| Synthesis Paper 4: Identifying universal measures of quality of life: A Technical Process, a Human Story | 2024 | This fourth synthesis paper of the Quality of Life Initiative highlights its journey from concept to the creation of a global index to measure quality of life in cities. The Initiative views quality of life as a dynamic assessment of how well cities offer opportunities for individuals and communities to thrive. This paper explores the collaborative, people-centered approach used to develop a universal set of indicators, balancing technical rigor with human dimensions, to capture factors like housing adequacy, job satisfaction, and well-being. |
| African Cities at a Crossroads: Closing the urban infrastructure investment gap | 2024 | African Cities at a Crossroads highlights how Africa’s rapid urbanization presents a powerful opportunity to drive growth, jobs, and better living standards. It shows that with the right investments in infrastructure and services, cities can unlock productivity, strengthen resilience, and become engines of sustainable development. |
| Multilayered Vulnerability Assessment Handbook - Resilience planning for urban, biodiversity and climate action | 2024 | The Multilayered Vulnerability Assessment (MVA) tool, developed under UN-Habitat's RISE-UP flaghip programme, helps communities and cities assess vulnerabilities by mapping and assessing the intersection of climate risks, urbanization trends, biodiversity loss, and land degradation. It identifies and appraises vulnerability hotspots from spatial overlaps and areas of concentrated vulnerability which helps to better inform planning, resource mobilization and investment for systemic urban climate resilient infrastructure in cities. |
| Voluntary Reporting Guidelines for SDG Indicator 11.a.1: Step by Step Module for Governments | 2024 | The important role of urban policies for sustainable development has in the recent past gained prominence than ever before. The adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2015 and the New Urban Agenda (NUA) in 2016 have provided a strong rationale for countries to develop, implement and/or review their National Urban Policy frameworks. The NUA places explicit emphasis on National Urban Policy as one of its five pillars of implementation. Similarly, in 2019, National Urban Policy was adopted as the main tool to monitor SDG 11, through Indicator 11.a.1. These efforts show the crucial role governments can play and call for measures to enhance the ability of such governments to develop, implement and monitor such over-arching policies. |
| A Road Map Towards a Socioeconomic Development Plan for the Union of Municipalities of Chouf El-Souayjani, Mount Lebanon Governorate | 2024 | |
| Geographic Information Systems Manual - Building the capacity of municipalities and unions of municipalities | 2024 | |
| Heritopolis working papers – Volume 1 | 2024 | Heritage and Metropolis (Heritopolis) is a loose research network established during 2021 to explore how metropolises are being (re-)shaped by heritage redefining their meaning. This largest category of city is growing rapidly in number and their demographic, economic and governance importance globally. Metropolises are also where many of the sustainability and resilience challenges – including potential loss of natural and cultural heritage – are particularly profound. Recognising these dramatic changes, this research began by posing questions such as ‘What specific role heritage can play in 21st century metropolises?’ and ‘What are the limits of the current heritage paradigms and how metropolitan authorities can change them?’ The work undertaken to date, including the initial analysis of a first baseline survey reported here, confirms the validity of the initial hypothesis: that there is indeed a need to delve deeper into the nature of metropolitan identities and that this is likely to bring significant innovation in the heritage field as an enabler for sustainable development. |
| Quality of Life Initiative Implementation Guidelines – Advance Release Version 1.0 | 2024 | The Quality of Life Initiative’s Implementation Guidelines provide a comprehensive framework for cities to follow to assess and improve the quality of life for all inhabitants. The Guidelines offer policymakers, urban planners and community leaders practical steps and a comprehensive roadmap for cities to adopt the Quality of Life Index. The step-by-step process is designed to support local governments, urban planners and community leaders in assessing and enhancing urban well-being through a series of practical actions. |
| PLGS Annual Report 2023 | 2024 | The Annual Report 2023 of the Policy, Legislation and Governance Section of UN-Habitat showcases the work done in the past year to work towards and support the achievement of the main goal of sustainable urban development. Much has been achieved by PLGS: more than 44 activities in over 37 countries globally, that consolidated collaboration with donors, development partners and beneficiary countries along the themes of policy, legislation and governance, metropolitan management, and urban-rural linkages. Specifically, the report presents the progress of the PLGS with the UN-Habitat strategic context; it contains an outline of achievements under the various focus areas, a review of the financial portfolio, and features the planned outcomes the section has for 2024. The report also demonstrates how the section contributed to global frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda. The report is of benefit to all stakeholders working towards sustainable urban development and will galvanize all to commit their support to UN-Habitat and to each other to realize actionable outcomes. |
| Lebanon – Building destruction and debris quantities assessment | 2024 |