United Nations University

The United Nations University (UNU) is the academic arm of the United Nations (UN). It bridges the academic world and the UN system. Its goal is to develop sustainable solutions for current and future problems of humankind in all aspects of life. Through a problem-oriented and interdisciplinary approach it aims at applied research and education on a global scale. UNU was founded in 1973 and is an autonomous organ of the UN General Assembly. The University comprises headquarters Tokyo, Japan, and more than a dozen Institutes and Programmes worldwide.

Quick Links

Job Vacancies

Internships

Procurement

Press

UNU Bonn - portal page

SOURCE No. 10 on Megacities

This issue edited by the MRF Chairholder Hans-Georg Bohle and Koko Warner presents the outcomes of the UNU-EHS Summer Academy 2007 of the MRF Chair on Social Vulnerability.

Megacities simultaneously offer the best of humanity and challenge us with the worst of human security problems.Cities are today the home to about half of all humanity and serve as uneasy hosts to a variety of less desirable facets. Cities bursting with millions of people battle crime, unemployment or underemployment, insufficient infrastructure including housing and sanitation, and exposure to natural disasters.

In this volume,authors explore some of these dynamics related to megacities, resilience,and social vulnerability.

Download SOURCE No. 10 here.

The focus of this SOURCE brings out this unique perspective and extends the understanding of how environmental, infrastructural,and institutional risk factors interact with social and economic factors to create particular patterns of social vulnerability and resilience in megacities.

excerpts from the foreword by Janos J. Bogardi