Integrated Resource Management for Sustainable and Inclusive Cities: Policy Opportunities for the New Urban Agenda

Habitat III is expected to result in a new and transformative agenda for cities. The implementation of the New Urban Agenda will require innovative, multi-sectoral and multidimensional approaches. Therefore, managing rapidly growing cities and their urban regions is one of the most critical challenges facing national policy makers and local governments, especially with regard to the relationship between sustainable urban development and natural resources. Of all the natural resources, energy, water and land/food are most essential and fundamental to sustain urban development efforts. Underpinning the New Urban Agenda is the realisation that cities can no longer deal with resources as independent, sectoral issues, but a much broader understanding of their interdependence is needed. Optimization of resource efficiency through a nexus paradigm can therefore support sustainable urban development. The event will be organized in the form of a roundtable discussion on effective institutional arrangements representing national and local governments across Asia and Latin America to support integrated resource management for sustainable and inclusive cities. This session will be led by ESCAP and supported by project partners GIZ and ICLEI, who are all committed to the New Urban Agenda, and with experience in city-level implementation in Asia and Latin America.