Toward sustainable cities

Local governments are beginning to recognize that the way that urban areas are developed will largely determine our success or failure in overcoming environmental challenges and achieving sustainable development. Sustainable development requires economic and social change to reduce the need for environmental protection. Municipal and local governments in North America have promoted sustainable development by undertaking initiatives on transportation and traffic management, energy-efficient land use, energy conservation and efficiency, waste reduction and recycling, improving community livability, and sustainable administration. Taken together, these initiatives begin to delineate a strategy for encouraging a globally conscious culture of sustainability in our cities. Ecologically sustainable cities will not merely "sustain' the quality of urban life; they are virtually certain to improve it. -from Author