Mission Critical Earth

Sustainable Cities - SDG #11

Given the importance of this topic to global development efforts, recent movements pushing to address sustainable development from an urban perspective have taken place throughout the world. World leaders recognized unanimously that transportation and mobility as well as Disaster risk reduction (DRR) is an integral part of social and economic development, and is essential if development is to be sustainable for the future. Results from this movement can be seen in the inclusion of a stand-alone goal on cities and urban development in the 2030 Agenda, Sustainable Development Goal 11, "make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable". There is also recognition of the cross-cutting nature of urban issues, which have an impact on a number of other Sustainable Development Goals, including SDGs 1, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 15, and 17, among others.

Climate change poses an existential threat to mankind from many angles. Survival will depend upon mankind’s ability to adapt to a myriad of environmental changes. However, at its most basic level, sustainability surrounding food, energy, shelter, and mobility will determine a thriving future civilization. All of these elements are in need of being re-thought, re-addressed, and re-designed at the urban cityscape level.

These episodes on Sustainable Cities, within the Mission Critical Earth documentary-style TV series, will showcase the successful implementation of city planning strategies by engineers, architects, city planners, scientists, government officials, corporations, policymakers, and various practitioners. There are examples of forward-thinking and planning for climate change all around us, however, the real implementation of change is not necessarily in our neighborhood, our cities, or even in the United States. Collectively we need to share ideas, showcase various successful implementations, and carefully study creative urban revitalization and protection plans that focus on sustainable solutions which mitigate risks associated with the various environmental challenges posed by climate change.

Sustainable Cities will provide evidence-based and educational account of the state-of-the-art in urban planning to mitigate the risks posed by climate change, as well as provide a window on the lifestyle that a future-proofed urban landscape has to offer.