SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

This Learning World focuses on understanding the importance of sustainable, inclusive, safe and resilient cities and communities and what this could mean in concrete terms – locally and globally. The Learning World provides ideas and components that you can integrate into your teaching: An interactive boardstory with complementary exercises, a glossary with the most important terms of the Learning World, additional exercises to consolidate and further reflect on the contents of SDG 11 as well as examples of the connections between this SDG and others.
Boardstory for interactive learning
Educational Material
The Learning Objectives outline the key competencies students will develop by completing this Learning World. They also highlight connections to other topics, encouraging further exploration and discussion beyond this module.
Learning Objectives
Acquiring competencies for sustainable development is part of a lifelong learning process. The boardstory and exercises provided in this learning world initiate this process and help students gain knowledge, reflect and think critically, and take meaningful action. After completing this unit, it is recommended to foster the development of the desired competencies for sustainable development e.g. by teaching further learning worlds. Thus, expanding students’ skill sets further.
With this in mind, the learning objectives of this specific learning world first and foremost aim to develop a basic understanding of the respective SDG and related connections for students aged nine to eleven. Gaining and expanding competencies for sustainable development further is desirable, but can only be achieved through continuous immersion and persistence.
Following the interaction with this Learning World, the students will be able to:
analyze basic physical, social and psychological human needs which are addressed differently in human settlements, may it be small towns or big cities.
discuss potential conflicts that arise concerning inclusiveness, safety, resilience and sustainability.
compare which human needs are currently addressed in their own surroundings.
explain that there are decision-making processes in spatial planning which could be influenced by the members of the community.
express that a voice for sustainability, resilience, inclusiveness and safety should be considered in these processes and if not yet established, students can raise their voices, too.
identify the needs of their community while taking into account cultural identities.
analyze best practices or role models (locally and/or globally) particularly in the areas of food, energy, transport, water, safety, waste treatment, inclusion and accessibility, education, integration of green spaces and disaster risk reduction.
discuss differences in needs and wants, identify and question dilemmas and different perspectives in community development.
Connection to other SDGs
The 17 SDGs complement each other and should not be viewed in isolation. As such synergy effects can occur, for example an improvement in one of the SDGs can in turn have a positive effect on another. At the same time, prioritizing measures for one SDG can also lead to another goal being neglected. The following overview provides examples of connections between SDGs which can be used to open up new conversations and linking points to take the topic beyond this learning world.
Learning World
SDG 01: No Poverty
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SDG 02: Zero Hunger
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SDG 03: Good Health and Well-being
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SDG 04: Quality Education
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SDG 05: Gender Equality
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SDG 06: Clean Water and Sanitation
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SDG 07: Affordable and Clean Energy
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SDG 09: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
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SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
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SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
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SDG 13: Climate Action
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SDG 14: Life below Water
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SDG 15: Life on Land
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SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals
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SDG Dilemmas
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SDG Wedding Cake Model