Convened by UN-Habitat and co-organized with the Polish Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy and the Katowice Municipal Office, the eleventh session of the World Urban Forum (WUF11) will take place, for the first time, in Eastern Europe.
From June 26 to 30, the Polish city will host this world event
on sustainable urbanization where the most pressing challenges facing the world will be examined.
And it is expected that thousands of participants will attend: representatives of national, regional and local governments, academia, the private sector, non-governmental and intergovernmental organizations, United Nations agencies and the general public.
The World Urban Forum is held every two years and is the main global conference on cities and one of the largest open meetings in the international arena.
Rapid urbanization and its impact on communities, economies, climate change and poverty will feature on the June agenda.
Aiming to provide greater understanding and clarity about the future based on existing trends, challenges and opportunities, and suggest ways that cities can be better prepared to deal with future pandemics and crises.
In the words of Maimunah Mohd Sharif, executive director of the United Nations Human Settlements Program, this edition of the Forum aims to "mobilize action for urban sustainability at all levels, and be able to respond to the impacts of rapid urbanization ”.
These Forums are a United Nations initiative that emerged in 2001. The first edition was held in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2002. And this time, it is the turn of Katowice, Poland.
His candidacy has been selected by a committee of UN-Habitat, United Nations Environment, UNICEF and UNESCO.
This city already hosted the COP24 in December 2018, and for Maimunah Mohd Sharif it is "an example of urban regeneration that could serve to lead the way towards the creation of sustainable, prosperous and inclusive metropolises that generate opportunities for all people".
These are undoubtedly pressing challenges.
According to the World Bank, about 55% of the world's population, 4.2 billion people, lives in urban areas.
A trend that is expected to continue and that in 2050 it may double, reaching seven out of 10 inhabitants.
The expansion of urban land consumption exceeds population growth by up to 50%, and it is expected that in three decades 1.2 million square kilometers of new urbanized surface will be added, causing pressure on land and natural resources. growing.
In fact, cities are responsible for two thirds of the world's energy consumption and more than 70% of greenhouse gas emissions.
On the other hand, the recent years of the pandemic have made visible, more than ever, the need to reimagine the territories;
Urban lifestyles have been the subject of numerous debates.
And the equitable access they offer to basic services, healthy food, care spaces and green areas has been called into question during this time.
How do our cities respond to the basic needs of the population?
Do they maintain a sustainable relationship with the environment in which they are registered?
These are questions that need to be answered urgently.
How do our cities respond to the basic needs of the population?
Do they maintain a sustainable relationship with the environment in which they are registered?
During the period of confinement, numerous photographs of specimens of various animal species walking the deserted streets of large cities were also published.
And we were able, or knew how, to listen better than ever to the morning song of some birds that, finding the cities empty, recovered a much more natural rhythm.
Some human habits also changed, and given the scarcity or difficulty of going out to buy food, new mutual support initiatives saw the green light in the neighborhoods.
Living in healthy environments has become a social demand that will undoubtedly require effective, inclusive policies based on the common good.
How do we imagine and conceive the future?
How do we want to design cities?
Covid-19 has shown the vulnerability of neighborhoods in the face of major crises.
And this Forum constitutes a new space to rethink, exchange and propose real policies that allow the necessary changes to be implemented.
The reservation period for the
Urban Expo
is now open, and proposals can be submitted until March 7.
In June, without a doubt, we will give our full attention to what happens, is discussed and agreed at the World Urban Forum.
Because the ways in which human beings inhabit the planet are not the result of chance, but of shared decisions.