Urban Exchange Podcast Episode 8 - Making cities green, resilient and inclusive in a changing climate

Hosted by World Bank’s Francis Ghesquiere, Head of the Secretariat for the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction & Recovery (GFDRR), the Urban Exchange welcomes World Bank economists Megha Mukim and Mark Roberts as its latest guests to discover the key insights from Thriving – Making cities green, resilient and inclusive in a changing climate – a study of the impact of climate change on more than 10,000 cities worldwide.

Megha opens up the discussion by questioning how cities can approach urban development without first understanding how climate change is leading to the shocks and stresses urban areas need to become more resilient against. Here, she explains the importance of linking climate experts and economists and how the report highlights the different touchpoints required to create and maintain that connection.

Before delving into the key findings from the report, Mark explains the process behind gathering such a huge dataset as the one the report is drawn from – over 10,000 cities with a population of at least 50,000 people. He describes the backdrop against which the report has been written and the criteria upon which the extensive database has been developed.

From here, Megha begins to explore the report’s key findings, starting with where the bulk of urban emissions are coming from against cities’ socioeconomic backdrops, and the need for faster and more effective mitigation efforts.

Listen to the episode in full to discover the surprises in the findings and the actions that can be recommended to cities off the back them.