Urban October 2023: 31 days of promoting a better urban future

Urban October: what it means to us

“Urban October” is a campaign that has been initiated by UN Habitat since 2014. It is inviting everyone to a conversation and reflection about the challenges and opportunities related to urbanisation and sustainable urban development. The Urban Solutions Network invites its members to organise or join events, activities, and discussions. The Urban Solutions Network will promote urban development within INTPA throughout this month and is looking forward to your contributions.

Why Cities Matter

Cities have taken centre stage in the 21^st century: Major shifts in global demographics mean that for the first time in history, the majority of the world’s population lives in urban areas. This growth is occurring mostly in urban areas of developing and emerging economies. This includes about 1 billion people living in sub-standard and unsafe urban informal settlements worldwide, commonly referred to as “slums”. In order to leverage sustainable urban development as a driver of global sustainability, the allocation of significant funding and attention to cities, regions and nations worldwide is mandatory. Cities have the potential and responsibility to take concrete steps towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to implement strategies to achieve them. It is for this reason that we would like to put Urban October in the spotlight.

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What is Urban October?

By 2050, as many as 80 percent of all humans might live in cities. Growing economies in Latin America, Asia, and Africa are expecting the most growth. Cities are and will be hubs of economic, social, and cultural innovation, exchange, and growth, which creates many opportunities. At the same time, they struggle with challenges such as CO² emissions and air pollution, demographic shifts, and economic problems.



By making October the urban month every year, UN Habitat is hoping to draw attention to the importance of sustainable urban development. Urban October consists of activities like online and offline events, discussions, round tables, and more. It is framed by World Habitat Day on October 2 and World Cities Day on October 31. Everyone who is interested in sustainable urbanisation is invited to join in, share and generate knowledge, network, and go back to their city with inspiration. 

The hope is that as many urban stakeholders as possible will participate in Urban October, including cities in the EU, to harness transformational change. Considering that most cities are not on track to meet Sustainable Development Goal 11, which calls for inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable cities and human settlements, there is a lot of work left to be done. Urban October provides a chance to check in and learn from each other. 

World Habitat Day

World Habitat Day takes place on the first Monday of October, which in this year fell on the 2^nd. Its motto is “Resilient urban economies - cities as engines of growth and recovery”. The day invites reflections on the state of our habitat and the fundamental right to adequate shelter. UN Habitat will award the Scroll of Honour to an outstanding initiative that has made important contributions to improving human settlements, housing, and quality of life

World Cities Day

October 31 marks the end of Urban October. The global observance in 2023 will take place in Üsküdar municipality in Istanbul, Türkiye with the motto “Financing sustainable urban futures for all”. Here, the goal is to identify ways of unlocking investments in urban planning to achieve the fiscal decentralisation that is necessary for sustainable urban development. There will be meetings of thought leaders and investors with the aim of developing recommendations for UN Habitat and UNDP on local finance.

How to participate?

By following #urbanoctober on social media, you will get a good overview of what is happening during the urban month. Many different cities are organising events, which are often live-streamed, and everyone is also invited to organise their own event. For this, UN Habitat provides a toolkit. 

Germany’s GIZ is hosting many interesting events such as a discussion on funding nature-based solutions in cities and a session on perceptions and systems of urban waste. What other events are you aware of? Leave a comment to share your input!👇