Towards a model of sustainable European cities (I)

The multilateral agreements (COP21, SDGs) that were agreed in 2015 mention the importance of creating more sustainable cities in order to improve the climate conditions of our cities. Europe represents a ''good student'' on this terms with many cities applying sustainable practices which are meant to limit the pollution hits. European cities have become a role model and they are reaching the next step through smart cities and technological innovations. Nevertheless, our concern should be focused on developing countries' cities which present much more severe problems.

Urban areas around the world have brought us a lot of advantages towards the economic and social development of the society. The GPD levels of the countries increase more rapidly and the population has access to more services that improve their quality of life. However, many cities continue to be underperforming(1). Urbanisation has transformed cities, involving practices of informal economy activities, densely populated neighbourhoods which degenerate in slums, and a lack of infrastructure and an adequate provision of services, comprising housing and other buildings for services, sanitation, energy, water and transports.

 (2) Environmental issues of Mumbai (India), via Western Heights

In poorer areas of mega-cities, there are vast slum neighbourhoods characterised by unplanned informal settlements, frequently located on the peripheries. The rehabilitation of slums requires regulatory and economic instruments, the provision of basic infrastructures and social services, and upgrading programmes for housing, waste, floods and fire risks. These represent complex issues and the activities of the civil society in the field are very important in order to address the population, mediate and find solutions between them, and in the collection of data to be transmitted to the local authorities. 

The expansion of urban areas in the developing countries demands a deep analysis and intervention from more policy experts. In fact, the contribution of scientists on this field for the analysis of technical and numerical data requires, at the same time, more policy specialists acting in terms of reaching more contacts with political actors and public authorities, in order to push forward the implementation of a sustainable urban plan for their cities.  

The role of urban development towards broad and inclusive growth is well recognised, and it must take into account the implicit social, economic and environmental dimensions.
As social dimension, the challenge of defining the design of the cities, urban mobility and congestion issues constitutes an inclusive action essential to the populations which creates impact on food security, education, health, accessibility and infrastructures. Moreover, the main improvement of cities, regarding an economic dimension, is the job creation. Thirdly, a sustainable urban development means the improvement of the urban areas according to environmentally responsible actions such as a better land use and logistics planning, more efficient transport modes and construction of basic services and infrastructures. In fact, the promotion and consolidation of an urban policy must cover a planning structure between various sectors (water, transport, energy, waste management, etc.) at the regional level, a standard of programming and a prioritisation of the operations, including investment and maintenance. 

Governance and intervention of the citizens

The definition of the programmes and plans requires that the population of the urban areas are also able to express their views and propose solutions for some of the more urgent problems they encounter in the city. The participatory needs assessment may involve street interview and public meetings with local residents. The analysis of the effectiveness of a project at the local level allows the residents to identify their main issues and share ideas to improve the public space. By following a social dimension, the stakeholders involved in a certain project create the opportunities to strengthen citizen’s information and participation, which consequently will improve awareness about the benefits and ownership of the results.

(3) IRI's Democratic Governance Program Helps Boost Civic Participation in Mombasa (Kenya)

The objective of the civil society is, in general, to foster the quality of life of the populations in terms of public goods and services, democracy and human rights, addressing to the others actors the accountability and efficiency of their actions. In developing countries, their importance is linked to the dissemination and enhancement of ownership by the populations for their own territory and value, in particular through the action of NGOs.

As mentioned, the efforts made in the European territory in terms of sustainable practices on urban planning should have a long-term objective of creating a model to other countries. In fact, should a model of an European city be that bad to all? If we define it now, step-by-step it could be implemented in all European cities through the action of the regional and local authorities. Later on, stakeholders and public authorities can collaborate with developing countries to have those measures applied there, using impact assessment and evaluation mechanisms. The contact of the European Union comes here from the EU Delegations which have an very important role.

Besides political promises and agreements, we need a realistic plan to be applied as soon as possible.