Monday, 6 October 2014Every year on the first Monday of October we reflect on the state of our human settlements and what we want the cities of our future to look like. This year, the United Nations has chosen to turn the spotlight on the people who live or have lived in informal settlements, listening to “Voices from Slums”.
New York, 23 September 2014: National and local governments, mayors, financial institutions, and private sector companies have made robust commitments to the fight against climate change as the United Nations Secretary-General, Mr Ban Ki-moon, highlighted cities as one of the key areas of action that need attention.
Mr Ban was speaking at the Climate Change Summit taking place at the UN Headquarters, announcing several key commitments being made today by the world’s nations and cities.
Nairobi, 22 September 2014: A memorandum of understanding signed earlier this month with Associated research Centers for the Urban Underground Space (ACUUS) aims to raise awareness of best practices of the sustainable uses of underground space for urban development.
The agreement specifically focuses on adequate urban drainage management, city planning, and sustainable mobility solutions, promoting their use and best practice among decision-makers and local authorities.
New York, 17 September 2014 – The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, told member state representatives that guided by the principles of the Charter of the United Nations, and considering that human beings are at the centre of concerns surrounding sustainable development, we are committed to implement the Habitat Agenda.
New York, 17 September 2014 - Habitat III PrepCom 1
Excellences,
Distinguished delegates, Ladies and gentlemen,
It is an honour for me to open the first session of the Preparatory Committee of the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III).
New York, 17 September 2014—The first session of the Preparatory Committee for the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) opened in New York on Wednesday with calls for urgent action towards achieving sustainable urbanisation.
Colombo, 15 September 2014: UN-Habitat, in partnership with the Municipal Council of Akkaraipattu, Urban Councils of Vavuniya and Mannar and the Pradeshiya Sabha of Maritimepattu (Mullaitivu), officially launched the Disaster Risk Reduction and Preparedness Plan for each City at the Water’s Edge in Battaramulla on Monday. These Plans have been developed with funding from the Government of Australia.
Nairobi, 10 September 2014: The Kingdom of Thailand, through its embassy in Kenya has provided a contribution of USD 32,500 to support UN-Habitat’s Lake Victoria Water and Sanitation Programme (LVWATSAN) which aims to assist small towns in the Lake Victoria in meeting the MDGs for water and sanitation.
Yangon, 10 September, 2014- A landmark dialogue took place in early September in Yangon, Myanmar to enhance discussions between European and Asian partners on climate change and urban resilience. The aim of the Euro-Asia Dialogue organised by the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS) and UN-Habitat with funding from KAS and the European Union was to enhance cooperation between Europe and Asia.
Nairobi, 8 September 2014: Architecture students from Kenya received comments on their latest designs from a technical team at UN-Habitat.
In the first of three parallel comprehensive design and construction studio courses in Nairobi, Kigali and Kampala, third year students of architecture from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) presented their first cycle of studio course design work and received input from the guest critics of representatives of partner institutions.