Task prompt
Read the two texts below. Write an essay that summarises and evaluates their key points. Express the ideas in your own words as far as possible and include your own views on the issue. Write 240–280 words.
Word limit: 280 words
"Cities, Nature and Liveability" is a C2 Proficiency Writing practice task (essay). Cambridge assesses content, communicative achievement, organisation and language on a scale from 0 to 5 per criterion. Plan before you write: identify the target reader, the required register and the number of points you must address. At C2, examiners expect sophisticated vocabulary used accurately, varied sentence structures and clear paragraphing.
Plan the essay before writing, address every prompt point, keep the expected register, respect the word limit, and use feedback to improve content, organisation, grammar range, and vocabulary precision.
Read the two texts below. Write an essay that summarises and evaluates their key points. Express the ideas in your own words as far as possible and include your own views on the issue. Write 240–280 words.
Word limit: 280 words
Dense cities can be environmentally efficient because homes, workplaces and services are close together. Public transport becomes more viable, infrastructure can be shared and land outside urban areas need not be continually converted for housing. Green spaces within cities also have practical benefits: they cool built-up areas, absorb rainwater and offer residents places to rest and exercise. Urban development is not necessarily the enemy of nature, provided that planners treat ecological design as basic infrastructure rather than a decorative addition. These benefits are greatest when parks and waterways are connected rather than treated as isolated pockets of greenery.
Urban growth often promises efficiency while delivering poorly designed expansion at the edge of a city. New roads, retail areas and low-density housing can consume farmland and break up habitats, making both wildlife and public transport less viable. Even compact development may become hostile when it ignores daylight, trees or access to affordable outdoor space. The issue is not whether cities should grow, but who benefits from the growth and whether environmental costs are considered before land is permanently altered. Long-term planning must therefore include nature from the outset instead of attempting to repair environmental damage after construction is complete.