15-minute city concept falsely compared to 'The Hunger Games' | Fact check

Eleanor McCrary, USA TODAY
Updated ·4 min read

The claim: UN and World Economic Forum want 15-minute cities to restrict movement, assign people 'tasks'

A May 14 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shows a map of the U.S. divided into 13 districts next to a photo of Katniss Everdeen, a fictional character from "The Hunger Games" series.

"13 districts explained," reads text overlaid on the post. "The UN and the WEF want people sectioned off and categorized like cattle on a farm because they want to control every aspect of our life and monitor every bit of 'carbon' we use to help 'global warming.'"

The user ties this to the "15-minute city" concept in the post's caption.

"Just like the 15 Minute cities today will restrict people from leaving their zone of living, and people will be giving tasks to support the NWO (New World Order) society, and you will probably own nothing and not be happy," it reads.

The post was liked over 800 times in two days.

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Our rating: False

The 15-minute city concept does not restrict the movement of citizens or assign them jobs, experts told USA TODAY. Neither the United Nations nor the World Economic Forum has the power to mandate that cities adopt this urban planning strategy, nor have they supported movement restrictions.

'15-minute cities' plan does not restrict movement or assign people 'tasks'

The "15-minute city" concept was created by Carlos Moreno, a professor at the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. It has nothing to do with restricting the movement of citizens.

"The 15-minute city concept does not propose any limitations on residents' freedom to travel outside their city," Moreno told USA TODAY in an email.

Instead, the goal is for all essential services – like grocery stores, schools, healthcare facilities, parks and cultural amenities – to be within a 15-minute walk or bike ride from citizens' homes.

"While the focus is on enhancing the local environment, it does not imply that residents would be discouraged or prohibited from leaving their city," Moreno said.

Fact check: False claim '15 minute cities' lock down residents

The concept does not suggest that residents would be "sectioned off" and assigned tasks like in "The Hunger Games" franchise, as the post asserts. The map of the 13 districts in the post is based on the book series, not anything proposed by Moreno, the World Economic Forum or the U.N.

"Rather than assigning specific jobs or tasks to residents, the concept encourages a diverse and inclusive labor market," Moreno said. "It aims to create opportunities for a variety of employment options within the local community."

The model promotes sustainability by reducing the need for long commutes, Moreno said, but it would not include monitoring or tracking individuals' carbon use.

"Monitoring carbon use on an individual level would require extensive tracking and data collection, which may raise privacy concerns and is not a core aspect of the 15-minute city concept," he said. "The focus of the 15-minute city is primarily on improving accessibility, promoting local amenities, and enhancing quality of life for residents within a compact urban environment, while also considering sustainability principles."

Cities around the world have adopted this concept, and there is no evidence any have restricted the movement of residents or implemented carbon tracking.

UN and WEF do not support sectioning off cities

Both the U.N. and the World Economic Forum told USA TODAY they would not support restricting the movement of citizens.

"This goes against basic human rights, and the U.N. would not endorse this," said Florencia Soto Niño-Martinez, a spokesperson for the U.N.

Trevor Chueu, a spokesperson for the World Economic Forum, said the organization does not support the "sectioning off" any part of a city "for any reason."

Fact check: False claim ‘15-minute cities’ plan will confine residents

Neither organization has the power to command cities to adopt the "15-minute city" idea.

“While the concept has been discussed in various climate forums because it can help cities reduce their emissions, the U.N. cannot mandate cities to adopt this concept,” Soto Niño-Martinez previously said in an email. “Each country and each city are free to decide how they want to make themselves more sustainable.”

USA TODAY previously debunked an array of claims that mischaracterize the nature of "15-minute city" plans, including one that they are "climate change lockdowns" and another that the Ohio trail derailment was purposefully done to push the idea.

USA TODAY reached out to the social media user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Erroneous claim '15-minute cities' mimics 'Hunger Games' | Fact check