The Manila Times

Open public spaces

Sustainabl­e cities can help developers create more viable communitie­s

- BY ELSHAMAE ROBLES

AMID today ’ s growing urban developmen­t in the Philippine­s, ensuring sustainabi­lity among its major cities is quite a challenge for developers, communitie­s, and the government. This increasing urbanizati­on has also been attributed to main city drawbacks such as the lack of green and open spaces, depletion of resources, pollution, and overpopula­tion.

Urban dwellers

More than half of the world’s current population, in fact, is composed of urban dwellers. Overpopula­tion, according to the World Health Organizati­on, is highly concentrat­ed in the world’s less developed regions. By 2050, the organizati­on pre-

dicted, population 70 percent will have of migrated the said to the cities.

Similarly, in the Philippine­s, urban population has increased to more than 50 mil Which could reach to 102 million by 2050, or more than 65 percent of the country’s total population, according to the World Bank Group ( WBG)’ s “Philippine­s Urbanizati­on Review.”

“The Philippine­s is one of the fastest urbanizing countries - gion,” the report read. “[ The] urban density overall is high, particular­ly in Metro Manila, one of the region’s fast growing mega cities.”

The organizati­on added that urbanizati­on had correlated with in the Philippine­s, as concluded in other countries. “Evidence from today’s developed countries and rapidly emerging economies suggests that urbanizati­on and economic growth go hand in hand,” it said.

Noting that the Philippine­s has as much as other countries, the number of underlying structural issues affecting urbanizati­on in the Philippine­s in various ways.”

In spite of the problems that make urban areas less livable, however, maintainin­g sustainabi­lity among cities can actually help developers create more viable communitie­s for citizens. settlement­s designed to have minimal impacts on the environmen­t, sustainabl­e cities feature management­s that focus on reducing the usage of energy, food, and water, as well as minimizing the generation of heat and pollution.

Govt initiative

Sustainabl­e cities are usually tagged with a vista of natural open spaces, reduced waste, having a sense of community, integrated transporta­tion plans, and environmen­tal diversity. step to attain sustainabi­lity is to recognize a city’s real size, and harmonize it with its social and economic potentials.

design, engineerin­g and management consultanc­y, has listed Copenhagen, Berlin, and Madrid Seoul and Tokyo when it comes to being among the world’s best in sustainabi­lity, owing mainly to their excellent public transport systems.

“Europe dominates the top of the index… many of these European cities benefit from establishe­d and well- used met Undergroun­d, strong bicycle - sterdam and Copenhagen, and high shares of commuters using public rather than private transport,” it said.

cleaner air and greener mobility systems to their lower emissions incentives and sensitivit­y with the environmen­t. “Cities such as Zurich, Paris and 18 other Euro - istics and sit in the top quartile of the Planet sub-index,” it added.

To help the Philippine­s’ striving cities achieve and maintain these recently presented a nationwide initiative that aims to support the developmen­t of open public spaces. With a budget of P2.5 billion, the initiative complement­s the

 ??  ?? Sustainabl­e cities are usually tagged with a vista of natural open spaces, reduced waste, having a sense of community, integrated transporta­tion plans, and environmen­tal diversity.
Sustainabl­e cities are usually tagged with a vista of natural open spaces, reduced waste, having a sense of community, integrated transporta­tion plans, and environmen­tal diversity.

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