Uccrn Education The PDS (Plan for Sustainable Development and Climate Action of the City of Rio de Janeiro, 2021) outlines the City Vision for 2050, developed through the participation of Rio’s citizens, municipal staff and institutional partners, and informed by previous strategic plans.
The vision is structured around five key cross-cutting themes:
- Cooperation and Peace – promote a culture of peace, solidarity, and respect with supportive, just and inclusive citizens actively engaged in their communities.
- Equality and Equity – ensure social, territorial, economic and digital inclusion, enabling full realization of rights and responsibilities and strengthening citizenship.
- Longevity and Well-Being – provide decent housing and the conditions for a long, healthy, and active life, fostering autonomy, mobility, and shared public spaces.
- Climate Change and Resilience – become a resilient, emissions-neutral city that leads in climate adaptation through planning, technological innovation, and community engagement.
- Governance – implement responsible, transparent, and integrated governance to secure rights for all and promote metropolitan-level participation.
UP2030 Rio Prototype: Building a Climate-Resilient Urban Future
The final prototype envisioned for the UP2030 project in Rio de Janeiro is an urban planning and design portfolio developed through the Urban Design Climate Workshop (UDCW) methodology. It will combine scientific climate data with Rio’s GIS systems and community engagement processes to co-develop resilient, inclusive and locally tailored urban strategies. The prototype aims to support the city in addressing climate-related risks (like flooding and heatwaves), promote spatial justice and guide ongoing and future urban interventions in a holistic and sustainable way.
Throughout 2024, the collaboration among UCCRN, TU Delft (TUD), and Rio’s municipal departments evolved to reflect the city’s specific challenges and priorities. Key activities included two weeks of engagement events such as expert meetings, a design workshop with PUC-Rio and NYIT students, and knowledge-sharing sessions with city officials, local organisations (like NOSSAS), and research institutions (Fiocruz, Centro Clima, COPPE-UFRJ). These efforts laid the groundwork for aligning the prototype with both operational and strategic city goals.
The project is now closely linked with the “Rio Climate Resilience” initiative, backed by Columbia University and NASA-GISS, reinforcing Rio’s leadership in climate action at a national and global level. Together, these initiatives support shared objectives such as:
- Developing neighbourhood-level urban planning tools informed by climate data;
- Strengthening city-wide adaptation capacity;
- Advancing the Sustainable Corridors initiative;
- Scaling knowledge across UCCRN hubs and Columbia Global Centers.
At the U20 Summit (Dec 2024), three synergistic activities were launched:
- Urban Design Climate Workshops (UDCW): further development of localised climate-sensitive urban designs, starting in São Cristóvão and expanding to other neighbourhoods.
- Science-Based Support for Rio’s Resilience Center: establishing indicators (RioCLIM), monitoring systems, and stakeholder training.
- Public Engagement: hosting a high-level conference session to strengthen climate resilience networks and visibility.
Phase 2 of the São Cristóvão UDCW (2025) will include:
- Capacity-building events for public officials;
- Integration of socio-economic factors into climate risk assessments;
- Evaluation of service accessibility (health, education, leisure, etc.);
- Promotion of co-design and inclusive planning approaches;
- Consolidation of synergies between UP2030, UCCRN_edu, and City-as-Lab.
The prototype will serve as a replicable, flexible framework for resilient and equitable urban transformation, with potential for expansion to other districts and transfer of lessons learned to other global cities.
Purpose and relevance
The UP2030 pilot in São Cristóvão supports Rio’s PDS vision by advancing climate mitigation, adaptation, and spatial justice through neighbourhood-scale urban design. The Urban Design Climate Workshop (UDCW) provides detailed climate risk assessments and proposes design interventions aligned with four Sustainable Corridors—Brown, Orange, Green, and Blue—to improve mobility, reduce vulnerability, restore ecosystems, and manage water sustainably.
The UDCW methodology helps:
- Evaluate adaptation and mitigation scenarios;
- Simulate heat and flood risks based on local conditions;
- Co-design socio-ecological solutions with community input.
This approach addresses key implementation gaps in the PDS by translating high-level goals into context-sensitive, inclusive strategies, positioning Rio as a model for climate-resilient urban transformation across Latin America and globally.
The UP2030 pilot in São Cristóvão supports Rio’s PDS vision by advancing climate mitigation, adaptation, and spatial justice through neighbourhood-scale urban design. The Urban Design Climate Workshop (UDCW) provides detailed climate risk assessments and proposes design interventions aligned with four Sustainable Corridors—Brown, Orange, Green, and Blue—to improve mobility, reduce vulnerability, restore ecosystems, and manage water sustainably.
The UDCW methodology helps:
- Evaluate adaptation and mitigation scenarios;
- Simulate heat and flood risks based on local conditions;
- Co-design socio-ecological solutions with community input.
This approach addresses key implementation gaps in the PDS by translating high-level goals into context-sensitive, inclusive strategies, positioning Rio as a model for climate-resilient urban transformation across Latin America and globally.
