SDG 11- Sustainable Cities and Communities Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable

“When you have more than what you need, build a longer table, not a higher fence.”

- Anonymous

Introduction to the SDG

In a world where cities occupy just 3% of the land but account for as much as 70% of global energy consumption, and 70% of global carbon emissions, Goal 11 aims to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable. As new cities develop amidst rapid urbanization, it is estimated that cities will house as much as 60% of the global population by the year 2030. Carrying out urban development in a planned and effective manner is instrumental in ensuring a sustainable future.

SDG 11 has a total of ten targets, which include access to safe and affordable housing, a sustainable public transport system with special attention to the needs of vulnerable groups, sustainable urbanization, protection of cultural and natural heritage, reducing deaths and economic losses due to disasters, reducing the adverse impact of cities with an emphasis on air quality and waste management, and universal access to green and public places. Targets 11A, 11B, and 11C cover regional and national development planning, disaster risk management, and supporting the least developed countries (LDCs) in sustainable construction using local material. A total of fifteen different indicators are used to track progress on these targets. A key feature of SDG11 indicators is the requirement of spatial data, which relies on unconventional techniques to generate data, such as ‘Earth Observations’ taken by sensors in, on, or around the earth.

Cities are units that make up the world, contributing to 80% of the global GDP. Well-managed and well-planned urbanization is thus the key to achieving other SDGs. Efficient urbanization is instrumental in reducing poverty and ensuring access to basic services (SDG 1); air quality and waste management are strongly linked to health (SDG 3). Similarly, a city that is safe and accessible is a precursor for ensuring gender equality (SDG 9). Only by focussing on the way we plan and develop our cities can we work towards creating an environment conducive to achieving our SDGs by 2030.

Genesis of the goal

While the estimated migration figures of migration from rural to urban areas are quite encouraging, the current number of people living in slums isn’t. UN estimates that roughly 589 million people live in slums in Asia excluding its western part (1). Dharavi, one of the world’s largest slums, which is inhabited by more than 1 million people is located in India, that too in a prime location in the middle of the financial capital, Mumbai (2).  The conditions of people residing in slum areas across the world was one of the key reasons for the UN to propose SDG 11.

Other reasons for the SDG 11 to come into existence can be seen in the several parameters the SDG proposes, such as improving air quality, access to transportation and open public services and many more to meet the goal of having sustainable cities. However, the most important one of them which has to be resolved at the earliest is the problem of sanitation. UN estimates that currently, 3 billion people lack access to controlled waste disposal facilities. At the current rate of population growth (3) and urbanization, it is estimated that the total waste generated by the world will double by 2050. Therefore, the first and most important issue to be addressed while developing smart cities is the efficient and safe disposal of waste. 

The next most important factor is Clean Air. As per the UN, 90% of people living in urban areas inhale poor quality of air. This problem is particularly aggravated in South Asian countries like India, China, Pakistan, etc. India and its neighbouring countries currently contain 6 of the 10 most air-polluted cities in the world. The situation was grave in 2015 when the SDGs were being implemented. Beijing had critical levels of air pollution back then, and the condition of other South Asian countries was similar. This prompted the UN to include Air quality as a key component of sustainable cities of the future.

Rapid urbanization engenders a scarcity of space. In such a situation it is quite difficult to ensure access to open public spaces. However, this problem can be overcome by converting several Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities into smart cities as there would not be a significant scarcity of land in these cities. 

Impact on industries

There is more money to be made by solving-world’s sustainability problems. The forward-looking business leaders are not looking at sustainability as a liability but as a strategic move to boost future growth.

According to a recent report of Business and Sustainable Development Commission, a total of $12 trillion worth of new market opportunities would be created by achieving the sustainability development goals. The majority of them being – food, agriculture, energy, cities and material. (4)

Development of sustainable cities has a plethora of opportunities for business and its residents.Around 55 percent of World Population resides in urban areas and this figure is projected to reach around 75 percent in the upcoming decade (5). In order to cater to such a high population, cities across the globe have to revamp their existing infrastructure and build new infrastructure. This presents a huge business opportunity for business operating in the affordable building, transportation and energy sector.

Around $3.7 trillion of potential profits can be earned in sustainably developed cities in the housing and transportation sector. $800 million of potential profits by retrofitting buildings with updated lighting, heating, cooling and appliances.

Along-side helping the businesses, it will also help its residents as well. Around 166 million new job opportunities will be created in sustainable cities because of the boost in infrastructure.           

       Credit: Better Business, Better World

Another benefit that businesses can get from the sustainable cities is improved reach to human resource capital. In recent times, one of the biggest challenges, organizations are facing is access to skilled human capital. As most of the growth today is driven by innovation and creativity, organizations are in a constant outlook for such people.

Today’s workforce wants to live and work at locations that are accessible, clean and cater to all their needs. Sustainable cities can provide huge payoffs by giving access to affordable housing, efficient transportation facilities, improved health and education facilities. Hence, the businesses operating in these locations can get a huge competitive advantage.

In January 2016, General Electric announced that they will be relocating their headquarters from the suburbs of Connecticut to Boston because they want to attract a workforce that prefers to live in cities. Other major organizations that followed suit include ConAgra Foods and Motorola Mobility in Chicago, Expedia in Seattle and Zappos in Las Vegas. (6)

Some of the major benefits that organizations obtain while being in a sustainable city are:

·       Innovation through diverse workforce.

·       Improved health and well-being of the work-force.

·       Increased efficiency.

·       Access to a wide talent pool.

Some of the major challenges that organizations face while being in a sustainable city are:

·       Industry - wide changes: Established organizations have to change the way they operate because of change in the industry structure. For example: Energy companies across the globe are facing the challenge of moving away from fossil fuels to more sustainable options like solar and wind.

·       Reduced Production: The productivity of the farms decrease initially when the growing pattern is shifted from fertilizers and pesticides to organics.

·       Huge Research and Development Investment: Affordable and sustainable housing and transportation system requires huge capital investment towards research and development. So, organizations looking for working in this particular sector may face problems related to their finances.

Industrial Response

An important part of construction technology is the material being used for construction. Across the world, cement continues to be one of the most used and important materials of construction. The reason for this is that it is easy to work with and continues to remain an economical option which is attractive to contractors in developing countries. So, to work towards more sustainable construction practices it is important to use materials which have the least possible impact on the environment. One of India’s largest cement company has recognised this and has been investing in R&D to launch cement which is manufactured using industrial wastes. As per Amuja Cement’s 2017 sustainability development report (7), more than 90% of their products are low carbon fly ash based PPC and have a wide portfolio of green products which have been made using two industrial wastes, fly ash and slag. In 2017, they launched a Composite Cement which will reduce the residue of burnt carbon being deposited in cement furnaces by 10%. In addition to this, Amuja Cement has set up 29 “Ambuja Knowledge Centres” across India to create a platform where professionals can share knowledge on sustainable construction practices.

Working towards SDG 11 does not simply mean investing in R&D to make greener products, corporates can also work towards them by trying to find ways in which they can make the current operations better or create opportunities for more people using the current infrastructure. One of the best recognised brands in the world, Coca-Cola has invested US$ 500 million in developing an extensive supply chain for local businesses (8). The company has set up manufacturing units and distribution networks with local businesses and installed cold drink coolers with local customers to help boost sales. This investment has helped create 500 jobs directly and another 5000 jobs in supporting activities with 99% of the workforce being Vietnamese. Nike’s way of working towards SDG 11 involves working towards reducing the impact of weather-related events on physical assets through a global property protection program. This program helps with facility location and design of key facilities to a very high level of property protection.

Different companies have different competencies and find ways of working towards SDG 11 or a subpart of it that best suits their organisation. SDG 11 primarily focuses on infrastructure but that does not limit the companies working on it to only infrastructure firms. India’s largest retail bank, the State Bank of India has worked towards SDG 11 by setting up a community run solid waste management system in the villages of Rajasthan thus creating job opportunities and a sustainable rural community (9).

Some Current Examples

With almost 3.5 billion people living in cities, the load on our cities is multiplying, and a decade from now, that number is estimated to cross 5 billion.

The companies currently taking the initiatives towards the SDG 11 include:

GoFar, a Sydney based company, is helping cut vehicular emissions, as well as enhance drivers' safety (10). A mobile app and an in-car device provide drivers with feedback in real-time to cut fuel consumption and enhance road safety by instilling safe driving practices. Cab aggregators like Uber, Ola, Grab, Didi and Lyft can collaborate with this company to ensure minimal wastage of fuel and driver safety.

German conglomerate, Siemens which claims 20 million Euros expected annual savings from 2020 onwards as a result of investments in energy-efficiency projects, is another good example of companies working on sustainable and smart cities (11). It started working on it back in 2012, by helping improve the quality of lives for Londoners by improving existing public transportation, and by constructing The Crystal, one of the most sustainable buildings in the world which also houses the world's largest exhibition on cities of future. It has also continued its support over the years by partnering for Expo Milano-2015 and will be a partner of Expo Dubai-2020, wherein a wide range of innovative technologies and products to help the world are showcased (12).

In the U.S, General Electrics is ideating on the development of a futuristic city, located about ten miles south of Boston. The area is planned to change completely and become one of the most modern cities in the world. The company plans to install smart streetlighting solutions with sensors that track ambience conditions and help city planners to study relevant data and thus further develop urban areas suitably (12). Alphabet, Google's parent company, also has been working to improve urban living with its subsidiary called Sidewalk Labs. It is designing a whole district in the Eastern Waterfront of Toronto to tackle the challenges of urban growth and is working with the government agencies and the local community. The joint effort hopes to make Toronto a global hub for urban innovation, mobility and energy consumption, landfill waste-management, real estate, among other issues (12).

However, most of the companies and investors still believe that fixing cities is the job of governments, and they don't need to act. With governments around the world being stuck—politically as well as financially, they can't be expected to resolve the issues of urbanization single-handedly, and thus more companies must step up to help build solutions for a better tomorrow.

Future Path

A lot has been achieved ever since the SDG 11 has come into force. As of the beginning of 2019, 150 nations have developed policies that address the urbanisation challenges of today (13). A significant amount of time has been spent in building and supporting the monitoring capacity of national statistical systems and other partners. A global assessment, undertaken by UN-Habitat to monitor and report the progress of countries on all the urban-related SDG targets showed mixed results (14).

Some of the major activities undertaken by custodian agencies with regards to the SDG 11 are as follows:

·       UN-Habitat, UNECA, ECE, ESCAP and ECLAC have worked with several countries including Ecuador, Albania, Ukraine etc. to create a national sample of cities in order to create a monitoring tool.

·       UN-Habitat, in order to support the SDG 11 activities in developing countries is undertaking a “United Nations Development Account” project.

·       The rate of expansion of cities is estimated to be one and a half times to that of the population growth (15).

However, the targets set for 2020, still seem far away. The progress on the targets is as follows (15):

·       The global urban population has decreased from 28% in 2000 to 23% in 2018, however the absolute number of people living in slums have increased.

·       In 2016, 91% of the urban population is breathing polluted air which does not meet the WHO’s Air Quality Guidelines value of Particulate Matter 2.5.

·       Out of the 150 countries that have developed policies that address the urbanisation challenges of today, only 73 are in the process of implementing and 23 have reached evaluation and monitoring phase.

The major challenge is that 4.2 billion people live in cities today and by 2030, it is estimated that 6 out of every 10 people will be city dwellers. However, the cities comprise of 3% of the land and account for 60-80% of the energy consumption and 75% of the planet’s carbon emissions (16). In the fast-paced growing world, it is difficult to ensure that the world becomes more sustainable in more concentrated areas.

Recommendations

There is a need for coordinated efforts from multiple stakeholders including line ministries, the public sector, academia and civil society is necessary for the successful implementation of SDG.

The administrations around the world need to enable the industries, specifically the real estate and tech industry to take the lead in achieving SDG 11 targets.

The private players need to focus on R&D to provide hi-tech solutions to the society in general, so that together, we can reinvent and reimagine the world as we know it and enter a new era of sustainable success.

Authors

Group 4, Section C, PGDM (BM) 2019-21 Batch

B19123: Amandeep Singh Kalsi
B19125: Ankur Goyal
B19135: Dhairya Desai
B19138: Happy Kukreja
B19148: Mohit Marhatta
B19166: Shashwat Jha

References

(1). Retrieved from https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg11

(2). Retrieved from https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/asias-biggest-slum-dharavi-may-finally-get-a-makeover/long-awaited-move/slideshow/66782419.cms

(3). Retrieved from https://population.un.org/wpp/Publications/Files/WPP2019_10KeyFindings.pdf

(4). Retrieved from https://www.wri.org/blog/2017/04/numbers-how-business-benefits-sustainable-development-goals

(5). Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/17/two-thirds-of-global-population-will-live-in-cities-by-2050-un-says.html

(6). Retrieved from https://www.greenbiz.com/article/how-sustainable-cities-can-drive-business-growth

(7). Retrieved from https://www.ambujacement.com/upload/pdf/ambuja-cement-sustainable-development-report-2017.pdf

(8). Retrieved from https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/9786CRT046599%20SDG_Food_Bev_24Feb_WEB_FINAL.pdf

(9). Retrieved from http://ficci.in/spdocument/22950/Sustainable-Development-Goals-ficci.pdf

(10). Retrieved from https://www.gofar.co/

(11). Retrieved from https://new.siemens.com/br/en/company/sustainability.html

(12). Retrieved from https://medium.com/@globechain/the-smart-way-to-build-sustainable-cities-607804f3c3f2

(13). Retrieved from https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg11

(14). Retrieved from http://uis.unesco.org/sites/default/files/documents/sdg11-synthesis-report-2018-en.pdf

(15). Retrieved from https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/197282018_background_notes_SDG_11_v3.pdf

(16). Retrieved from https://in.one.un.org/page/sustainable-development-goals/sdg-11/