Native plants for green roofs in Quito

31 October is World Cities Day. The theme for 2020 is Valuing Our Communities and Cities. 

For the Day, we look back to one of our Young Champions of the Earth from 2017, Latin America and Caribbean winner Liliana Jaramillo.

In the capital city of Quito in Ecuador, she has been working to build green roofs that host native plant species. Not only do plants beautify urban spaces, but they also reduce air pollution and provide habitat for birds and insects.

As we celebrate World Cities Day 2020, it is important to support those who are working to transform our urban areas into spaces that help both people and planet.

Background:

In October 2016, the HABITAT III Conference, held in Quito, adopted a new framework, which will set the world on a course towards sustainable urban development by rethinking how cities are planned, managed and inhabited. The New Urban Agenda will set the pace on how to deal with the challenges of urbanization in the next two decades, and is seen as an extension of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, agreed on by the 193 Member States of the UN in September 2015.