The Council on Urban Initiatives is a research and advocacy platform supporting international, national and local actors to deliver transformative change towards a green, just and healthy urban future.
Co-organised by UN-Habitat, the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose (IIPP) and LSE Cities, the Council is comprised of mayors, academics and practitioners, and is co-chaired by Ricky Burdett and Mariana Mazzucato.
The Council’s work is centred on three interrelated themes: environmental sustainability (the green city), health and well-being (the healthy city), and social justice (the just city).
The Council’s work is organised around three objectives:
To highlight the barriers to progressive transformation in cities and to explore new approaches to accelerate the pace and scale of urban change.
To support the international community of urban agencies, practitioners and policymakers to advocate for just, healthy and green cities.
To engage wider audiences in urban debates and promote their active involvement in shaping urban agendas and futures.
The Council participates in key global forums and engages with city governments on urban issues. Read about the Council’s engagements, outputs and events.
The Council marks the one-year anniversary since its launch and announces a new Knowledge Partnership with Impact on Urban Health (IOUH).
The Council hosted a Special Session, Shaping Equitable Futures, at the 11th World Urban Forum in Katowice, Poland on 29 June 2022. The event was designed to explore examples of cities developing critical transformations to deliver more equitable futures, with a particular focus on public value and quality design of the built environment. The session featured four presentations from city leaders.
The Council was launched in November 2021 to advocate for the greater integration of cities in global debates about redirecting our economies and societies towards ambitious social goals relating to sustainability, health and justice. The two-day launch, held in the British Academy in London, ended with a public event, 'Cities at the Crossroads', which was attended by a small group of in-person guests and live streamed to a wider virtual audience.
The Council on Urban Initiatives produces a range of resources, including case study reports and working papers, designed to inform green, healthy and just transformation in cities.
Shaping Urban Futures is the first in a series of Case Study Reports. It explores examples of two cities adopting radically transformative approaches to global challenges, the Care System in Bogotá, Colombia, and refugee integration in Gaziantep, Turkey.
Dan Hill, Council member and Director of the Melbourne School of Design and Diana Rodríguez, Bogotá’s Secretary for Women’s Affairs discuss Bogotá’s Care System.
Authored by Co-Chair Mariana Mazzucato and Council Member Leilani Farha, this working paper brings together human rights and missions to equip all levels of governments to deliver secure, affordable, dignified and sustainable housing for all.
The Council on Urban Initiatives is currently constituted by 18 members. The initial membership will be expanded to ensure wider diversity, as well as regional and professional representation.
The Council on Urban Initiatives is a collaborative partnership established in November 2021 between UN-Habitat, UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose and LSE Cities at the London School of Economics and Political Science. The Council’s work is supported by Impact on Urban Health.