News
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WRI's experts provided feedback to Habitat III's newest Zero Draft
Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Photo Credit: Mariana Gil/WRI Brasil
Habitat III, the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Development, has released an updated Zero Draft of the New Urban Agenda, the document that will be released following the October event in Quito, Ecuador. -
Wudaokou, Beijing, China. Photo Credit: Jens Schott Knudsen/Flickr.
BEIJING (June 8, 2016)— At the second China-US Climate Smart / Low Carbon Cities Summit, representatives from more than 50 cities came together to enhance cooperation on low-carbon development. Twelve Chinese cities pledged to peak their carbon emissions earlier than China’s national target of 2030, joining the 11 founding cities and provinces of the Alliance of Peaking Pioneer Cities (APPC).
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New cities and states join UN Sustainable Energy for All program to double the rate of energy efficiency by 2030
Curitiba, PR, Brazil. Photo Credit: Mariana Gil/WRI Brasil
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Formed in memory of Dr. Lee Schipper, the scholarship has helped advanced the field of sustainable mobility for five years
The Lee Schipper Memorial Scholarship for Sustainable Transport and Energy Efficiency is awarded annually to up to two extraordinary candidates to honor the legacy of Dr. Leon J. Schipper, pictured above, co-founder of EMBARQ. Photo by EMBARQ.
EMBARQ, WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities’ sustainable urban mobility initiative, and the Lee Schipper family are pleased to announce Akshima Ghate and Fiamma Perez have been selected to receive the fifth annual 2016 Lee Schipper Memorial Scholarship.
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Juiz de Flora. Photo Credit: Mariana Gil/WRI Brasil Sustainable Cities
Habitat III, the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development, will convene in Quito, Ecuador in October 2016. The conference will bring together national governments, sub-national actors and decision-makers and civil society to create a vision for the next 20 years of sustainable, equitable, prosperous urban development – a document referred to as the New Urban Agenda.
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Eight recommended actions can improve energy efficiency in buildings to unlock a “triple win” and address economic, environmental and social challenges in world’s urban areas
Photo Credit: iStockphoto
Eight recommended actions can improve energy efficiency in buildings to unlock a “triple win” and address economic, environmental and social challenges in world’s urban areas
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WRI Brasil Sustainable Cities has been closely collaborating with the city to provide technical support and improve safety for the most vulnerable users
Photo by Dante Busquets/Flickr.
The number of traffic fatalities in Sao Paulo, Brazil fell by 20.6 percent from 2014 to 2015, resulting in 257 saved lives. This is the lowest rate since 1998, when the Brazilian Traffic Code was first released.
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Porto Alegre, Brazil. Photo Credit: Benoit Colin/WRI
Today, the Building Efficiency Initiative (BEI) of WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities announces the launch of a new resource for knowledge on building efficiency at http://www.buildingefficiencyinitiative.org/. The online platform will equip policy makers, building owners and managers, practitioners and other professionals with the tools and information they need to create better buildings for better cities.
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Public and private sector actors discussed what it will take to create the country’s next generation of buildings
Paseo de la Reforma in Mexico City. Photo by Dan/Flickr.
Globally, buildings account for 40 percent of total energy consumption and 33 percent of all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In order to reduce energy consumption and combat climate change, the Net Zero Energy Building (NZEB) consortium is working to scale up an innovative kind of building—one that meets 100 percent of its energy needs through on-site renewables on a net annual basis.
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Event brought local and national representatives together to discuss how cities can move toward a future of safe cycling
Istanbul is looking to expand its network of bike lanes and promote cycling to improve public health and well-being. Photo by EMBARQ Turkey.
Istanbul, Turkey is notorious for its traffic congestion and, according to the Traffic Index Data by TomTom, is the most congested city in the world. If residents continue to depend on private vehicles to meet their mobility needs rather than using public transport, cycling or walking, congestion will not improve. However, there is opportunity for change.