‘Manila one of world’s least sustainable cities’

MANILA, Philippines — Manila has landed on the list of least sustainable cities in the world, ranking 95th out of 100 cities, according to a recent study by an Amsterdam-based design and consultancy firm, News 5 reported.

Arcadis’ 2018 Sustainable Cities Index, which was released on Thursday, revealed that the Philippine capital was listed 95th out of 100 cities in overall sustainability.

The study ranked 100 global cities based on three pillars of sustainability: people, planet and profit.

Manila was listed 93rd in the “people” factor, which measures the city’s social sustainability and quality of life.

It landed at 91st place in the “planet” sub-index, which measures a city’s pollution and sanitation management.

Manila scored the least in the “profit” factor, where it settled in 98th place. The pillar measures the cities’ productivity according to economic growth, innovation and infrastructure.

Topping the list of world’s most sustainable cities is London. It is followed by Stockholm, Edinburgh, Singapore and Vienna.

For Asia, Singapore landed as the most sustainable city, followed by Hong Kong and Seoul.

Manila, meanwhile, ranked 21st out of 23 Asian cities on the list.

Despite the low ranking, the report noted “opportunities” for the Philippine capital to improve its sustainability, categorizing it as among “evolutionary cities.”

“This is a very diverse group that includes rapidly growing cities in emerging markets as well as cities in developed economies that are changing rapidly in response to new circumstances,” the report read.

“A key challenge that Evolutionary Cities face is the level of disruption affecting cities that were at a turning point in their trajectory. This disruption might affect jobs, crime levels and even mobility choices,” it added. “As a result, the citizen experience can be focused much more on the downside associated with the change.”