Despite threats posed by global warming, terrorism and military conflict, the largest cities in the world have become more livable, according to The Economist magazine.
The Economist Intelligence Unit's annual livability survey of 140 cities was released this week and it showed that, among the sampled cities, the average livability score has increased by 0.5 percentage points, to just under 76 on a scale of zero to 100.
The improvement has been driven by increases in cities' "stability" score, which is a measure of factors including the threat of terror attacks, crime, military conflict and civil unrest.
"Devastating terrorist attacks in New Zealand and Sri Lanka in the past year are a reminder that threats to security are still apparent, but perceptions of the danger posed by terrorism have diminished in recent years," the report said.
At the same time, the report said there has been a general decline in cities' culture and environment scores, mainly due to emerging markets suffering the effects of climate change.
"The incidence of extreme weather events, such as flooding and heat waves, is rising around the world, and cities in emerging markets are often the most directly affected and the least resilient," the report said. "That said, we see climate change as a global phenomenon, which threatens the livability of cities at the very top of the index too."
Among the 10 cities ranked the most liveable, a common trait was strong scores in education and health care. All the top cities got perfect scores for their education systems, and all but one achieved scores of 100 for their health-care services.
The report noted that the top 10 cites on the livability list were the same as last year, with a few cities changing places.
The least livable city on the list was Damascus, Syria, mainly because of a civil war that has been raging for more than eight years.
The following, in ascending order, are The Economist's top 10 liveable cities:
9. Adelaide, Australia
96.6
The city, which lies northwest of Melbourne on the country's southern coast, achieved a perfect 100 score in health care and education.
8. Copenhagen
96.8
Copenhagen scored 100s in education and infrastructure. It was the only city in the top 10 to receive less than 100 in health care, where it scored a 95.8.
7. Tokyo (tie)
97.2
The capital of Japan got top scores in stability, health care and education.
7. Toronto (tie)
97.2
Toronto scored 100s in stability, health care and education. Its 89.3 score in infrastructure was the lowest among the top 10.
6. Vancouver, Canada
97.3
Vancouver was the only city in the top 10 to get a 100 in culture and environment. It also got perfect scores in health care and education.
5. Calgary, Canada
97.5
Calgary was one of only two cities on the list to score perfectly in four categories: stability, health care, education and infrastructure. Its 90 score in culture and environment was the lowest in the top 10.
4. Osaka, Japan
97.7
Osaka beat out its northern rival Tokyo with a 96.4 score in infrastructure, which compared to Tokyo's 92.9.
3. Sydney, Australia
98.1
Sydney has gone up from fifth to third in this year's ranking after an improvement in its environment and culture scores. The improvement reflects "an increased focus on combating and mitigating the impacts of climate change," the report said.
2. Melbourne, Australia
98.4
Melbourne took the top spot in The Economist's liveability survey for seven straight years before being knocked down to No. 2 in 2018. That's where it stays in this year's ranking, with perfect scores in health care, education and infrastructure.
1. Vienna
99.1
This is the second year in a row that Vienna sits at the top of the ranking, with perfect scores in every category except culture and environment, where it scored a 96.3.
