Confronting the Challenge of Rapid Urbanization in the Americas
Latin America and the Caribbean is the second most urbanized region on the planet, having gone from a 62% urbanization rate in 1980 to 82% in 2012 (IDB, 2012). The unprecedented increase of urban populations found most cities unprepared, often resulting in insufficient public services, inadequate infrastructure, and growing pressure on the environment.
To help address this issue, SEDI’s Department of Sustainable Development, which
has been working with countries on this challenge, convened City Mayors,
development planners and civil society representatives
June 2-3 in Antigua,
Guatemala, to share ideas, experiences and best practices on ways to build
sustainable cities in the Americas. The event is part of the activities of the
Sustainable Communities in Central America and the Caribbean initiative.
In his opening remarks, OAS Secretary-General José Miguel Insulza, stressed the importance of sharing experiences among different stakeholders, noting that “we have here not only the Mayors, but also representatives of non-governmental organizations from 10 countries which received grants to implement innovative projects. We hope that this exchange will promote partnerships between local governments, NGOs and private companies in investment projects for sustainable development in the region.”
For her part, Ambassador Carmen Lomellin, Permanent Representative of the U.S. to the OAS, noted that “rapid urbanization has brought with it a number of pressing economic, environmental and social challenges. These challenges, shared by all countries, include declining infrastructure, lack of access to services, high levels of congestion and air pollution, vulnerability to natural disasters, and a shortage of adequate housing - add to that, ever declining municipal budgets. In the face of these challenges we have the opportunity and the responsibility to work together to develop shared solutions.” Guatemala’s Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Marcia Roxana Sobenes García stated that "environmental and social problems have no boundaries” and added that her government firmly believes in finding a shared vision for the region.
Innovative demonstration projects present creative solutions
- Fundación Solar (Guatemala) is adopting biodigestion technologies to produce clean energy and reduce carbon emissions generated by wood consumption. The innovative project promotes the sustainable management of organic residue (excretes), by turning them into a resource to generate biogas (renewable energy).
- Basel Convention Regional Center for Central America and Mexico seeks to formulate a Central America Strategy to manage Waste of Electronic and Electric Equipment (WEEE); which will create a roadmap to turn the negative health and environmental impacts caused by poorly managed WEEE into profitable economic activities such as recycling, repairing and refurbishing equipment.
- “Understanding and Improving Walkable Caribbean Urban Heritage” (Trinidad and Tobago) is designed to protect
UNESCO World Heritage Sites in five Caribbean cities by decreasing car use and encouraging walking and cycling, serving as a model for new urban development and taping into the potential to generate local economic development.
- The Grenada Project: recycles certain organic waste streams to manufacture a protein product for poultry feeding that will reduce production costs for farmers.
For more information on demonstrative pilots underway visit the
project’s website.
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Representatives of 14 NGOs currently conducting community-level demonstration projects with grants provided by the U.S. Permanent Mission to the OAS through the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA), shared their experience, highlighting progress made, challenges encountered, and the opportunities for replicating or scaling-up their projects. The variety of experiences in the field evidenced the different methodologies being used to address challenges posed by rapid urbanization as well as early results from the concrete programs being supported by the OAS.
A highlight of the event was a roundtable discussion that featured the Mayors of Puebla, México; Santa Catarina Pinula, Guatemala; and a representative of the Mayor of Medellin, Colombia, cities that have implemented successful strategies to strengthen sustainability. While moderating the panel, Sherry Tross, Executive Secretary for Integral Development of the OAS, commended the efforts made in each of these cities to address the complexity of the issues related to rapid urbanization. She pointed out that “the urgent needs of today sometimes compete with decisions necessary for long-term sustainability, which underscores the importance of leadership in finding the right balance between meeting current needs and priorities without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
Overall, the meeting highlighted priority areas for cooperation on sustainable development in the Americas and will serve to inform the upcoming 7th World Urban Forum in Medellin in 2014 and other projects going forward.
To access videos of the event and for additional information on ECPA, visit:
http://www.ecpamericas.org/.
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