Week 9

GC0006 Sustainability: Society, Economy & Environment
Module 9
Sustainable Cities
Presented by Dr Perrine Hamel, Asian School of the Environment
© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

“Our struggle for
global sustainability
will be won or lost in
cities.”
Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon
© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved. 2015–2030
Learning Objectives
1. Define key characteristics of a
sustainable city.
2. Describe the main ways that cities
depend and impact our environment.
3. Explain why cities play a critical role in
advancing the sustainability agenda.
4. Discuss solutions to enhance
sustainability of cities.
4
We live on an urban planet

The Urban Population is Growing Fast
Proportion of the urban population globally: Urban land use globally projected to increase
1.2 million km² by 2030.
In 2018: 55% That’s a lot in absolute value (and it grows
faster than population), less in relative value.
In 2050: Projected to be 68%
6
Megacities of the world in 2018 and 2030
Dense Urban Life

Population of cities with at least half
a million inhabitants: 2018
2030
• In 2018: >1 in 5 people live in
• In 2030: 1 in 3 people
Cities where the population declined between 2000 and 2018

Megacities (population >10 million):
• 43 megacities by 2030 (majority in
Asia and Africa)
However… some cities are shrinking.
7
Urban Life Drives Our Culture, Our Economy
• Urban populations tend to have
higher living standards, i.e., higher:
⁃ Electricity access
⁃ Access to improved sanitation and
drinking water
⁃ Access to clean fuels for cooking and
heating
Note: Not true for slum households (~1

in 3 people in urban areas)
Higher living standards result in a change in

lifestyle which results in more consumption.
8
Stop and Think
Based on what you’ve learnt about food,
energy, water in the past few weeks, do you
think it is a good thing that the more urban a
country is, the higher the consumption?
Consider our consumption habits in cities and
think about what makes them unsustainable.
9
Going Beyond GDP: Doughnut Economics
• A compass for human prosperity in the 21st
century  Surely applicable to cities
• The doughnut consists of:
⁃ A social foundation: To ensure that no one is left
falling short on life’s essentials
⁃ An ecological ceiling: To ensure that humanity
does not collectively overshoot planetary
boundaries
• Between these two boundaries lies a

doughnut-shaped space that is both
ecologically safe and socially just—a space in
which humanity can thrive.

How do cities impact our
environment?
How do they depend on our

environment?
11
Cities’ Interaction With the
Broader Natural Ecosystems
Urban growth impacts natural ecosystems (cities Urban life depends on healthy ecosystems and their
may grow by 1.2M km² by 2030, mainly on forest benefits (or “ecosystem services”):
and agricultural land), and urban life leads to direct • Water, food, energy provision
impacts on the environment: Air pollution, water • Less visible benefits, e.g., carbon sequestration,
pollution, waste management, etc. pollination, cultural heritage
12
Cities Contribute to Climate Change and are
Vulnerable to Climate Hazards
Cities account for between 60 and 80% of energy Cities are particularly vulnerable to climate change
consumption and generate as much as 70% of and natural hazards due to the concentration of
human-induced greenhouse gas emissions. people and infrastructure.
13
Examples of Environmental Hazards:
Urban Heat Island
• Urban heat island: Phenomenon
by which a city experiences
warmer temperatures than
surrounding rural areas
• Temperature difference due to
how well the surfaces in each
environment absorb and retain
heat
14
Examples of Environmental Hazards:
Urban Flooding
• Urban flooding: Flooding experienced in urban
areas due to the lack of drainage (lots of built-up
areas means rainwater cannot infiltrate or be
stored)
• Increase in rainfall intensity, which is expected in
many regions, may increase flooding
15
Other Important Urban Challenges
• Providing infrastructure for access to
basic needs: Housing, education,
health,…
• Inequality is rising in cities, both in
developed and developing countries.
• 1 billion people live in slums.
• Migration adds to the challenge, with
most migrants being found in urban
areas.
16
So… what is a sustainable city?
What is a Sustainable City?
A city that manages all resources it is
dependent on in ways that guarantee the Social
well-being of current and future
generations, ensuring distributional
equity. Bearable Equitable
Economic Environment
Viable

Example: Sustainable Singapore Blueprint
Scan the QR code below to find out more about the
Sustainable Singapore Blueprint, which highlights how
Singapore is promoting sustainability beyond our
country.

Example: International Standard Organisation
• Sustainability
dimensions:
- Attractiveness
- Environment
- Resilience
- Resource use
- Social cohesion
- Well-being
Image taken from https://www.iso.org/standard/61885.html

Example: Singapore Sustainability Blueprint

SDG 11: Make Cities and Human Settlements
Inclusive, Safe, Resilient and Sustainable
• Examples of targets:
Indicator 11.6.1: Proportion of municipal
- Target 11.6: By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita solid waste collected and managed in
environmental impact of cities, including by paying controlled facilities out of total municipal
special attention to air quality and municipal and waste generated, by cities
other waste management
Indicator 11.6.2: Annual mean levels of fine
- Target 11.7: By 2030, provide universal access to particulate matter (e.g. PM2.5 and PM10) in
cities (population weighted)
safe, inclusive and accessible, green and public
spaces, in particular for women and children, older
persons and persons with disabilities
- Target 11.a: Support positive economic, social and
environmental links between urban, peri-urban
and rural areas by strengthening national and
regional development planning
United Nations Statistics Division (n.d.). Global indicator framework for the Sustainable Development Goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. United Nations. https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/indicators/Global%20Indicator%20Framework%20after%202021%20refinement_Eng.pdf

23
Protecting Cities With Blue and Green
Infrastructure
• Blue and green infrastructure is an area or system
made of naturally occurring or engineered
ecosystems (e.g., forests, green roofs, road trees)
and managed to provide benefits for people and the
environment
For example:
• Reducing the urban heat island effect
24
Protecting Cities With Blue and Green
Infrastructure
• Blue and green infrastructure is an
area or system made of naturally
occurring or engineered ecosystems
(e.g., forests, green roofs, road trees)
and managed to provide benefits for
people and the environment
For example:
• Reducing the urban heat island effect
• Reducing urban floods
25
Application: Downscaling the
Doughnut to the City
You are required to watch
this supplementary video, by visiting
the external link to abide by
copyright protection requirements. You
would have completed the lesson after
watching the video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCqG
f7T9ABo
Timing: 3:30 to 8:40

Example: Amsterdam

Example: Amsterdam
• Everything is connected: Housing policy
relates to many urban dimensions through
the local, global, social, ecological lenses.
• Technology is part of it (e.g., rooftop solar
panels)… but not the only part!
• It takes time, collaboration and engagement
with different stakeholders and communities
to identify the most relevant strategy.

There is Not One Recipe for Sustainable Cities…
• Cities are complex systems: … but some common opportunities
⁃ Multiple actors, structures, processes, • Cities can help change individuals’ behaviour.
functions, …
⁃ E.g., improving public transport so that people
use their cars less
• Cities are innovation and creativity hubs.

⁃ Social or technological progress
⁃ Concentration of financial resources
• Cities can benefit from scaling effect.

⁃ Economies of scale (lower per capita resource
use, e.g., efficient use of infrastructure)

In Summary
1. We live on an urban planet.
2. Urban lifestyle impacts the environment and
increases our dependency on natural
ecosystems.
3. A sustainable city “manages all resources [it]
is dependent on […] in ways that guarantee
the wellbeing of current and future
generations, ensuring distributional equity”
4. There is not one recipe for sustainability but
some general principles:
1. City: Promoting sound urban planning, “green”
buildings, invest in renewable energy
2. Individual: Adopt more sustainable lifestyle

Tutorial
Think about Singapore’s green plan: How does
it leverage these opportunities mentioned at the
end of the lecture?
• Cities can help change individuals’ behaviour.
• Cities are innovation and creativity hubs.
- Social or technological progress (education)
- Concentration of financial resources
• Cities can benefit from scaling effect.

- Economies of scale (lower per capita resource
use, e.g., efficient use of infrastructure)

References
• Alves, A., Patiño Gómez, J., Vojinovic, Z., Sánchez, A. & Weesakul, S. (2018). Combining co-
benefits and stakeholders perceptions into green infrastructure selection for flood risk
reduction. Environments, 5(2), 29. https://doi.org/10.3390/environments5020029
• Elmqvist, T., Andersson, E., Frantzeskaki, N., McPhearson, T., Olsson, P., Gaffney, O., Takeuchi, K.
& Folke, C. (2019). Sustainability and resilience for transformation in the urban century. National
Sustainability, 2, 267–273. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-019-0250-1
• Lowe, M., Whitzman, C., Badland, H.M., Davern, M., Aye, L., Hes, D., Butterworth, I. & Giles-Corti,
B. (2015). Planning healthy, liveable and sustainable cities: How can indicators inform policy?
Urban Policy and Research, 33, 131–144. https://doi.org/10.1080/08111146.2014.1002606
• Sterk, M., van de Leemput, I. A. & Peeters, E. T. H. M. (2017). How to conceptualize and
operationalize resilience in socio-ecological systems? Current Opinion in Environmental
Sustainability, 28, 108–113. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2017.09.003

33

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GC0006 Sustainability: Society, Economy & Environment

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

Dense Urban Life

Cities where the population declined between 2000 and 2018

However… some cities are shrinking.

Note: Not true for slum households (~1

Higher living standards result in a change in

• Between these two boundaries lies a

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

How do they depend on our

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

Image taken from https://www.iso.org/standard/61885.html

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

• Cities are innovation and creativity hubs.

• Cities can benefit from scaling effect.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

• Cities can benefit from scaling effect.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

© 2021 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. All Rights Reserved.

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