Lessons from COVID-19 for enhanced urban resilience against Mpox and future pandemics

Cities may face new pandemic threats due to the highly interconnected nature of urban areas, the encroachment on natural resources driven by rapid urbanization, and the adverse impacts of climate change on public health. Recent experiences with COVID-19 have yielded valuable lessons in urban planning, design, and management. By employing Methodi Ordinatio, this short communication critically examines key insights from the COVID-19 response and their potential application to Mpox and future pandemics and infectious diseases, identifying opportunities and lessons for urban areas to enhance their pandemic preparedness and resilience. Due to the heterogeneity of urban spaces, lessons were analyzed based on various urban typologies. This led to an understanding of the critical points in generalized policies, such as proximity-based planning and mixed-use development, and the need to propose more flexible strategies for less focused urban typologies in low-income areas and informal settlements. Findings provide specific recommendations related to urban planning, design, and management, emphasizing the importance of building on characteristics such as adaptability, diversity, flexibility, modularity, decentralization, inclusivity, multi-functionality, and redundancy to enhance urban resilience. Ultimately, by proposing a framework of key interventions and measures, this short communication provides insights that cities can apply to enhance their resilience to future pandemics.