Nepal/ Brazil - Few cities reflect the complex realities of modern urbanization as clearly as Rio de Janeiro. Marked by rapid expansion, deep-rooted social inequalities, informal settlements on hillsides and floodplains, and intensifying climate risks, the Brazilian metropolis has long stood at the intersection of vulnerability and innovation.
Yet Rio is not only a story of challenge. It is also a story of adaptation - where communities, planners, and institutions have worked persistently to build a more inclusive and climate-resilient urban future.
Investing in Communities, Not Displacement
For decades, Rio has experimented with favela upgrading rather than large-scale displacement. Experience has shown that investing directly in informal settlements - through improved access to basic services, safer housing, mobility networks, public spaces, and risk reduction measures - produces more sustainable social and environmental outcomes than relocation alone.
Upgrading in place has helped strengthen social cohesion while reducing exposure to landslides and flooding. It has also demonstrated that resilience policies must prioritize dignity and stability for low-income residents.
Community Knowledge as Climate Infrastructure
In many of Rio’s hillside neighborhoods, community-led initiatives have become central to climate adaptation efforts. Local residents have played active roles in early warning systems, slope stabilization projects, and neighborhood-level disaster preparedness.
This bottom-up engagement has proven that resilience cannot be imposed solely through top-down technical planning. Local knowledge, trust, and participation are critical components of effective climate action.
Nature as a Protective Asset
Rio’s growing recognition of forests, mangroves, and green corridors as protective infrastructure reflects a broader shift in urban planning. Natural ecosystems are increasingly viewed as essential for cooling dense urban areas, absorbing excess rainfall, controlling floods, and preventing soil erosion.
By treating nature as infrastructure rather than as an afterthought, the city aligns environmental conservation with climate adaptation goals.
Shaping the Global Urban Agenda
Rio has also contributed to global conversations on informal settlements, social justice, and climate vulnerability. Through international urban forums and city networks, it has helped spotlight the disproportionate climate risks faced by marginalized communities.
As cities worldwide confront accelerating climate threats, Rio’s experience offers both inspiration and caution.
Persistent Challenges
Despite progress, significant obstacles remain:
Climate risks are intensifying faster than infrastructure upgrades can keep pace.
Inequality continues to determine who is most exposed to hazards - and who benefits first from investments.
Green development projects can unintentionally trigger displacement if social safeguards are not embedded from the start.
Coordination between municipal, state, and national authorities remains complex.
A Broader Lesson for Urban Climate Action
Rio’s experience underscores a vital message: urban climate action is not solely about carbon targets, engineering, or technology. It is fundamentally about people, place, and power. Sustainable resilience emerges when communities are active partners in planning - not passive recipients of policy.
As global urban leaders prepare for the World Urban Forum 13 (WUF13), scheduled for 17–22 May 2026 in Baku, Rio’s journey serves as a timely case study. The Urban Expo at WUF13 aims to spotlight practical, community-driven solutions that bridge dialogue, learning, and storytelling on the world stage.
For cities navigating climate uncertainty, Rio offers a clear takeaway: resilience must be built with communities, grounded in equity, and supported by long-term institutional commitment.
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