Sydney selected as one of the world’s 100 resilient cities


The City of Sydney has been recognised as one of the world’s most forward-thinking cities with an invitation to join a group of 100 global cities that are creating a more secure future for their communities.

Alongside, London, Paris, Chicago and Singapore, the City has been selected to join the 100 Resilient Cities network funded by The Rockefeller Foundation.

100 Resilient Cities is spending US $100 million to make cities better prepared to cope with shocks and strains ranging from climate change to social problems and issues such as housing affordability.

President of 100 Resilient Cities, Michael Berkowitz, said the City of Sydney’s innovative approach to urban resilience and commitment to collaborative partnerships was deemed exceptional.

“A resilient city has a diverse economy and takes care of both its built and natural infrastructure,” President Berkowitz said.

“It has effective leadership, empowered stakeholders, and an integrated planning system. All of those things are essential for a resilient city.”

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the City was honoured to be invited to join the network that includes some of the world’s leading cities and encompasses more than 700 million people.

“Leadership involves looking at the long term, and that is exactly what the City of Sydney does,” the Lord Mayor said.

“We are already working hard to prepare Sydney for a fast-changing future. We are putting together a climate change adaptation plan to look at the social, economic and physical impacts of climate change.”

The 100 Resilient Cities network will fund a Chief Resilience Officer at the City of Sydney for two years to work with all levels of government to better prepare Sydney and its residents for expected or unexpected stresses in the future. These can range from the global competitiveness of businesses, to natural disasters and climate change, violence caused by alcohol and drug abuse, or social challenges such as homelessness.

Through this program the City of Sydney will also:

  • Receive support to develop and deliver a Resilience Strategy;
  • Have access to services to support the strategy; and
  • Take part as an active member of the 100 Resilient Cities network

Being a part of this unique group of cities will allow the City of Sydney to share information and learn from other leading cities about their action.

This accolade is more recognition of the City of Sydney’s work to promote Sydney on the global stage.

It comes after Sydney was named the world’s most popular city to study in, with a recent index showing it attracts more international students than anywhere else.

Global consulting firm AT Kearney put Sydney ahead of 83 other cities, including London and New York, after studying the size of their international student population for its 2014 Global Cities Index.

Last month One Central Park was named Best Tall Building in the World in a competition facilitated by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.

The building has won a number of awards for sustainability including the 2014 World Green Infrastructure Award.

The development includes trigeneration, the world’s tallest vertical garden and on on-site water recycling plant built in the basements of a residential building to service around 4,000 residents and more than 15,000 workers and visitors daily.

The City’s renewable energy master plan was last week awarded the prestigious European Solar Prize 2014 award for excellence and innovation.

The award from not-for-profit organisation, EUROSOLAR, recognises outstanding commitment and contributions in the renewable energy sector, and significant contributions to expanding renewable energy use.

The City of Sydney is Australia’s first carbon-neutral government with ambitious targets to reduce emissions by 70 per cent by 2030.

For more information visit City of Sydney