On October 2nd, World Habitat Day was commemorated, promoted by the United Nations to raise awareness about how urban economies must be involved in sustainable development globally. This year’s specific goal is to address the need to find ways for cities to recover from global economic crises, such as the one experienced worldwide following the Covid-19 pandemic.
In the wake of the pandemic crisis, various macroeconomic actors were urged to consider how to strengthen urban contexts against future crises, given the heavy dependence of national economies on activities occurring in urban environments. This is pursued through the development of sustainable cities, focusing on how resources are generated and their structural, environmental, and economic impacts. For example, in the case of food, we saw how the pandemic significantly affected not only the consumption of agricultural products in urban contexts, making them inaccessible to many citizens in some cases.
On the other hand, urban food distributors felt the impact of changes in how consumers accessed their products, forcing them to reinvent strategies to reach their customers. Finally, those involved in transforming food products and providing restaurant services were severely affected, caught between suppliers and clients in a chain of interdependence that triggered one of the worst crises in recent times.
In light of these global observations, there is a call to consider how cities could generate their own resources, including food. This is why many urbanization and space transformation projects in some of the most developed countries aim to turn cities into green cities—not only for environmental impact but also for the way resources are managed for inhabitants’ consumption. Beyond green cities, food product transformers are encouraged to develop strategies that not only reduce costs, such as transportation, but also build value chains where producers, distributors, and consumers all benefit. The management of food waste and the reuse of edible products in good condition are also key axes to achieving these objectives.
Although it might seem that these goals solely serve to significantly improve environmental impact, the reality is that a well-designed strategy to meet them often also results in reduced production costs if the aim is purely economic benefit. However, the joint achievement of these strategies requires finely coordinated efforts among all involved parties—not only from the private sector but also with support from government agencies. Additionally, a change is needed in the culture of sustainable business and social responsibility, one that is sensitive to changes in practices that can offer not only economic benefits but also security against future crises.
— This article was originally published in Spanish by Liliana Martínez Lomelí. Translation generated with AI from the original text.
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