By John DeFore

The Ethisphere Institute, publisher of the quarterly Ethisphere magazine, today announced a list of what it calls the “Global Sustainability Centers of 2020.”

Listing ten large and ten mid-sized cities (a population of 600,000 was the dividing line), the report honors municipalities who have built “strong and principled foundations” and long-term city planning. While environmental and sustainability considerations are listed first among the criteria, they weren’t the only factors considered; the think tank also evaluated quality-of-life issues like arts and education, transportation, and business planning. For large cities, they break each ranking down into Olympics-like scorecards that weigh each category both as things stand now and as they’re projected for 2020, like this one that scores Toronto.

Among the rankings where environmental planning is singled out, three cities tie for the highest score, 9.7: New York (up from 9.1 today), London, and Curitiba Brazil, which already scores 9.6 and is described here as “the largest sustainable city you’ve never heard of.”

Small cities on the list include Portland in the US, an obvious pick because of its long adherence to controlled growth and foot-friendly avenues, as well as cities in Europe such as oil-free Reykjavik, Iceland, and fjord-minding Oslo, Norway, cited for its “blue green” awareness.

While noting the downsides of city life (“Some studies suggest that buildings and infrastructure associated with buildings are responsible for about 30 percent of all energy use in North America, and probably 40 percent of all material use,” according to a professor they cite), the authors point out that since life in the suburbs — where cars are indispensible — isn’t exactly impact-free, and that the attractions inherent in city life aren’t likely to stop drawing people away from rural areas, “we need role models.”

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