Data For Resilient Cities: United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), World Council on City Data (WCCD) and Standardized Urban Metrics (SUM) Workshop Brings Cities and Investors Together to Build Resilient Futures
Vaughan, Canada – In response to rising climate-related disasters and the urgent need for sustainable infrastructure investment, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), World Council on City Data (WCCD) and Standardized Urban Metrics (SUM) Workshop took place April 24 and 25 in Vaughan, Ontario. The two-day workshop convened cities across the Americas - from Buenos Aires to Toronto to Reykjavik, UN leaders, and financial sector experts to address two critical global challenges: the ongoing funding gap faced by cities, and the persistent city data gap faced by banks and investors.
This high-level workshop introduced global urban
leaders to ISO 37123—Indicators for Resilient Cities and ISO 37125—Environmental,
Social and Governance (ESG) for Cities, the first ESG data standard
tailored for cities and regions. Together, these ISO standards offer a powerful
solution to the dual challenge of resilience planning and investment readiness.
Workshop
Objectives: Bridging the Gaps
The workshop was anchored in the central theme of Data
for Resilient Cities—a call to action for greater collaboration between and
across cities globally and the financial sector. By leveraging standardized,
third-party verified city data, local governments can adopt a governance
strategy for a more resilient future and prepare for and mitigate risk through
planning strategic and resilient infrastructure investment for the future of
their citizens. Financial institutions gain access to reliable Environmental,
Social, and Governance (ESG) metrics essential for informed investment
decisions. The data generated for cities in adopting ISO 37123 and ISO
37125 offers a clear path to align public resilience planning with private
sector financing. This globally standardized and third-party verified data equips
cities with reliable ESG metrics essential for informed investment decisions and
also supports financial institutions in the growing municipal finance sector.
The urgency of this
workshop was highlighted by the UN’s #DRRday Report, which shows that
between 2000 and 2019, 7,348 major disasters impacted 4.2 billion people and
caused nearly US$3 trillion in economic losses.
“The objective is clear,” said Dr. Patricia McCarney, President and CEO
of the World Council on City Data (WCCD) and Director of Standardized Urban
Metrics (SUM). “We are bringing cities and banks into the same room to
address two critical challenges—cities need funding, and investors
need data. This workshop equips both with the tools to take meaningful,
collaborative action.”
Sanjaya Bhatia, Head of Global Education and Training
Institute, UNDRR emphasized the importance of the Workshop,
stating that “with disasters accelerating and urban services under
increasing pressure, this workshop marks a pivotal moment—where cities and the
financial sector unite around standardized, verified data to drive resilient
investment. Together, through ISO 37123 and ISO 37125, we are equipping cities
with the tools to not only prepare for a safer future, but to make it possible.”
The workshop was also a key milestone under the UN-led
Making Cities Resilient 2030 (MCR2030) initiative and supported alignment with
the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and UN Sustainable Development
Goals.
City-to-City
Learning and Finance-Ready Dialogue
Day one focused on data-driven resilience strategic
planning and the implementation of ISO 37123 and the power of certified
resilience data to shape emergency planning, disaster recovery, and strategic
urban governance. Participating cities and regions—Toronto, Vaughan, Mississauga,
Regional Municipality of York, Reykjavik, Montevideo, Buenos Aires, and Montego
Bay—showcased lessons learned and engaged in a peer-to-peer exchange on
resilience challenges and solutions.
Day two shifted to finance, introducing the ISO 37125 Standard
and the role of ESG metrics in unlocking capital markets. Sustainable finance
leaders from the National Bank of Canada, RBC, Scotiabank, and Avondale Private
Capital joined municipal leaders to explore how certified city data is powering
new forms of investment, including municipal bonds, green, sustainable and social
bonds and sustainability-linked bonds to support more resilient infrastructure
investment in cities.
The
need to finance resilient infrastructure and “build back better” initiatives is
more urgent than ever. At COP28’s Zero Climate Disasters by 2030
discussion, UNDRR noted an 80% increase in the number of people
affected by disasters since 2005, and projected that by 2030, climate-related
disasters could occur at a rate of 1.5 per day.
Outcomes for
a Resilient Future
Participants left the workshop with:
- Knowledge of how to apply ISO-certified data to
risk reduction and capital planning
- Strategies to build investor-ready ESG profiles
- A clearer understanding of how to align local
resilience goals with global finance frameworks
The success of the workshop in Canada continued May 6–7 with its second session in the United
Arab Emirates bringing together cities across the middle east, Africa
and Asia. This workshop by UNDRR, WCCD, and SUM is driving a new era of data-driven
resilience, empowering cities not just to recover—but to lead.
For media inquiries, please contact:
World Council on City Data (WCCD): info@dataforcities.org
Standardized Urban Metrics (SUM): director@standardizedurbanmetrics.ca
UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR): media@un.org
Learn more:
www.dataforcities.org
www.standardizedurbanmetrics.com
