I4C2026 Event application

Cities concentrate people, infrastructure, and economic activity, and therefore face significant pressures from climate change, resource use and inequality. Drawing on practical case studies from Latin America, Africa and Asia, this session explores how cities in the Global South are advancing circular, climate-resilient development by treating cities as living systems where resource flows - highlighting how nature-based solutions and community governance can deliver localised climate action.

Mobilizing three levers from the joint publication, ‘The City as a System’, this session will map out how framing the city as an ecosystem can help reveal quick‑start, high‑impact loops with measurable climate and local economic benefits. The session will also draw on the Park City framework – exploring how cities can measure progress and map local actions against global indicators, including the SDGs and climate targets. By combining analytical tools with community-driven solutions, the session aims to demonstrate how nature-positive, circular urban strategies can be scaled and replicated across diverse Global South contexts to improve livelihoods, resilience and urban quality of life.