A player in sustainable development - Dalkia

VEOLIA OBSERVATORY
OF URBAN LIFESTYLES
A new world,
unprecedented issues
As of 2006, half the world’s population
is urban. This trend is set to accelerate:
by 2030, 60% of humanity will live
in cities, which will absorb almost
all population growth. This urban
growth is creating unprecedented
challenges for decision-makers.
How will it aff ect lifestyles in large
metropolises? What will be the eff ect
of this trend on the relationship between
city dwellers and their city? What will be
the common social, economic and
environmental aspirations of all
inhabitants of large cities? And their
diff erences? Urban planning, organization
and management of public services – there
will be new challenges in all these areas.
A tool for sustainable development
Veolia Environnement established the
Veolia Observatory of Urban Lifestyles
to gain a better understanding of the
urban environment, identify city
dwellers’ expectations through their
perceptions and comments, and
to invent the future. A fi rst study
of 8,500 people in 14 cities was carried
out by the survey-based research fi rm
Ipsos. The Observatory will perform
further research every two years.
The Observatory’s indicators include
transportation, perception of public
services, assessment of the practical and
cultural services provided by the city, the
desire to remain in the city, confi dence
in the future, and so on. They provide
a comparable method for tracking a
wide variety of criteria across cities.
This lively study includes numerous
personal accounts and points of view.
The Observatory contributes to the ideas
that Veolia Environnement suggests to
its partners – political decision-makers,
heads of local authorities and industry –
as they all prepare for the city of the
future.
40 2007 ANNUAL REPORT VEOLIA ENVIRONNEMENT
INTERNATIONAL
PARTNERSHIPS
Capitalizing on its expertise in the
management of urban services, Veolia
Environnement is contributing to the
United Nations’ Millennium Development
Goals. Its cooperation with international
organizations has been extended.
The Access to Basic Services for All
approach steered by UN-Habitat was
presented at the 62nd session of the
General Assembly. Its Committee of
Experts, of which Veolia Environnement
is a member, is drawing up directives
and tools to provide a better framework
for public-private partnerships (PPPs).
The company’s initiatives in combating
the root causes of climate change have
been recognized by the United Nations’
Global Compact and by UNEP (1) , which
included them in its 11 Exemplary
Corporate Practices in the world.
In Asia, the company attended the
second World Congress of the United
Cities and Local Governments
organization in South Korea, and sat on
a panel of experts at the Planning Urban
Sanitation and Wastewater conference
in Manila (Philippines) organized by the
Asian Development Bank. It was also
involved in the creation of a global
databank by Citynet, an association
of Asian cities, to improve pollution
abatement. A partner of Unitar (2) ,
Veolia Environnement helped boost the
rollout of the CIFAL (3) network that helps
municipal councilors improve the quality
of their urban services: a new entity has
been established in Tallin (Estonia).
14 cities included
in the fi rst
Observatory study:
Alexandria, Berlin,
Beijing, Chicago,
London, Los Angeles,
Lyons, Mexico City,
New York, Paris,
Prague, Shanghai,
Sydney and Tokyo.
Four concerns:
the cost of living,
safety, the
environment
and transportation.