International.
Montería, a city on the Colombian coast, and Quito, capital of Ecuador, were recognized among the 10 most sustainable cities in the world during the presentation of the World Habitat Awards of the United Nations.
The mayor of the city of Monteria, Marcos Daniel Pineda, received the recognition from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Her work in promoting urban practices balanced with the environment and the effort to mitigate climate change made her worthy of the award.
On October 16, during the dinner offered by the Mayor of the city of Quito, Mauricio Rodas, as part of the II Assembly of Local and Regional Governments within the framework of Habitat III, the award ceremony of the Earth Hour 2016 Cities Challenge was held. Wwf's international president, Yolanda Kakabadse, presented Paris as the Global Capital of Earth Hour, along with the other 17 finalist cities.
Cities are the main contributors to climate change and although they represent less than 2% of the earth's surface, they produce more than 60% of total carbon dioxide. More than 50% of the world's population lives in urban areas and in Latin America the figure reaches 80%. Of the nearly one billion poor in the world, more than 750 million live in urban areas.
Source: WWF
