There are a number of key areas of local government competencies that city officials may want to target when implementing carbon trading projects; including town and urban planning, infrastructure development, service provision, waste management, energy provisioning and transportation.

It is the objective of this tool to provide environmental, planning and development officials at the local government level with clear guidance on how to develop Clean Development Mechanism and Verified Emission Reduction projects.

Part of a series of four entitled Urban Patterns for a Green Economy, this guide argues that strategic investment in physical infrastructure with the diversification of economies allows cities to play a specialized role in polycentric urban development.

Furthermore, it suggests that green economic development can be achieved through the development of green clusters and green jobs. Finally, this guide argues that a number of green economy outcomes may be reached through efficiencies and shared infrastructure, rather than duplication.

Part of a series of four entitled Urban Patterns for a Green Economy, this guide (Working with Nature) focuses on the effect of unplanned, rapid growth of cities on the functioning of a city-region's natural systems. It outlines how guided development can maximise the ability of ecosystems to support sustainable human and natural processes.

It offers a perspective on how to work with nature and the ecological processes in regions, and looks at the need to work across scales; to understand regional systems; and develop principles and measures that can be applied at the regional, city and local scales.

Part of a series of four entitled Urban Patterns for a Green Economy, this guide explores the compact city and its benefits within the developed and developing world's contexts. The guide illustrates how the compact city concept and planned (versus unplanned) urban extension can support sustainable urban patterns that benefit the functioning of developed as well as developing world cities.

Properly managed, compaction can positively enhance the life of the city dweller and support related strategies aimed at promoting a green economy and sustainable urban settlements.

Part of a series of four entitled Urban Patterns for a Green Economy, this guide proposes that cities can act as agents for change that allow their large populations to live less wastefully.

It considers how infrastructure systems can be viewed as an opportunity to shift cities onto a more sustainable path by paying close attention to the resources that pass through them, and the manner in which they support the activities of the city. Each city context differs, based on stage of development, pace of growth and available resources.

This tool provides local policy-makers and major stakeholders with a methodology to plan for climate change. These plans must address both mitigation (e.g., reducing the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere) and adaptation (responding to the impacts of climate change). If they are to be effective, local plans for climate change (both adaptation and mitigation) require the involvement of a variety of stakeholders and a specific focus on the most vulnerable groups.

This report was developed for city planners to better understand, assess and take action on climate change at the local level. Specifically targeted to the needs of planners and allied professionals in low and middle-income countries where the challenges of planning for climate change are particulalrly high.

The guide's strategic,values based planning framework: - promotes a participatory planning process that integrates local participation and good decision-making. - provides practical tools for addressing climate change through different urban planning processes. - supports the "mainstreaming" of climate change actions into other local government policy instruments.