27 August 2019
Drone data has allowed us to find solutions for a wide range of social challenges, like humanitarian aid, resource conservation, resilient urban planning and many more. But as the field has expanded, three pressing issues have emerged:
how to produce impactful analysis in a rapid manner;
how to
12 August 2019
The global initiative supports Helsinki’s goal of achieving a more significant role for cities in implementing the sustainable development goals.
The United Nations’ Social Impact Investing Initiative has opened a new office in Helsinki, further bolstering the UN’s presence in Finland.
The Social
8 August 2019
The year was 2009, and Typhoon Ketsana — known locally in the Philippines as Ondoy — had just struck Metropolitan Manila, Philippines. One of the strongest typhoons to have made landfall in the megacity, Ketsana displaced thousands of families and left them without their source of livelihood and
24 July 2019
Residents say that quality of life is under threat from increasing tourism and rising rents that are pushing out young people and poorer families
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Walking through the hip San Juan neighbourhood (barrio) of Machuchal, it is hard to miss the house painted bright yellow, green
2 June 2019
It is difficult to traverse the muddy terrain of the colony’s settlements. Truckloads of soil are being deposited by huge cranes in the distance; vast stretches of marshy land stare back in defiance. A short spell of rain and the place turns back into the flood channel that it once was.
15 April 2019
Agriculture makes up only about 1 percent of Singapore's land area, but urban farming - including vertical and rooftop farms - is fast becoming popular
SINGAPORE - Rain or shine, every day for the past year, Kanti Kagrana walks a short distance from his son's flat to Singapore's HortPark, a
31 January 2019
Poor land records, rampant speculation and weak or corrupt implementation of regulations means that cities are using land inefficiently
WASHINGTON, Jan 31 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Urban areas are expected to grow by 80 percent by the end of the next decade, and unless they grow up rather
30 January 2019
While cities are generally considered to be poorer in biodiversity than rural areas, new research finds that urban areas could actually play a key role in conserving pollinator communities.
A team of researchers led by scientists at the UK’s University of Bristol studied pollinators and floral
4 January 2019
Cities exercise power in many areas that touch on human rights, and growing urban inequalities mean advocates must focus more attention on municipal governments.
24 July 2018
Many Indians face untold hardships due to lack of good shelter including health issues. Those in cities live in a slum close-by or stay far-away where there is no livelihood and few commuting options.
According to the State of the Low-Income Housing Finance Market 2018 report, with increasing
6 June 2018
"As African countries seek to achieve inclusive economic growth to combat poverty, unemployment, inequality and informality, among other challenges, it is imperative that their policies recognize and realize the potential of urbanization. Cities, if well planned and managed, can become engines of
7 May 2018
A 300-year-old community in Bangkok will have its homes demolished as part of the city's modernisation plans
BANGKOK - For more than two decades, a community of more than 300 people living next to an old fort in Bangkok staved off drug dealers keen to extend their turf, and city officials eager