Digital twin technologies play a very important role in the provision of smart cities. However, it is not clear which innovative strategies should be implemented first on how to optimize digital twin technologies for sustainable smart cities. The main performance indicators should be identified...

One in three cities is at high risk of water stress. The 2030 Water Resources Group (WRG) helps cities prevent, respond to, and recover from water crises. This is done by facilitating partnerships between governments and businesses to manage water more effectively and create resilient and...

This brief presents insights and lessons for the Networks of Practice (NoP) program in urban Ghana, based on formative research conducted in Ayawaso Central, Greater Accra Region and Atwima Nwabiagya Municipal, Ashanti Region. The research used Patient Pathway Analysis (PPA) and Summative...

This note describes Carbon Monitor Cities 2.0, a new approach to near-real-time monitoring of city-level greenhouse gas emissions from various sectors without the need for local data collection. With support from the City Climate Finance Gap Fund, the World Bank piloted this approach for 11...

The 'Communication, Dissemination and Stakeholder Engagement Strategy' (CDSES) defines the framework to guide dissemination activities within UVAR Box throughout the project. It identifies and describes the target groups for dissemination activities and explains how to reach them. It provides...

Effectively assisting urban designers in developing resilient urban areas requires innovative approaches. Moreover, using spatial analysis is necessary to assess the effectiveness of the conceptual design depending on different specifications. Even though these concepts are closely related, they...

Urban regeneration is a challenging intervention, considering the multidimensional issues involved and the complexities of stakeholder collaborations. While prior research indicates the potential of digital technology in addressing these challenges and introducing novel approaches to urban...

Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) is increasingly recognized as an effective urban planning strategy, aiming for the harmonious development of urban spatial structures and rail transit systems, thus fostering sustainability. This study addresses the limitations of existing research in...

Urban planning has shaped cities for millennia, demarcating property rights and mitigating coordination failures, but its rigidities often conflict with market-driven development, which reflects preferences. Although planning is widespread in high-income countries, rapidly growing cities in the...

This study examines the impact of China's special economic zones (SEZs) on land misallocation, primarily using city-level data for China from 2003 to 2018. The findings indicate that establishing SEZs exacerbates land misallocation by over-allocating land to cities, resulting in an average...

Urban informal settlements in the Global South, home to over a billion people, face significant challenges due to limited space and inadequate Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) and Solid Waste Management (SWM) infrastructure. These deficiencies significantly impact women's 'triple care role'...

Several indicator and index frameworks have been reported to assess management efficiency and promote transparency, facilitating decision-making and innovation. However, they cannot be applied in cities with limited information, making them impractical. This study proposes a Sustainable Urban...

Previous studies suggest that market forces and the strategic behavior of local governments regarding land development jointly contribute to rapid urban expansion in China. In underdeveloped small cities in Western China, the market is weak, and local governments lack the conditions required to...

Urban planning, through design and land use allocation, affects urban climate dynamics and patterns at different atmospheric layers and spatial scales. Climate sensitive planning and design draws attention to the consideration of climate parameters for decision making. Seeking to contribute to...

This study is a novel attempt to analyze the patterns and trends of urbanization in medium to large cities in Central Asia. It encompasses a broad range of parameters, and employs an evidence-based approach to outlining strategic directions and actions for fostering green and resilient urban...

Governments face the complicated challenge of making policy decisions relating to coastal and marine ecosystems without a well-established body of knowledge about such systems. To complicate matters, the benefits that marine and coastal ecosystems deliver, which include resilience to climate...

This paper explores structural transformation in Harare, a city characterized by vertically divided authority. Harare's unique governance structure can offer invaluable insights into the role of political determinants in structural change in African cities. We aim to demonstrate how political...

The study examines Dar es Salaam's potential as a focal point for structural transformation, highlighting its emergence as a significant economic hub. Through a mixed-methods approach, the research investigates how urban development is shaped by institutional, economic, political, and spatial...

City-level greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data is necessary as an input into identifying, planning, and monitoring urban climate change mitigation actions. Until recently, the availability of emissions data at the city level required the existence of a local emissions inventory, produced through...

Urban GHG modeling tools vary in their intended uses, user interfaces, inputs, outputs, costs, etc. This knowledge note is intended as a primer, to help cities and organizations working with cities understand and select from among the tools available, based on their needs. It does not endorse...

Approximately 70 percent of greenhouse gas emissions are generated through consumption in urban areas, which means that decarbonization of cities is essential to limit climate change to 1.5 to 2 °C. While per capita emissions in low- and middle-income countries remain low so far, prompt action...

This technical note serves as a primer on smart city solutions for climate mitigation in urban areas. It introduces a subset of solutions that have shown great promise in the path toward decarbonization. Note that this primer note does not endorse one solution over another. Each city should...

Our study delves into understanding the bottom-up processes within a public service delivery system by studying the last-mile interactions between frontline workers, citizens, and other stakeholders. Specifically, we focus on these aspects in the context of the Solid Waste Management (SWM)...

This study reveals that, over the past six decades, development towns have improved their socio-economic status both in terms of absolute mobility (compared to their past position) and relative mobility (progressing at a faster rate than other Jewish cities and towns). Between 1961 and 2019,...

Popayán (Colombia) was the first city to be designated a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy in 2005, positioning itself as a symbolic 'myth of origin' within the network. In the context of growing demands for local strategies aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it is...