Programme / Thematic session II./f Health, Climate and Social Justice in African Cities

The 90-minute session will discuss how cities can contribute to social justice and the development of healthy urban environments that respond to concerns for climate action. It will focus on ways the changing climate is affecting food and built environments while considering measures for climate change adaptation, mitigation, and resilience-building. The session will include a brief introduction to the Global Diet and Activity Research (GDAR) Network including the GDAR Spaces project at the intersection of health, urbanisation and climate change in seven urban sites across Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. The keynote presentation will provide an overview of how the work of GDAR Network members has contributed to social justice and climate action/awareness, including through research, policy and intervention, and elaborate on how such initiatives might be scaled up. The panel discussion will convene a diverse group of experts and practitioners involved in city action to share practical and innovative experiences and brainstorm on how to rethink and reshape the way food and built environment systems are organised for more equitable and sustainable development in cities, including in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.