network of major cities and metropolitan areas, as well as private-sector partners, mayors have made great progress in fostering equitable, resilient and environmentally sustainable urban pathways. However, mayors and city governments could do even more to achieve their climate ambitions with the active support of national governments and international institutions. This is why cities are calling for more collaboration with regional and national governments to deliver ambitious and transformative climate action plans.


As mayors of very different cities, we hear the resounding message of young activists, urban development scholars and policymakers that we must use the recovery from the global pandemic to forge a new normal and build a better future for all, protecting our planet before it is too late. Not only would a return to the status quo be a monumental failure of imagination, it would continue to embed the inequities laid bare by the pandemic. Moreover, it would lead to more carbon lock-in, loss of biodiversity and greater pollution, resulting in more disastrous crises brought on by the breakdown of nature.


Initiatives, such as local Green New Deals or the launch of the C40 mayors’ agenda for a green and just recovery, are showing that environmental degradation and rising inequalities are increasingly approached as intertwined challenges. The twenty-first century requires a new social contract based on a green and just recovery that addresses these issues together and embeds a firm commitment to the preservation of the planet and its people.


1.1 What you will find in this report


This second edition of GEO for Cities is an extension of the main GEO-6 report, presenting and explaining the findings of the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) flagship environmental assessment in a way that helps city decision makers take clear action. Chapter 2 of this report examines how cities function and the challenges and barriers to action they face, as well as some opportunities for catalysing change. Chapter 3 then examines how the environmental challenges of today are affecting cities and how cities are contributing to these environmental issues. Chapter 4 examines the types of future cities that will help address the environmental, economic and social challenges we currently face. City decision makers may see themselves in the dimensions set out in the chapter, alongside areas where their cities could improve. Finally, chapter 5 explores the pathways that need to be followed to reach the vision of “ideal” cities that is presented in chapter 4.


The environmental and urban challenges outlined in this report require urgent and sustained attention from everyone involved in cities. To achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 11, we must make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and environmentally sustainable. UNEP, UN-Habitat, the GEO for Cities Advisory Committee, its co-chairs and the expert authors hope that this report will lead to the urgent action needed for cities to become the beacons of environmental excellence that help their citizens lead productive, prosperous and equitable lives. Enjoy and take action!


Why GEO for Cities, Why Now?


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