2016: Sustainable Urbanization

This conference was hosted by the World Bank, George Washington University (Institute for International Economic Policy), the NYU Marron Institute of Urban Management, the NYU Urbanization Project, and The Growth Dialogue to bring together academics and development practitioners to present and discuss the challenges of sustainable urbanization in developing countries. The core organizers were IIEP’s Rémi Jedwab, assistant professor of Economics and International Affairs at the Elliott School and the Department of Economics of George Washington University, and Harris Selod, Senior Economist with the Development Research Group of the World Bank. IIEP faculty who participated included Sabina Alkire, Paul Carrillo, Ram Fishman, James Foster, Arun Malik, Stephen Smith, and Anthony Yezer.

Addressing environmental change in urban areas is one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century, particularly given that the world is now more than half urban, and Africa and Asia are experiencing unprecedented rates of urban population growth. Cities themselves are a major contributor to this challenge, as they consume an enormous share of the world’s energy and emit large amounts of carbon dioxide. At the same time, they are heavily vulnerable to climate change and increasingly exposed to climate induced risks (including floods from rising sea levels and higher precipitation, destruction from stronger cyclones and storms, and periods of extreme heat and cold). The phenomenon of urbanization itself is also likely to be significantly altered by environmentally induced migration. Despite these risks, many cities have not created or implemented crucially needed policies to attenuate the causes of climate change and to effectively protect cities from its impacts.