Global Civil Society & the UN Sustainable Development Goals

Goal 11: Make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

Sustainable Cities & Communities


Goal 11 is about making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

Cities represent the future of global living. The world’s population reached 8 billion on 2022 over half living in urban areas. This figure is only expected to rise, with 70 per cent of people expected to live in cities by 2050. Approximately 1.1 billion people currently live in slums or slum-like conditions in cities, with 2 billion more expected in the next 30 years.

However many of these cities are not ready for this rapid urbanisation, and it outpaces the development of housing, infrastructure and services, which led to a rise in slums or slum-like conditions.

Urban sprawl, air pollution and limited open public spaces persist in cities.

Good progress has been made since the implementation of the SDGs began in 2015, and now the number of countries with national and local disaster risk reduction strategies has doubled. But issues still remain and in 2022, only half of the urban population had convenient access to public transport.

Sustainable development cannot be achieved without significantly transforming the way urban spaces are built and managed.

Name Acronym Founded City HQ Country/Territory HQ Type I Type II

European Centre on Urban Risks

CERU 1998 Lisbon Portugal G g

European Cetacean Society

ECS 1987 Liège Belgium D v

European Child Rescue Alert and Police Network on Missing Children

AMBER Alert Europe 2013 Beek Netherlands F y

European Child Safety Alliance

ECSA Birmingham UK E

European Cities Against Drugs

ECAD 1994 Stockholm Sweden F

European Cities and Regions for Culture

LIKE 1994 Lille France D

European Civil Aviation Conference

ECAC 1954 Neuilly-sur-Seine France F g

European Cleaning and Facility Services Industry

EFCI 1988 Brussels Belgium D t

European Coalition for Community Living

ECCL 2005 Brussels Belgium E y

European Coalition of Cities Against Racism

2004 Nürburg Germany K

European Coil Coating Association

ECCA 1967 Brussels Belgium D t

European Commission for Road Safety in Armed Forces

ECRAF 2002 E

European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization

CENELEC 1973 Brussels Belgium D

European Committee of Social Rights

ECSR Strasbourg France E g

European Committee of the Regions

CoR 1993 Brussels Belgium E g

European Community Foundation Initiative

ECFI 2016 Berlin Germany F

European Concert Hall Organisation

ECHO 1994 Brussels Belgium D

European Concrete Paving Association

EUPAVE 2007 Brussels Belgium D yt

European Confederation of Conservator-Restorers' Organisations

ECCO 1991 Brussels Belgium D y

European Confederation of Independent Trade Unions

CESI 1990 Brussels Belgium D yt

European Conference of Transport Research Institutes

ECTRI 2003 Brussels Belgium F

European Conservation Agriculture Federation

ECAF 1999 Brussels Belgium D

European Conservatives and Reformists Group - Committee of the Regions

ECR-CoR 2013 Brussels Belgium E v

European Consortium for Sociological Research

ECSR 1991 Mannheim Germany D

European Consortium of Innovative Universities

ECIU 1997 Enschede Netherlands F

European Construction Industry Federation

1905 Brussels Belgium D t

European Convention Concerning the Social Security of Workers Engaged in International Transport

1956 T g

European Convention for the Protection of Animals During International Transport

1968 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention for the Protection of Animals During International Transport - Revised

2003 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention on Civil Liability for Damage Caused by Motor Vehicles

1973 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention on Compulsory Insurance Against Civil Liability in Respect of Motor Vehicles

1959 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention on Customs Treatment of Pallets Used in International Transport

1960 T g

European Convention on Offences Relating to Cultural Property

1985 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention on Recognition and Enforcement of Decisions Concerning Custody of Children and on Restoration of Custody of Children

1980 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention on the International Effects of Deprivation of the Right to Drive a Motor Vehicle

1976 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention on the Protection of the Archaeological Heritage

1969 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention on the Protection of the Archaeological Heritage, Revised

1992 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention on the Protection of the Audiovisual Heritage

2001 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention on the Punishment of Road Traffic Offences

1964 Strasbourg France T g

European Convention on the Transfer of Proceedings in Criminal Matters

1972 Strasbourg France T g

European Cooperation in Science and Technology

COST 1971 Brussels Belgium E g

European Coordination Committee of the Radiological, Electromedical Healthcare IT Industry

COCIR 1959 Brussels Belgium E t

European Corporate Security Association

ECSA 2005 Brussels Belgium G

European Council for the Conservation of Fungi

ECCF 1985 Birmensdorf Switzerland D

European Council for the Village and Small Town

ECOVAST 1984 Tenterden UK D

European Council of Automotive Research and Development

EUCAR 1994 Brussels Belgium E

European Council of Interior Architects

ECIA 1992 Brussels Belgium D

European Council of Jewish Communities

ECJC 1964 Paris France D y

European Council of Landscape Architecture Schools

ECLAS Vienna Austria D

European Council of Shopping Places

ECSP 2020 Brussels Belgium D t

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