A network of mayors from leading global cities who are working to confront the climate crisis is joining forces with urban investor NREP, to help push forward the implementation of net zero carbon and people-centric neighbourhoods.
C40, a network of nearly 100 mayors – including London mayor Sadiq Khan – said that the partnership with NREP would fund a new Green and Thriving Neighbourhoods programme. This will focus on delivering proof of concept for 15-minute city policies.
The programme will implement neighbourhood pilot projects in at least five cities and create an international network of practitioners to advise them. Strategic partners include UN-Habitat and the Sorbonne University’s Carlos Moreno, who is recognised for his work on a framework for 15-minute cities that expands access to a variety of jobs, housing types, goods and services, including green spaces and clean air, to residents.
Interest in these areas has surged on the back of the Covid-19 pandemic and the growing need for urgent action to cut carbon emissions. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), compact and resource-efficient cities, with co-location of residences and jobs, mixed land use and good access to public transportation can help cut urban emissions by around 25%.
C40 executive director Mark Watts said: “The 15-minute city helps to realise an ‘ecological society’ that urban residents and their leaders strive for. By promoting polycentric urban development and a thriving local lifestyle in every neighbourhood, it can help cities to reduce emissions and pollution from cars while improving quality of life. This new programme will empower cities to implement the concept on the ground, and to deliver Green and Thriving Neighbourhoods pilot projects.”
NREP has worked on some of the world’s most sustainable large-scale development projects, including Copenhagen’s UN17 Village and Nordhavn, which has been designed around the principles of the 15-minute city. Its partnership with C40 aims to develop integrated climate actions that can be applied in both new and existing neighbourhoods.
NREP chief executive and partner Claus Mathisen said: “As much as 60-70% of the world’s CO2 emissions come from cities, so the quest for greener urban solutions is urgent. This partnership is an opportunity to shape what a sustainable and equitable city is, and to create a blueprint for urban development that will help not only cities to drive ambitious urban policies but also business and other stakeholders to engage and adapt their operational models.”
Maimunah Mohd Sharif, executive director of UN-Habitat and under-secretary general of the United Nations, said the concept of the 15-minute city could offer part of the answer to how we meet the climate crisis.
“The built stock of our cities and towns will double by 2050. How we meet the climate crisis depends on the quality of what we build, where we build, and how we build it. Past urban development models increasingly promote sprawl and segregation. We must find our way back to urbanise in harmony with nature and people. A model like the 15-minute city can help us to do this, but must be accompanied by the right policy and fiscal instruments,” he said.
To send feedback, e-mail julia.cahill@eg.co.uk or tweet @EGJuliaC or @EGPropertyNews
