The Habitat III Reader

Throughout the last year, Next City inspired change by providing expertise as well as presenting the sights and sounds of the road to Habitat III. In Surabaya, Indonesia, at PrepCom3, the last major conference before HIII, Next City interviewed public officials and civil society leaders to help explain the complexities and contradictions of urbanization. And, in Quito at HIII, we hosted the World Stage, which included over 60 hours of programming around the themes of Mobility+Reslience, Equality+Opportunity, and Public Life+Design.

Did Habitat III make a difference? Only time — and you — will tell. As with all initiatives, hindsight is 20/20. The euphoria of the event and adoption of the New Urban Agenda masked the difficulties of not having defined national commitments or agreed-upon metrics for implementation. However, there’s no doubt that the needle of urbanization has moved. It’s up to you, me and other urbanists to ensure that the New Urban Agenda lives up to its promise. Next City stands ready for that next great challenge, and welcomes you on the journey to creating equitable, inclusive, prosperous, resilient and sustainable cities for all.

Download this ebook to read some of our most important reporting on Habitat III.