Date: Tuesday, 19 May 2026
Time: 12:00 - 13:30 (UTC+4, Baku time)
Location: SDGs in Action Room B - Baku, Azerbaijan
Virtual/livestream link: TBC
WUF13 SDGs in Action Event | Organised by GlobalABC Circular Built Environment Group & Ministry of Environment of Finland
About the Event
2.8 billion people currently live in inadequate housing, including 1.1 billion in informal settlements. With global residential floor area projected to grow by nearly 80% between 2020 and 2050, meeting this demand under the current linear construction paradigm would deplete the Earth’s resources, generate massive greenhouse gas emissions, and disrupt ecosystems. Circular construction offers a fundamentally different pathway, one that promotes efficient resource use, extends building lifespans, keeps materials circulating through reuse and upcycling, and has the potential to minimise lifecycle costs while creating new employment opportunities.
This event launches the paper Scaling Circular Construction to Realize the Right to Adequate Housing for All: Policy Pathways, developed by UN-Habitat as lead of the 2026 key topic process of the GlobalABC Circular Built Environment (CBE) Working Group, led by the Ministry of the Environment of Finland and co-led by RMIT University and Habitat for Humanity International. The paper focuses on Bangladesh, Senegal, and Ukraine, providing specific policy recommendations to advance circular construction for adequate housing in each context. Its development involved extensive consultation with partners, stakeholders, and experts, including at the Sustainable Buildings and Construction Summit 2026.
The event will map existing good practices and policy gaps, discuss how circular construction policies must simultaneously advance the right to adequate housing and accelerate the sustainability transition, and identify concrete project opportunities. Partners from UNEP, UNOPS, and the governments of Bangladesh, Senegal, and Ukraine will contribute country-level perspectives, with a dedicated segment on the role of both the UN system and INGOs in translating policy into implementation.
If you have any questions or would like more information about the event, please contact celia.martinez@un.org.
