FIGURE1 shows the top and bottom 10 cities from the Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2024 liveability rankings. The survey reviews 173 cities; a score of 100 would equate to the perfect or ideal city. In previous years, Vienna, Melbourne and Vancouver shared the top ranking. In 2019, Vienna gained top spot with Melbourne falling to second and Vancouver to sixth. In 2021, Auckland was the top city, with Adelaide second. Melbourne tied for eighth with Geneva, while Vancouver and Vienna dropped out of the top10.
FIGURE1 City liveability rankings
ARCTIC OCEAN
Arctic Circle
Copenhagen | 98.0
Calgary | 96.8
Kyiv | 44.5
Zurich | 97.1
Vancouver | 96.6
Vienna | 98.4
Geneva | 96.8
Algiers | 42.0
Osaka | 96.0
PACIFIC
Damascus | 30.7
ATLANTIC
Tripoli | 40.1
Dhaka | 43.0
Karachi | 42.7
Tropic of Cancer
OCEAN
OCEAN
Caracas | 44.9
Lagos | 42.2
Equator
INDIAN
Port Moresby | 44.1
OCEAN
Harare | 43.8
Tropic of Capricorn
Sydney | 96.6
Legend
Auckland | 96.0
Melbourne | 97.0
Bottom 10 Top 10
Melbourne | 97.0 City Score
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Source: Data from The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited. The Global Liveability Index (2024), The world’s most liveable cities. Retrieved from https://www.eiu.com/n/campaigns/global-liveability-index-2024/. Map made by Spatial Vision.
SkillBuilder discussion Geographical inquiry 1. Identify the top and bottom ranked cities in 2024. 2. Make a list of reasons you think would contribute to a city achieving a top 10 and bottom 10 ranking. 3. Match each city shown on the map with the continent it is on. Explain where most of the top and bottom cities are located. The map shows the top cities’ scores are close, with only a 2.4 point difference among the top 10. From 2008 to 2019, the global average liveability score increased by about one percentage point, with approximately 60 per cent of surveyed cities improving. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there were signiýcant ranking shifts between 2019 and 2021. Countries’ responses to COVID-19 greatly inþuenced their rankings. Strict lockdowns and high COVID- 19 cases lowered many cities’ scores, particularly in Europe. Island nations, such as Australia and New Zealand, with quick actions to control cases fared better. The pandemic’s impact on healthcare and lockdowns affected rankings more than education, safety or infrastructure. Six cities, including Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto — the only North American cities in the top 10 in 2019 — dropped out. During this period, the average liveability score decreased by seven percentage points, before rebounding in 2024. See TABLE2 for changes in rankings from 2019 to 2024.
TOPIC10 Place and liveability 357
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