This publication is part of a collection of papers that analyse several aspects of the fight against climate change as well as issues related to low-carbon and climate-resilient development. This work series was led by IDDRI and jointly prepared with experts from three Latin American & Caribbean think tanks (Argentina, Peru, Bolivia).
Highlights:
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CLIMATE CHANGE IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN: THE CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY FOR SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT
In the present day, Latin America is the most urbanised region - and also the most inequitable - on the planet, which means that its urban areas amass both huge wealth and huge poverty. Within this context, dealing with climate change is also a chance to increase citizens’ well-being. Better public transport and more efficient energy and waste management are, besides being effective measures to reduce emissions, ultimately actions with a strong social component and work towards improving transportation and public health care and generate savings for citizens. Equally, actions geared towards boosting urban resilience represent measures that go beyond adaptation responses to climate change and primarily benefit those that are most vulnerable in the population.
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SUSTAINABLE CITIES IN LAC: LESSONS FOR THE WORLD
In the context of the future new global climate agreement, cities are taking a more prominent role in this new urban era, and gained in importance in the Sustainable Development Goals, LAC has a lot to give in the lessons learned from urbanisation. Rapidly urbanising regions like Asia and Africa, where population growth will be concentrated in cities in the present and near future, could learn a lot from the urbanisation process that has occurred, and continues to occur, in LAC. From the transport industry to energy and water, successful cases are numerous and varied, as are the setbacks, from which valuable lessons can be drawn for the purposes of more effectively facing up to this new global urban reality.
