Five cities receive Global Sustainable Development Urban Awards

Five cities worldwide have been honored with the fourth Global Sustainable Development Urban Award, also known as the Shanghai Award, during the inauguration of the 2026 World Urban Day global main event in Fuzhou, China.

The recipients include Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Santiago de Cali, Colombia: Istanbul, Turkey: Jingdezhen, China: and Katowice, Poland. The award aims to promote the implementation of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the New Urban Agenda at local levels, recognizing cities that have made significant contributions to sustainable urban development.

In conjunction with the awards, the 2026 edition of the ‘Shanghai Handbook: A Guide to Sustainable Urban Development in the 21st Century’ was released. The handbook provides examples of successful practices and improved operations from various cities globally. The event, themed ‘Empowerment through Innovation, the Dream of Livable Cities,’ was organized by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of China, UN-Habitat, and the Fujian Provincial Government.