Toyota Mobility Foundation's $9mn global city challenge
To help cities adapt to the future, with the potential to transform the lives of millions around the world
image for illustrative purpose
Mumbai: The Toyota Mobility Foundation on Wednesday announced a $9 million global initiative in sustainable city mobility space in collaboration with Challenge Works and World Resources Institute.
The three-year programme, Sustainable Cities Challenge, is aimed at helping cities reduce carbon, improve access and enhance data-driven concepts for more resilient transport systems, the Toyota Mobility Foundation (TMF) said.
Set up in 2014 by the Toyota Motor Corporation of Japan, the foundation utilises Toyota's expertise and technologies to support strong mobility systems while eliminating disparities in mobility. The challenge aims to improve the lives of people by increasing access to jobs, education and other essential services. It will bring cities and innovators together to implement mobility solutions that could reduce carbon, improve accessibility, and use data to build resilient transport systems, it stated.
With more than half of the world's population currently living in cities, the United Nations predicts that this will increase to two-thirds by 2050, as per TMF. Additionally, cities are responsible for 70 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, it said.
Toyota Mobility Foundation, in partnership with Challenge Works and World Resources Institute, has launched $9 million global challenge to help cities adapt to the future, with the potential to transform the lives of millions around the world, TMF said.
As part of the challenge, shortlisted cities will be invited to attend a capacity building academy in the US and will receive support developing their challenge design, becoming part of a wider network of other innovative city teams, it said.
In February 2024, three winning cities will be selected to host a City Challenge to attract entries from global innovators, it said. Innovators could be homegrown -- living in the city or country chosen -- or may be from anywhere across the globe, but with solutions applicable and adapted to the winning cities. The winning innovators for each city will be announced in late 2024, and the cities and innovators will share $9 million in funding to test and roll out their solutions.
