Adequate, Sustainable And Resilient Informal Settlements And Urban Peripheries Against Environmental Racism

The proposed activity within the framework of WUF13 is grounded in the recognition that cities are simultaneously sites of inequality production and strategic territories for the promotion of social, climate, and racial justice. The event offers a critical and practice-oriented reflection on how environmental racism shapes urban occupation patterns, determines unequal access to adequate housing, infrastructure, and public services, and deepens the vulnerability of racialized populations to the impacts of climate change. Across diverse urban contexts, Black communities, traditional peoples, peripheral populations, and residents of informal and precarious settlements are disproportionately exposed to environmental risks such as flooding, landslides, urban heat islands, pollution, and water scarcity. These impacts are not random but stem from historical processes of racial segregation, exclusionary urban planning decisions, and development models that disregard the right to the city and to a dignified life. Climate change further exacerbates these inequalities, intensifying material losses, forced displacement, and human rights violations. The Brazilian government has strengthened this agenda through programs led by the Ministry of Cities (MCID) and the Ministry of Racial Equality (MIR), developed in continuous dialogue. Within the 'Periferia Viva' (Living Peripheries) and 'Periferia Sem Risco' (Peripheries Without Risk) programs of the MCID, the government invests in land tenure regularization, urbanization, and disaster risk prevention and mitigation in territories predominantly inhabited by historically discriminated groups. Within the MIR, Brazil has institutionalized the fight against racism at the highest level by establishing a dedicated ministerial portfolio with its own budget and direct representation in the presidential cabinet. Brazil further reinforced its leadership in this agenda by launching, in the context of COP30, the Acceleration Plan for Solutions entitled “Adequate, sustainable and resilient informal settlements and urban peripheries against environmental racism”, aimed at fostering international coordination centered on this approach. In this context, the event seeks to foster dialogue among public authorities, civil society organizations, community leaders, and experts, with a focus on urban solutions that integrate climate justice, racial equity, and inclusive urban planning.