We may see a house as just that: a shelter and a space to call home. But what if that house is inadequate? If the house can’t be kept clean or it’s situated along a polluted, dusty road? What if it’s not safe, and even when they close the door, its residents can’t relax? What Read more →

There are plenty of benefits to engaging young people in contests and competitions. They provide space for creativity and for those who rarely have a voice to share personal reflections and knowledge.  But running a contest with input from young people across the world, spanning language and cultural barriers, isn’t always straightforward. Here’s what ICLEI Read more →

After decades of decline, global hunger and malnutrition are increasing. While on average urban children tend to fare better than rural children, one in three stunted children lives in the city. While obesity – the ‘other face’ of malnutrition – affects mostly adult urban residents, it also impacts urban children. The second Sustainable Development Goal Read more →

Launched at the World Urban Forum in 2020, the Global Alliance – Cities 4 Children was established to tackle the huge challenges and numerous issues faced by children living in urban areas, especially the most marginalized. The Alliance brings together a range of organisations from INGOs, UN agencies, private sector, academia, foundations and people’s movements Read more →

The results from a recent survey designed to engage young people as primary stakeholders in improving safety in their cities are striking. 82 percent of young people aged 15-24 who took part said they could ‘never access safe public transport’, while 69 percent said they ‘never felt safe from harassment’ in public spaces. The results Read more →

Air pollution has devastating implications. It can increase the likelihood of childhood asthma, stunt lung growth, and can even lead to heart disease and increased rates of diabetes. For the world’s poorest and most vulnerable, they tend to be on the frontline of air pollution. This is partly due to the location of affordable housing Read more →

It is women and girls who experience the brunt of gender-based violence, or GBV. These experiences can be more prevalent and intensified in cities. By 2050, 68% of the world’s population will live in cities, while by 2030, 60% of the world’s urban population will be under the age of 18. This presents specific challenges Read more →

How tactical urbanism can transform the way children use the city Planned development takes time, and proposed changes may be sluggish to implement, often challenged by bureaucratic powers that deny cities the opportunity to ‘get things done’. Sometimes cities need an injection of tactical urbanism to transform urban use and improve the way of life Read more →

The Covid-19 pandemic brought urban life to a halt and turned children’s lives upside-down overnight. Across the world, children no longer had lessons or physical contact with their friends, and could not play or exercise outdoor. Strict lockdowns and mobility restrictions have shown the importance of more and better public spaces in our cities. Nearly Read more →

This year’s COP26 is all about accelerating adaptation and mitigation: driving action towards achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. We know now that climate change affects all aspects of our life.  The majority of the world’s population live in cities, and that number is set to rise. It’s Read more →

In today’s urbanising world, we are rapidly losing the green spaces that are so vital to our health and well-being. Here, I share some especially compelling research on the benefits of these spaces and the costs of doing without them, particularly for children. These findings date back to the mid-1990s. Yet they continue to provide Read more →

Poor-quality housing can be a matter of life and death, especially for children. Governments often focus on building new homes rather than improving the quality of existing ones. Yet the COVID-19 pandemic and ‘shelter-in-place’ orders have highlighted the importance of doing so. Here, Olivia Nielsen explores the dangers of sub-standard homes for young children and Read more →