Back to Habitat III – UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development

Louis Mazerolle, urban planner at L’atelier Urbain, has just returned from the UN Habitat III Summit held in Quito from October 17 to 20. We asked him to describe the relevance of this event and his experience.

Habitat III is the third such conference organized by UN-Habitat, the United Nations organization in charge of housing and urban development issues. Held every 20 years (Habitat I in Vancouver in 1976 and Habitat II in Istanbul in 1996), the aim is to take stock of the global situation and set the course for the next two decades. With the world’s population growing so rapidly, and the increasing proportion of the population living in urban areas, leading to a development of cities unprecedented in the history of mankind, the importance of such an event is understandable.

Several rounds of negotiations and preparatory thematic conferences held in several cities around the world, including Montreal, in the 2 years prior to the Quito meeting were necessary to prepare the New Urban Agenda. This was signed on the last day of Habitat III, after final rounds of discussions between countries. This agreement, which is unfortunately non-binding, contains the recognition of urban problems and the fact that cities can play a decisive role in the solution, as well as the commitments that countries have made in this respect.

The commitments of the New Urban Agenda can be summarized under a few headings. Countries commit to ensuring that cities and settlements reduce their environmental footprint in order to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement. There is also an understanding that cities need to be more equitable and inclusive, often expressed as “leave no one behind” and “cities for all“. Public space as a vector for positive transformation is also widely emphasized. Another widely addressed theme is that of city resilience, in the face of both natural disasters and climate change. Finally, the issue of metropolitan governance and the recognition of the role and importance of the local and metropolitan scale are formally acknowledged by countries.

In addition to diplomats and official dignitaries, a large number of professionals, activists, students and local elected representatives gathered in Quito for the occasion. Some 30,000 people attended the four-day event. Canada was represented by a delegation of some 200 people, led by Minister Duclos and Mayor Coderre. A huge number of conferences, round tables and invaluable networking sessions took place, the choices of which were sometimes heartbreaking. A large exhibition village where countries, institutions and private companies – with the notable absence of Canada – competed to demonstrate their ability to design the city of tomorrow. Of course, such a major event in Latin America could not be held without a heavy security cordon, and this was not without its share of snags and criticism.

Even before Habitat III, the New Urban Agenda was already attracting criticism. Obviously, its non-binding and voluntary nature leaves its implementation to the goodwill of States. The difficulty of measuring commitments, both nationally and internationally, is also a problem. Some have also criticized its idealism and disconnection from reality, notably through fringe events. Nevertheless, it’s worth highlighting the willingness of states to agree on general principles on which to build the future. Now that these have been established, the hardest part remains: implementing the New Urban Agenda!

Participation in the Habitat III conference was made possible by LOJIQ – Les Offices Jeunesse Internationaux du Québec.