According to Arcadis' 2018 Sustainability Index, Sydney ranks 34th in the world for sustainability, and first in Australia.
Rankings are based on the three pillars of sustainability: people, planet and profit. These pillars are closely aligned to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
London tops the rankings, followed by Stockholm, Edinburgh, Singapore and Vienna. Overall, European cities dominate the list of the most sustainable cities.
Australian cities all scored "middle of the road" on the index, according to Arcadis. All Australian cities performed well on people-focused measures, scoring well in health, education and digital enablement, moderately well in the profit pillar due to employment and ease of doing business, but all scored worse in the planet pillar, with greenhouse gas emissions and waste management common issues across all four cities.
"With no Australian city cracking the top 30 and one in the bottom 50, it's confirmation that we need to continue to focus on improving the long-term sustainability, resilience and performance of our cities to acts on the global stage," says Stephen Taylor, Australian cities director, Arcadis.
"Across our cities, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne, we've seen a real shift over the last few years beyond green sustainability to social sustainability. Both government and private developments are increasingly focusing on how projects can better improve communities, including financial gains and community wellness.
"Despite the middle of the road rankings, the nation's strong focus on developing integrated transit systems, addressing affordability and embracing sustainability in construction are all positive signs for future improvement across the three pillars
Full 2018 Sustainable Cities Index rankings:
- London
- Stockholm
- Edinburgh
- Singapore
- Vienna
- Zurich
- Munich
- Oslo
- Hong Kong
- Frankfurt
- Copenhagen
- Amsterdam
- Seoul
- New York
- Paris
- San Francisco
- Hamburg
- Berlin
- Seattle
- Dublin
- Madrid
- Boston
- Prague
- Taipei
- Ottawa
- Vancouver
- Rotterdam
- Barcelona
- Manchester
- Toronto
- Montreal
- Glasgow
- Tokyo
- Sydney
- Canberra
- Geneva
- Calgary
- Birmingham
- Washington
- Rome
- Macau
- Milan
- Antwerp
- Brisbane
- Los Angeles
- Lyon
- Brussels
- Chicago
- Wellington
- Leeds
- Houston
- Philadelphia
- Denver
- Warsaw
- Honolulu
- Melbourne
- Budapest
- Moscow
- Dallas
- Pittsburgh
- New Orleans
- Lisbon
- Miami
- Indianapolis
- Jacksonville
- Shenzhen
- Kuala Lumpur
- Baltimore
- Phoenix
- Atlanta
- Detroit
- Tampa
- Beijing
- Guangzhou
- Athens
- Shanghai
- Santiago
- Sao Paulo
- Mexico City
- Bangkok
- Buenos Ares
- Istanbul
- Tianjin
- Rio de Janeiro
- Lima
- Salvador
- Wuhan
- Chennai
- New Delhi
- Chengdu
- Bengaluru
- Johannesburg
- Mumbai
- Jakarta
- Manilla
- Nairobi
- Cape Town
- Hanoi
- Cairo
- Kolkata
