Other Urban Study

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  • Publication
    Slovakia Catching-Up Regions 4 - Open Data in Regional Land Use Planning: A technical note prepared for the Self-governing Region of Košice as part of the Slovakia Catching-up Regions Initiative
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-12-21) World Bank
    Land use planning is one of the most important policy instruments for urban and regional development aiming to meet the needs of the populations while considering various factors such as environmental sustainability, economic development, and social well-being. The process of land use planning relies on working with geospatial data from different sources and often, these data are difficult to find, manage, and process together. Hence, this technical note aims to argue that opening up relevant data in open and standardized formats can lead to better decisions regarding land use planning while reducing the cost and complexity of the entire process. This note has been primarily written for the Self-Governing Region of Košice (KSK) in the Slovak Republic in preparing its next land use plan and is considering how to improve the procurement process. The broader objective of the note is to provide practical examples and recommendations on land use planning and data management that could be considered by any Self- Governing Region in the Slovak Republic or any other local or national government. The note concludes with suggestions for improving land use planning at the regional level through better data management. These include conducting a detailed inventory of GIS layers, analyzing and extending copyright and license terms, ensuring technical interoperability through data standards, developing in-house databases, and incorporating open data and standard clauses into procurement contracts.
  • Publication
    Sri Lanka: A Roadmap to Energy-Efficient Buildings
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-12-05) Toga, Monyl; Rodriguez, Maria; Sarkar, Ashok; Vayrynen, Jari; Samarasinghe, Ashini
    Sri Lanka recognizes the crucial role of energy efficiency in advancing its development agenda, reaching carbon neutrality by 2050, and fostering a sustainable energy transition. Energy efficiency has long been integrated into the country’s legislative and policy framework, with initiatives dating back to 1985. This commitment aligns with the global goals of sustainable economic development, affordability, supply security, and climate action. The country leverages energy efficiency strategically, to drive sustainable economic development and strengthen climate resilience across sectors, including the vulnerable sectors of tourism, fisheries, tea plantation, and agriculture. In addition, Sri Lanka has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and implement measures to address climate vulnerabilities across sectors. Chapter 1 examines the energy efficiency potential of Sri Lanka’s commercial, public, and industrial buildings, with a focus on space cooling, lighting, and passive energy efficiency measures. Chapter 2 outlines the regulatory framework, laws, policies, and institutional setup that govern energy efficiency initiatives in Sri Lanka. Chapter 3 discusses implementation capacity from technical and financing perspectives. Chapter 4 summarizes key barriers to the deployment of energy efficiency technologies, presents selected mitigation measures, and outlines principles for prioritizing recommendations. Finally, chapter 5 suggests priority actions to scale up energy efficiency investments in the immediate, intermediate, and sustained phases.
  • Publication
    The Power of Cities: Harnessing Low-carbon Urbanization for Climate Action
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-11-28) Platonova-Oquab, Alexandrina; Shenvi, Apoorva
    Extensive transformations of urban areas in rapidly urbanizing developing countries can be a powerful vehicle for advancing low-carbon urban growth that supports global decarbonization goals. The scale of urban growth in these countries underscores the need to pursue low-carbon urbanization pathways and avoid carbon-intensive development. The report highlights the urgency to integrate low-carbon urbanization priorities into countries’ national climate change strategies, especially their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and Long-Term Low-GHG Emission Development Strategies (LTSs), which often overlook the mitigation potential of urban systems, and outlines the opportunities to leverage them as bridges between national decarbonization and urban development goals. As countries strive to embed climate action into their development planning, incorporating low-carbon urban growth agenda into NDCs and LTSs can signal political commitment, foster coordination with local stakeholders, facilitate access to finance, and enable effective implementation. It can also help leverage the potential of urban climate action and its spillover effects to achieve national (and global) climate goals and progressively raise ambition. The integration process should account for differences across countries and their urban areas, including financial and technical capacities, and challenges of rapid urbanization such as infrastructure deficits and high levels of urban informality. The report attempts to identify integrative solutions to address key barriers to integration related to countries’ policy frameworks and institutional structures; finance mobilization efforts; evidence-based policy processes; and tracking systems and proposes a Readiness Diagnostic Framework to help identify efforts needed at both national and city levels to pursue such integration. Additionally, it offers a Guide for Selecting Urban Diagnostic Tools and Models to enhance evidence-based urban climate policy processes in rapidly urbanizing countries.
  • Publication
    Enablers of Inclusive Cities: Enhancing Access to Services and Opportunities
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-11-21) World Bank
    In both G20 and non-G20 countries alike, cities have a crucial role to play in the achievement of national development goals. Already, cities generate more than 80 percent of global GDP and, with a share of the global population that is projected to reach nearly 70 percent by 2050, up from the current share of around 57 percent, the global importance of cities will only grow further in the decades ahead. However, whether the cities of tomorrow can fulfil their potential as drivers of national economic development will depend, to a large extent, on how inclusive they are - that is to say, the extent to which they are able to provide all their residents with quality access to services, markets, and spaces. This is because not only is inclusion in and of itself important, but because more inclusive cities are also both more prosperous and more resilient cities. At the same time, many policies that contribute to inclusive urban development carry important co-benefits for both climate change mitigation and adaptation, as well as vice versa. In this context, this report addresses four important questions: (a) What is an inclusive city (b) How inclusive are cities in G20 member and guest countries, as well as in other countries, globally today (c) What instruments should policymakers draw-on to make the cities of tomorrow more inclusive or, to put it more succinctly, what can policymakers do to make their cities more inclusive And, finally, (d) What are the roles of different stakeholders - city leaders and their associated local governments; national governments, including their ministries of finance; the private sector; civil society organizations; and others - in the effective wielding of these instruments or, to put it more bluntly, who needs to do what.
  • Publication
    Building Green: Sustainable Construction in Emerging Markets
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-11-02) International Finance Corporation
    How developing countries meet their rising building needs will be pivotal to the world’s climate future. The good news is that the projected emissions growth in construction value chains can be reduced significantly with the application of existing technologies, new financing instruments, and the implementation of appropriate policies. Even as emerging economies meet the rising demand for residential and commercial buildings, it is possible to reduce total emissions from the sector below today’s level by 2035. To avoid perpetuating the status quo, decisive action is needed by policy makers, developers, construction material producers, financiers, and international development institutions. IFC is launching this report to guide international efforts to decarbonize construction value chains. Building Green: Sustainable Construction in Emerging Markets was prepared through close collaboration between IFC economists, investment officers, and building and constructionsector specialists. The report provides a comprehensive analysis of the challenges of reducing carbon emissions from construction value chains in developing countries, but also the considerable opportunities that willcome from mobilizing the estimated $1.5 trillion of investment required for this transition.
  • Publication
    Silver Hues: Building Age-Ready Cities - EAP Regional Paper
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-10-24) Arai, Yuko
    Four major trends are shaping our world: demographic transition, urban expansion, technological advancement, and frequent shocks from health and climate emergencies. Among the demographic shifts, aging is particularly significant as life expectancy increases, and fertility rates decline. Additionally, the increasing urbanization of the world, with two-thirds of the population projected to live in cities by 2050, exacerbates the impact of aging on urban areas. Furthermore, the Fourth Industrial Revolution, characterized by widespread integration of information, communication, and technology into our daily lives, has a crucial role in the future of development. Lastly, the simultaneous occurrence of these trends, such as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic and growing natural disasters, is having a significant impact on cities, countries, and regions. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) call for the creation of inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable cities. The World Bank report, “Silver Hues: Building Age-Ready Cities,” maps global trends and their implications for urban areas and aligns with SDG Goal 11 “Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable” and the “United Nations Decade of Healthy Ageing (2021-2030)”. It provides guidance for city governments on how to create age-ready cities, filling a gap in the policy research on aging in urban areas. This note has been curated from the Silver Hues report. It summarizes the report’s key analysis, insights and findings and is tailored for audiences interested in the East Asia Pacific (EAP) region.
  • Publication
    Healthy Cities: Revisiting the Role of Cities in Promoting Health
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-10-18) Lee, Hyunji; Hasoloan, Jonathan; Chapman, Terri B.; Das, Maitreyi Bordia
    With most people already living in cities and the global urban population estimated to double by 2050, cities are central to human well-being and sustainable development. Whereas cities reap the economic and social benefits of agglomeration, proximity to services, and innovation, they also face significant health and environmental issues. The presence of urban poverty, complexity of urban systems, rapidity of often-unplanned urbanization, and certainty of unanticipated shocks complicate urban strategies for health and well-being. Indeed, COVID-19 revealed the significant vulnerability of global and urban systems to pandemics and the imminent climate-related impacts. Cities can confront these threats and support communities by integrating healthy city action with other urban development agendas and prioritizing human and ecosystem health in the design and management of urban environments. The Healthy Cities Report aims to provide high-level guidance to practitioners in green, inclusive, and resilient urban development while asserting the essential role of cities in improving human and ecosystem health. It introduces an action-oriented ‘TIP’ Framework for achieving healthy cities with three components: Targeted support, Integrated action, and Preparation for future challenges. It explores three pivotal modern issues—equity, climate change, and COVID-19—as they define the context for urban health policy and practice. The report suggests eight action areas for healthy cities, including adequate housing, public spaces, transportation systems, access to healthcare, water and sanitation systems, food systems, effective institutions, and sustainable funding.
  • Publication
    Argentina - Assessing Trends and Identifying Priorities for Urban Mobility: September 2023
    (Washington, DC, 2023-10-18) World Bank
    The Metropolitan Areas of Córdoba, Mendoza, Salta and Neuquén-Cipolletti were the focus of this analytical work. These metropolitan areas represent urban centers of different sizes and regions of the country, as they are in the Central, Cuyo, North and Patagonia regions, respectively. They also have a heterogeneity of characteristics in terms of population, mobility patterns, infrastructure, public services, and institutional frameworks, among other aspects relevant to the analysis. In short, they synthesize many of the multiple challenges faced by Argentine cities in terms of mobility. However, the data available to most transport planners in Argentina, including these four metropolitan areas, is inadequate to understand exactly how travel patterns have changed in recent years, what their drivers are, and what persistent changes might look like in the future. A World Bank report on Buenos Aires (2022) laid the analytical framework for replicating such a study in other cities, drawing on other data sources and using alternative tools to support a more comprehensive diagnosis of urban mobility.
  • Publication
    Improving Building-Level Thermal Comfort and Indoor Air Quality in South Asia: Energy-Efficient and Cost-Effective Interventions for a Changing Climate
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-06-12) World Bank
    This report provides evidence-based guidance on cost-effective and energy-efficient cooling and ventilation interventions to improve building-level thermal comfort and indoor air quality for a changing climate in South Asia. It focuses on Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan but also covers all the countries in the region, including Afghanistan, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. After an introduction, the report analyzes local climates and air quality issues, building types, and occupant behavior, as well as available passive and active interventions and their relevance in the region, before concluding with a set of recommendations for all building types. The report also identifies additional recommendations specific to residential and commercial buildings, along with policy and country-specific recommendations.
  • Publication
    Urban Heat in South Asia: Integrating People and Place in Adapting to Rising Temperatures
    (World Bank, Washington DC, 2023-04-28) Kim, Ella Jisun; Henry, Grace; Jain, Monica
    This policy brief evaluates the current state of the knowledge of and plans to manage urban heat in South Asia. First, the brief examines heat in South Asian cities through the different layers of the urban environment: buildings, communities, and cities. Next, it adds the human element and explores different population groups that are vulnerable to urban heat in the region: children, informal workers, and residents of informal settlements. Together, this analysis forms the basis of three major recommendations and a conceptual framework to provide policymakers with direction on where greater attention and resources are required to improve urban heat management in South Asia.