aware of the climate change pressures that are so often at the root of security problems.
Evidence from existing programs shows that climate change adaptation interventions can contribute to peacebuilding, and peacebuilding can have significant adaptation benefits.
Millions of people across Sub-Saharan Africa could face grave hunger in the first half of 2020 because of armed conflict, political instability and climate change-linked disasters, a report says.
The report published by the UN World Food Programme (WFP) this month says that the countries affected will require life-saving food assistance and investment to prevent humanitarian catastrophes.