“I personally believe it is critical that the UN make cities a centerpiece of its new sustainable development goals. The reason is simple: It is cities, not nations, that are the fundamental economic, political, and social organizing units of our time. Effective city-building—which includes building new cities and revitalizing older ones—is the grandest of the grand challenges facing the globe in the 21st century. When all is said and done, cities stand at the very center of each and every one of the biggest challenges we face: climate, pollution and energy; jobs and economic opportunity; poverty and inequality; sustainability and resilience; curbing violence and ensuring personal safety and security; accelerating the spread of personal freedom, tolerance and democracy; and of course spending trillions upon trillions of dollars on infrastructure, housing and city services in the most effective way. ” Richard Florida