Urban October is an opportunity for everyone to be part of the conversation about the challenges and opportunities created by the fast rate of change in our cities and towns. The month begins with World Habitat Day on the first Monday of the month, the 2022 theme of which is 'Mind the Gap. Leave No One and No Place Behind'. It ends with World Cities Day on the last day of the month, the 2022 theme of which is 'Act Local to Go Global'. Throughout this month we will feature material from our digital library that highlights the challenges face by increasingly urbanized societies around the globe.

This year Urban October follows the announcement of the recipients in the 15th Cycle of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture, a triennial prize that very often goes to projects that seek to minimize inequality in developing nations, and "that not only provide for people's physical, social and economic needs, but that also stimulate and respond to their cultural expectations. Particular attention is given to building schemes that use local resources and appropriate technology in innovative ways, and to projects likely to inspire similar efforts elsewhere." As such, the Award embodies the theme of acting local in order to go global.