Guterres highlights ‘enormous’ benefits of greener cities

Guterres highlights ‘enormous’ benefits of greener cities

NEW YORK -- For the UN Secretary-General, the benefits of making cities more environmentally friendly are “enormous”, and include reduced climate risk, more jobs, and better health and well-being. “City leadership in using green materials and constructing energy-efficient, resilient buildings powered by renewable energy, is essential to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050,” said António Guterres in his message for World Habitat Day, marked on Monday. The theme for this year’s celebration of cities and towns worldwide is Accelerating urban action for a carbon-free world. Cities are responsible for about 75 percent of the world’s energy consumption and over 70 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Urban areas across the globe are facing the dual crises of COVID-19 and climate change, said the UN chief. Around 4.5 billion people live in cities today, but that population is projected to grow by almost 50 percent, by 2050. By mid-century, over 1.6 billion urban residents may have to survive through average summertime highs of 35 degrees Celsius. For Guterres, cities and towns are at the core of climate action to keep the 1.5 degrees goal within reach. “Three-quarters of the infrastructure that will exist in 2050 has yet to be built,” he said.