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World Cities Day

A picture of Chicago overlooking a beautiful green park

2021 – Climate Action, Climate Resilience

A picture of Chicago overlooking a beautiful green park
The world is urbanizing: 2009 was the first year in human history more people lived in cities than rurally.

The world is increasingly urban, both demographically and in terms of land use. To encourage discussion and care for cities, in 2013 the UN passed a resolution, promoting October 31 as “World Cities Day.” World Cities Day wraps up a month of events held under the banner “Urban October.” Both day and month offer events and platforms to promote curiosity and conversation about the increasing urbanization of humanity. This year, World Cities Day is being marked at an Expo in Luxor, Egypt.

“Better cities, better life.” The overall focus for 2021’s UN World Cities Day.

According to the UN, 56.2% of people were living in cities in 2020, a number expected to increase to 68% by 2050.

A graph showing the growth of urbanization from 5% in 1500 to 55% in 2016
Source: Our World in Data

Our new division, Citysage, is working closely with cities to implement smart technologies to improve sustainability and livability for their residents. Visit Citysage’s blog to continue reading to find out how World Cities Day is encouraging global cooperation around climate action.