On February 25, 2026, the City Economics Institute Foundation hosted a roundtable discussion entitled “Taking into Account the Principles of Sustainable Development of Russian Cities and Urban Agglomerations in Strategic Documents and Management Practices” as part of the 17th annual Saburov Readings conference. At the event, participants shared their experiences and research findings on how Russian cities are achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs).
Researchers from the Gaidar Institute's Laboratory for the Analysis of Best International Practices, Maria Girich and Kirill Chernovol, participated in the round table as speakers.
In his speech, Kirill Chernovol spoke about the work of laboratory experts in developing methods for measuring SDG achievement indicators at the city level. The indicators are based on the OECD's Local SDGs toolkit and have been incorporated into the Quality of Life Index for Russian Cities created by VEB.RF. They make it possible not only to assess the quality of life in large cities, but also to compare it with cities in OECD countries. Kirill Chernovol also noted that the laboratory's experts have developed a methodology for assessing how investment projects in cities affect the VEB.RF Index indicators. The methodology makes it possible to predict both the impact of a project on the quality of life of people in the city and the extent to which it will help achieve a particular sustainable development goal.
Maria Girich drew attention to the problem of assessing creative industries, an area that UNESCO considers to be one of the key measures for achieving sustainable development goals. An important condition for the steady development of the creative sector is its resilience to climate change. In this regard, cities need to implement measures to preserve cultural heritage in the face of growing climate risks: developing plans to mitigate the effects of natural disasters (such as floods and fires), using environmentally friendly materials in the creation and modernization of creative industry infrastructure, and integrating the principles of environmental sustainability into urban cultural policy.
Maria Girich also highlighted an important economic tool for combating climate change: the implementation of climate projects and the issuance of carbon credits. Such projects open up not only environmental but also financial opportunities for cities. On the one hand, cities can carry out projects and issue carbon credits, which will be sold on both domestic and foreign markets (for example, within the framework of international emission compensation mechanisms, including CORSIA), which creates an additional source of income and allows for attracting external financing. On the other hand, climate projects contribute to improving the sustainability of the urban environment: modernizing housing and communal services systems and protecting against climate risks. Thus, cities can simultaneously earn money on carbon markets and invest funds in their own climate adaptation.