Creating cities that live in harmony with nature.
Urban centres are the primary drivers of the global economy, contributing 80% of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP). However, their rapid expansion has adversely affected natural ecosystems. An estimated 44% of global GDP – $31 trillion – generated in cities is vulnerable to disruption due to nature loss.
Urban leaders and decision-makers must prioritize nature in their investment decisions to both improve the resilience and liveability of their cities, and to secure a sustainable future for humanity.
of world's population will live in cities by 2050
Five cities have committed to advance a Nature-Positive vision through increased public-private collaboration:
Our City Profile reports seek to illuminate the ongoing efforts that sectors and cities around the globe are making to contribute to the Global Biodiversity Framework and foster a nature-positive future.
Durban, South Africa’s second-largest city, is home to an extraordinary range of species, including 2,267 plants, 526 birds and 25 endemic vertebrates. Despite its natural wealth, Durban faces significant urban development challenges, such as climate resilience, housing, waste and water management, and energy access.
The World Economic Forum has convened two international groups to fuel the initiative's efforts: the Global Commission on Nature-Positive Cities and the Expert Task Force on Nature-Positive Cities.
The Global Commission on Nature-Positive Cities is convened by the World Economic Forum and brings together mayors, business leaders and world-renowned urban planners and practitioners who will raise awareness of the role that healthy ecosystems play in building more liveable and resilient cities.
The Commission will outline real-time urban challenges, share learnings and success stories, identify barriers to unlock financing and advocate for nature-positive city design and delivery at global fora and events. The Commission will influence other partners, networks and stakeholders wanting to embark in a journey of nature-positive transformations at the urban scale.
City Mayor, Belem do Pará, Brasil
City Mayor, San Francisco, USA
Outgoing City Mayor, Barranquilla, Colombia
City Mayor, Incheon, Korea
City Mayor, Durban, South Africa
Executive Director, C40
Chief Executive Officer, Impact One
Chief Executive Officer, Urbanmetry
Ex-Mayor of Quito, Ecuador, Senior Fellow, Arsht-Rock Resilience Center
Chief Executive Officer, Landprocess
Chief Strategy Officer, Meridiam
Chair of Corporate Advisory Board, World Green Building Council
Vice Chairman, Hindustan Construction Company
Chief Executive Officer, Institute for Transportation and Development Policy
Chief Sustainability Officer, Holcim
The Expert Task Force on Nature-Positive Cities will be integrated by 18 subject experts in a multistakeholder environment to advise the Global Commission on Nature-Positive Cities and support the development and implementation of tried and tested models that could be replicated around the world to build resilient, equal and prosperous cities by 2030 with biodiversity as an anchor. In particular, the Expert Task Force will address three key challenges faced in nature-positive transformation at urban scale:
Increasing finance and accelerating public-private collaborations for nature-positive interventions cities around the world
Crafting policy models, regulation and incentives allowing to break down the barriers for a successful transition towards nature-positive cities
Devising innovative ways to spatially integrate nature in the built environment and deploy nature-based solutions in pilot cities
CO-CHAIR, FINANCE
Finance & Risk and Natural Capital Partner, Oliver Wyman
CO-CHAIR, POLICY AND REGULATION
Former Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development, Colombia
CO-CHAIR, URBAN PLANNING AND DESIGN
Founder, Rutas Naturbanas
Global Sustainability Innovation Lab, Accenture
Director, Climate Change and Environment, The Geneva Association
Senior Director, Investments, Healthy Cities Program, The Nature Conservancy
Laura Fox
Managing Partner, Streetlife Ventures
George Benson
Sr. Manager, Economic Transformation, Vancouver Economic Commission
Francisco Macedo
Sr. Program Associate, Cities Climate Finance Leadership Alliance, Climate Policy Initiative
Tatiana Gallego-Lizon
Division Chief, Housing and Urban Development, Inter-American Development Bank
Carlo Angeles
Former Metropolitan Councillor and Chairman of Environmental Commission, Metropolitan Government of Lima
Principal Sustainability Strategist, Forum for the Future
Founder and Chairman, Good City Foundation
Kate Meyrick
Director, Urbis
Piali Das Gupta
Strategy Director, London’s Future, London Councils
Director, Sustainable Urban Development, ProBogota
Associate Professor, IHE Delft;
Co-founder, BitaGreen
Founder, Climate Positive Design
Faculty Lecturer, Harvard Graduate School of Design
Andreas Kipar
Co-Founder and CEO, LAND