The collection of the 2025 Global Sustainable Transport Best Practices, which includes 22 cases from 20 countries across Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas, was officially launched on Wednesday at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York. The 22 cases span multiple aspects of sustainability, including green infrastructure, low-carbon technology, digital-smart upgrades and public-transit modernization.
The event also held in-depth talks on rolling out the UN Decade of Sustainable Transport (2026-2035).
The celebrated best practices from 2025 include innovative cases from countries like China, Egypt, Ethiopia, South Africa, Brazil, Singapore, Malaysia and international organizations such as the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, the UN Economic Commission for Europe, and the United Nations Development Programme.
"You cannot have sustainable development without sustainable transportation. So the connectivity is a driver of economy and sustainable economy, but also sustainable and long-term growth," Abdoul Salam Bello, chief of the UN Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, speaking after attending the event.
In 2023, the UN General Assembly declared the first ever United Nations Decade of Sustainable Transport to start in 2026, and started to collect sustainable transport practices worldwide.
The United Nations Decade of Sustainable Transport is expected to further raise awareness of transport's crucial role in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals, and to gather and rally new and replicable solutions to advance sustainable transport globally.
UN highlights best practices around globe in preparation for "Decade of Sustainable Transport"
Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Friday urged Iranians to wage an "economic battle" and a "cultural battle" to defeat the country's "enemies," according to a message carried by Iranian media.
In the message marking the Workers' Day and Teachers' Day, which fall on Friday and Saturday, Khamenei said that after over 47 years of struggle, Iran has demonstrated its military capabilities against enemies and "must also disappoint and defeat them in the economic and cultural battles."
He described teachers and workers as the most effective elements in these battles, calling them "the backbones" of the cultural and economic spheres.
Khamenei also urged prioritizing the consumption of domestic products.
The Navy of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Friday that new regulations for managing the Persian Gulf will be implemented based on a "historic" directive from Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
In a statement made via the social media platform X, the IRGC Navy said that, leveraging its dominance over nearly 2,000 kilometers of Iran's coastline in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, it aims to transform the body of water into a source of income and power for the Iranian people, while promoting security and prosperity in the region.
On Feb. 28, Israel and the United States launched joint attacks on Tehran and other Iranian cities, resulting in the deaths of Iran's then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, senior commanders, and civilians. In response, Iran carried out waves of missile and drone strikes targeting Israel and U.S. assets across the Middle East, along with energy and civilian infrastructure in several Gulf nations, while asserting strict control over the Strait of Hormuz.
A ceasefire between the parties was reached on April 8.
Iran's supreme leader urges economic, cultural battles to defeat 'enemies'
