HRH The Prince of Wales calls for collective action on sustainable urbanisation in the Commonwealth 70% of global carbon emissions attributable to cities Commonwealth forecast to account for 50% of the growth in cities to 2050
From left: Mayor Marvin Rees, HE Saida Muna Tasneem, HRH The Prince of Wales, Rt Hon Patricia Scotland, Mr Peter Oborn
At a high-level event convened on the eve of COP26 by The Prince’s Foundation and key Commonwealth partners, participants considered ways in which the Commonwealth can respond to the ‘triple threat’ of climate change, rapid urbanisation and the Covid-19 pandemic, and the need for collaboration if the targets are to be met within the limited time now available. The discussion centred on the Call to Action on Sustainable Urbanisation across the Commonwealth, a joint initiative of the Association of Commonwealth Universities, the Commonwealth Association of Architects, the Commonwealth Association of Planners and the Commonwealth Local Government Forum, in collaboration with the Government of Rwanda and The Prince’s Foundation. The Call to Action was circulated to Commonwealth Heads of Government in February 2021, highlighting the issues facing the Commonwealth and urging the need for collective inter-disciplinary action to place climate conscious urban planning and management at the heart of the response to climate change. The Commonwealth, with its many shared systems and structures, has the opportunity to lead and model collaborative, inclusive and effective action on sustainable urbanisation, which will be a key priority for CHOGM in Kigali in 2022. Cities already consume more than two thirds of the world’s energy and account for more than 70% of all carbon emissions. From 2015 to 2050, the world’s urban population is expected to almost double, and based on current trends of urban sprawl and unplanned settlements, could mean a tripling of the urban land mass, crushing often fragile eco-systems in the process. Almost 50% of that global urban growth is projected to be in the Commonwealth – well over 1bn more people living in Commonwealth cities in the next 30 years. This will see increasing pressures on coastal cities, cities in small island developing states