Sustainable cities

Climate change has become a pressing issue because of its major impacts on human society and the ecosystem. Both mitigation strategies in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adaptation strategies designed to minimize the effects of global warming are indispensable to address the arising challenges. Causing 80% of greenhouse gas emissions, cities are disproportionately responsible for climate change and are at the same time crucial to alleviate it.

Local authorities also have a significant role in the conservation of nature and in the maintenance of biodiversity. Most aspects of their activity, such as land use planning, development of urban infrastructure, waste management, pollution control, or management of green areas and other recreational areas, have a direct or indirect bearing on biodiversity conservation. As they are usually close to their citizens, local authorities are particularly well positioned for the provision of community awareness programs and environmental education. Moreover, local authorities have a unique perspective on biodiversity conservation as they represent the local communities that experience, enjoy and live with local biodiversity.

are central issues to ensure sustainable cities offering a high quality living environment for its dwellers while reducing its contribution to global warming and loss of biodiversity. Therefore, local authorities are major actors in addressing the challenges of climate change, urban ecosystem management and biodiversity conservation.

Through its sustainable cities programme, LDP seeks to strengthen the role of local authorities in the global fight against climate change and loss of biodiversity by integrating the environmental challenge in their planning. By developing and implementing capacity development  workshops on sustainable cities through the CIFAL Network it is helping local decision makers to take the ownership of the issues and its solutions at the local level particularly with regards to promoting sustainable energy, urban ecosystem management, adaptation and mitigation of climate change and improvement of urban environment.