The transformative potential of a Global Urban Agenda and its lessons in a time of crisis.

2015 was a seismic moment for urban stakeholders around the world. A coalition of policymakers, academics and practitioners came together to successfully advocate for an urban goal to be included in the UN Sustainable Development Goal framework. Although the value of a place-based approach to development has been demonstrated by a number of cities and countries worldwide, it was 2020-2022 (three years of cataclysmic global events) that highlighted the necessity for a universal place-based approach to planning in order to foster resilience and sustainability. In this article, three academic-practitioners reflect upon the transformative potential of the 2015-16 urban agendas.

Integration of urban science and urban climate adaptation research: opportunities to advance climate action.

There is a growing recognition that responding to climate change necessitates urban adaptation. We sketch a transdisciplinary research effort, arguing that actionable research on urban adaptation needs to recognize the nature of cities as social networks embedded in physical space. Given the pace, scale and socioeconomic outcomes of urbanization in the Global South, the specificities and history of its cities must be central to the study of how well-known agglomeration effects can facilitate adaptation. The proposed effort calls for the co-creation of knowledge involving scientists and stakeholders, especially those historically excluded from the design and implementation of urban development policies.