Cities4Children

Startseite
Schweiz
Zürich
Cities4Children

Championing young people's rights in urban areas.
(1)

We want to see urban areas that are planned, designed and managed to support children and youth to reach their highest potential. We want urban areas where children and youth can grow up healthy safe and happy, where they have access to opportunities and where the rights of children and their caregivers are respected.

03/06/2026

What knowledge products are the most useful?
We asked this question at the at our urban library event, where Cities4Children members shared publications on streets and climate, green spaces, girls’ safety, parental wellbeing, early childhood and more.

A highly engaged audience told us they want knowledge products that are: simple, short, practical, more audio and visual content, child-friendly materials, and translations to other languages (including Arabic)

Cities4Children members at the event: C40 Cities, FIA Foundation, Global Designing Cities Initiative, Save the Children International, Van Leer Foundation, World Vision

If you missed the session, find more information about the publications below.

And tell us in the comments: What knowledge products are you missing? And what are the most useful formats?

18/05/2026

Days like this keep us going.

Today, 15+ member organisations of spent the whole day together. It was productive and energising.

What we did together:
- Took stock of what we have achieved
- Reviewed our Strategy 2030
- Worked in 3 groups on the 100 Cities4Children Charter with 3 different types of cities in mind
- Discussed a catalogue of masterclasses
- Welcomed new members
- Reconnected with old friends
Together, we are building a movement of cities4children.
A big thank you to our members who joined today

17/05/2026

Day 1: Some glimpses from the children and youth assembly.
“The home is not just a structure, it is the foundation for every one of our rights,”
“We deserve cities that don’t just house us but hold us and hope with us.’

In the joint opening session of the assemblies, young campaigner Imtiaz Ahmed from Bangladesh set the tone with a powerful speech, and the above statements.

Despite the rain, 100+ young people joined the Children and Youth Assembly to ideate, discuss, and co‑create solutions for more liveable cities.

Many Cities4Children members showed up today to support young people in making their voices heard.

14/05/2026

Save the Date for our 📚 Urban Library session , Baku
Cities for Children and Youth: Resources to Transform Cities and Slums
🗓 Tuesday, 19 May
⏰ 12:00–13:00
📍 Urban Library, Room A
Join the Global Alliance - Cities4Children for an exciting Urban Library session showcasing new research and practical guidance on making cities and informal settlements better for and with children and youth.
Discover Cities4Children knowledge products and get an early look at new publications from Alliance members, including:
UN-Habitat, C40 Cities, FIA Foundation - Child Health Initiative, Global Designing Cities Initiative, Save the Children International, Van Leer Foundation, World Vision

If you’re at WUF, this is your moment to connect, learn, and be part of the global movement.

13/05/2026

Children & Youth focused sessions at in Baku next week
Interested in making cities better for children and young people?
Swipe through to see where you can find Global Alliance - Cities4Children members and events:

🌍 Assemblies, Dialogues, and Roundtables
🏙 Practical sessions
📚 Publication launches
🤝 Spaces to connect and act

All our events listed here: https://cities4children.org/blog/events/world-urban-forum-13/

Come join us to help shape cities for and with children and youth, and meet our members and speakers:
- Save the Children International: Sarah Sabry, Anupama Nallari
- World Vision: Aline Rahbany, Murtaza Haidari
- Van Leer Foundation: Victoria Chavez
- UN-Habitat: José Chong, Shamoy Hajare
- FIA Foundation: Atsani A. Buonowikarto
- C40 Cities: Helene Chartier
- Global Designing Cities Initiative: Abhimanyu Prakash
- International Play Association (IPA World): Sudeshna Chatterjee
- Healthy Cities for Adolescents: Joyati Das
- National Alliance Cities for Children and Youth Bangladesh/Save the Children in Bangladesh: Md. Abdul Kaium Joy
- National Children's Task Force (NCTF): Imtiaz Ahmed

,

06/05/2026

9 reasons why cities should have more connected pedestrian streets.

1. Eliminate the #1 threat to young lives
2. Enable independent mobility
3. Make space for play and socialization
4. Cleaner air
5. Active lifestyles
6. Save family costs
7. They are good for everyone
8. Cooler and greener neighbourhoods
9. Daily joy and 'Free' outings

Our latest article elaborates on why this matters and how cities around the world are making this shift.
Read it here: https://cities4children.org/blog/9-reasons-for-pedestrian-streets/

Cities that prioritise pedestrian streets see real benefits for children, families and everyone who lives there. Reclaim streets. Connect them. Put children first.

Did we miss a reason?
Tell us in the comments.

27/04/2026

The next frontier for immunisation equity is urban slums.
Of the 14.3 million children that have never received a single vaccine, a third live in cities and towns.
Children in slums are twice as likely to miss out as those in wealthier areas.
Why?
• Informal settlements are often invisible to health systems
• Clinic hours exclude working parents, especially migrants
• Responsibility is split between national and city governments

UNICEF’s urban immunisation framework shows what works:
• Find the children being missed
• Bring services to where families live and work
• Measure equity, not just citywide averages

Cities have the power to reach every child.

22/04/2026

🌱 How can one project support 4,400 urban gardens producing around 1.35 million kilograms of food per year?

In Quito, Ecuador, urban agriculture is improving children’s health while making low-income neighbourhoods greener and more resilient.
Through the AGRUPAR programme, families have been growing fresh, healthy food in schools, backyards, and shared open spaces for over two decades—supporting better nutrition, hands-on learning, and stronger community ties.
These green spaces help children:
🌿 Eat healthier food
🌿 Learn about nature and ecology
🌿 Grow up in safer, greener neighbourhoods
Read how Quito is linking urban food systems with healthier childhoods:
👉 https: https://cities4children.org/blog/inclusive-urban-agriculture-benefits-children-in-quito-ecuador/

16/04/2026

Africa Urban Forum & Cities4Children
What happened at the Cities4Children session at the Africa Urban Forum last week?
We brought cities, partners and practitioners together to focus on children, open space and urban equity.

Key highlights from the session:
- Cities4Children presented our Strategy 2030
- We shared our plans to build a global movement of cities4children
- Cities Alliance presented work in Nepal (Cities4Women) and Tunisia (Femedinna)
- Kounkuey Design Initiative showed how co-design in Kibera advances equity in informal settlements
- World Vision & Save the Children International highlighted that open space is more than infrastructure. It enables safety, health, learning and service delivery for children.

The takeaway: Cities that invest in open space invest in children’s futures.

Thank you to the speakers and partners!

14/04/2026

New on the Cities4Children Blog: London’s child‑friendly journey.
London’s experience shows that making cities better for children takes more than good intentions. It requires strong policy, political champions, and pressure from communities — and sustained commitment over time.
We spoke with Tim Gill, child‑friendly cities expert and long‑time London resident, about what has shaped London’s progress.
London has:
➡️ Built a strong policy framework for child‑friendly planning
➡️ Invested in play spaces, active travel, and cleaner air
➡️ Used regeneration to create walkable, family‑friendly neighbourhoods
➡️ Seen grassroots action drive change at street level
➡️ Faced challenges from austerity and patchy implementation
💬 “You can only get so far with policies and guidance — you need people to understand the spirit of it.” — Tim Gill
This blog shares practical lessons for other cities looking to move from vision to action.
👉 Read the blog: https://cities4children.org/blog/londons-child-friendly-journey/ ‎
Gill

Adresse

Sihlquai 253
Zürich
8005

Webseite

http://www.cities4children.org/

Benachrichtigungen

Lassen Sie sich von uns eine E-Mail senden und seien Sie der erste der Neuigkeiten und Aktionen von Cities4Children erfährt. Ihre E-Mail-Adresse wird nicht für andere Zwecke verwendet und Sie können sich jederzeit abmelden.