Calendar
UCLG-MEWA Newsletter-5
Liverpool Hosts the United Cities and Local Governments Executive Bureau 6.08.2014
UCLG Executive Bureau meeting
Highlights
17th–19th June 2014 / Liverpool, UK
Over 250 representatives from 48 countries gathered in Liverpool for the UCLG Executive Bureau at the invitation of the Mayor of Liverpool, Mr. Joe Anderson and the Local Governments Association (LGA) and on the occasion of the International Festival of Business. The importance of public spaces in contributing to inclusive and prosperous societies, the necessary link between growth and equality and how to localize the Post 2015 agenda were the key topics on the agenda.
“A city is a permanent festival, and a city is about innovation, stimulation and entertainment. Liverpool is a great example of this."
Joe Anderson, Mayor of Liverpool
“The question is how we, local, regional and national leaders, can take charge of our destiny and shape the life of billions of urban dwellers, to address the insufficiency of infrastructure and the difficulty in delivery of basic urban services. This is closely related to the global challenge that we all have a shared responsibility in addressing within the Post 2105 Agenda.”
Kadir Topbas, President of UCLG and Mayor of Istanbul
Policy Debate: Planning and Public Spaces
Planning and Public Spaces: a people-centered approach for the urban agenda
UCLG held its first Policy Debate session on 17th June 2014, dedicated to a crosscutting theme of UCLG's global agenda: Planning and Public Spaces. Participants analyzed two dimensions of the urban agenda: Why public spaces are so critical to human and liveable cities; and how can public spaces influence inclusive urban policies?
More: http://www.uclg.org/en/media/news/planning-and-public-spaces-people-centred-approachurban-agenda
Policy Debate: Localizing the Post-2015 Agenda
“What are we going to do about the global agenda in this council chamber?” ask local leaders from across the world
Global Consultation on Localizing the Post-2015 Agenda
Representatives of sub-national authorities from across the world called for local ownership of the post-2015 development agenda at a meeting in Liverpool on the 17th of June. The meeting was part of the ongoing consultations on ‘localizing the post-2015 agenda’, which are being co-led by UNDP, UN-Habitat, and the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments for post-2015.
Policy Debate: Urban Governance and the Global Agenda
The UCLG Committee on Decentralisation and Local Self-Government held a debate on 17th June on “Improving the Urban Future: Urban Government and the Global Agenda”. Following the premises of a study on the mapping of urban governance, the participants proposed to launch a survey on how to revise the urban governance in cities of all sizes. This process should help contributing to the Habitat III process and to the UCLG 4th Global Report on Decentralisation and Local Democracy.
Read the concept note of the Urban Governance session:
Committees met during Liverpool Executive Bureau
The Committees participate in the preparation of UCLG policies and their implementation within the sphere defined by the Executive Bureau and in the framework of the Orientation and Activities Programme. In Liverpool the following Committees discussed their work programme: Urban Health, Development Cooperation and City Diplomacy and Middle East. Reports on the gatherings will be sent to the relevant members in due course.
BT Global City Leaders Summit
Economic growth and inequalities, focus of discussions
The BT Global City Leaders Summit began on Wednesday 18th with over 200 city and regional leaders of local governments from around the world –sharing how they work towards generating sustainable economic growth in times of austerity.
More: http://www.uclg.org/en/media/news/liverpool-welcomes-city-and-regional-leaders-discuss-howgenerate-sustainable-economic
“What they said”:
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“Urbanization is underpinned by the concentration of investment and the economies of agglomeration that cities offer to many enterprises are well known. However, what are perhaps less recognized are the many economies of agglomeration that cities provide for most forms of infrastructure and service. Sound management of these services is central to their capacity to support growth, prosperity and equality.
We need to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor to eradicate poverty. Local governments know what the local needs are and we need to be supported by central governments.”
Kadir Topbas, President of UCLG and Mayor of Istanbul
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“For over a hundred years, the spirit of the municipal movement has been to promote learning and create the conditions to better serve the citizens, but also to bring the experience of local and regional leaders to the international debates. In a world that is not only globally intertwined but also increasingly urban, UCLG will continue to strengthen its network, for more and better decentralization, and to seriously revise the financing of local governments. Towns and regions must have a strong presence and role in the new global governance.”
Jacqueline Moustache-Belle, UCLG Co-President and Mayor of Victoria, Seychelles
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“We have entered in a century of cities. People live in cities because they have chosen to live together in cities. The more productive cities are, the more successful nations are. Successful cities are required for successful nations. For this, more financial power needs to shift to cities. Cities are the place for developing investments and to develop an economic vision for their territory. Evidence has proven that fragmented governance has led to low productivity.”
Greg Clark, UK Minister of State for Cities
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“Strong leadership is needed to promote growth and equality. Cities are the geography of innovation and this is why they drive national economies. Public-private partnerships are key to unlock capital and investment in cities.”
Bruce Katz, Vice-President of the Brookings Institution
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“There is a need to introduce local governance and responsive institutions as a strong component of the Post-2015 Agenda. UCLG members need to actively contribute to the debates.”
Annemarie Jorristma, Mayor of Almere, President of Council of European Municipalities and Regions
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“The recent urban policies set up in Beijing show that it is vital to promote decentralized functions for economic development and a low-carbon serviceoriented city. Controlling the growth of population, promoting energy savings and efficiency and increasing urban green space are our targets.”
Liu Ligang, Vice-Chairman of the Beijing Municipal People's Congress
All development is local: UCLG Champions
UCLG Champions on the Role of Local Governments in Development Cooperation have been working throughout 2014 in highlighting before the international community the need to include a local approach to development building on the peer-to-peer experiences that cities and their associations have been promoting during the past decades. All development is local! is the motto that the UCLG champions work by.
Business Session of the Executive Bureau
2013 Annual Report
UCLG presented its Annual Activity Report for the period 2013. The Report compiles an overview of activities carried out by the World Organization highlighting the achievements of different parts of the network.
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Call for Candidatures: Co-Presidency of United Cities and Local Governments
The Executive Bureau agreed to open a call encouraging candidatures from the Latin American region in order to fulfil the vacancy in the Co-presidency.
More: http://www.uclg.org/en/media/news/call-candidatures-co-presidency-united-cities-and-localgovernments
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Bilbao, Host City for the First UCLG 2015 Culture Summit
Bilbao will host the First UCLG Culture Summit in 2015. Since the founding Congress of Paris, culture has been at the heart of UCLG's strategy. The Summit will be the culmination of a process to renew the Agenda 21 for Culture, which dates from 2004.
“We will make sure that the Summit showcases the transformative value that cultural policies can have in shaping the future of our cities!”
Ibone Bengoetxea, Deputy Mayor of Bilbao
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Belo Horizonte: Winner of the International Award UCLG - MEXICO City - Culture 21
The objective of the "International Award UCLG - MEXICO City - Culture 21" is to recognize leading cities and people that have distinguished themselves through their contribution to culture as a dimension of sustainable development. The Award is expected to contribute to the dissemination and implementation of Agenda 21 for culture.
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2nd Edition of the Guangzhou Award: capitalizing on urban innovative experiences
Following the 1st edition held in 2012 and generating 255 project submissions from 156 cities, the 2014 edition of the Award has received over 2,000 submissions. Director Liu Baochun of the city of Guangzhou expressed the Commitment of his city to contribute to the innovation and learning agenda of UCLG. He proposed the formation of a Working Group of Community of Practice on Urban Innovation, which would enhance international exchange and cooperation in urban innovation and would ensure the continued involvement of the finalist of the Award in the work of the World Organization.
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Bogota is getting ready to welcome the 2016 UCLG Congress
The Deputy Mayor of Bogotá, Ms. Susana Mohamad, presented the steps undertaken by the city to host the Congress.
Local voices for democratic cities: inclusion at the centre of human development will be the overall theme of the congress around which a programme based on innovation, inclusion and sustainability will be built.
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Putting territories in the international agenda
As the negotiations on the Post 2015 agenda progress, Local and Regional Governments networks, working within the framework of the Global Taskforce that UCLG facilitates, have advocated for the inclusion of a specific focus area on Sustainable Urbanization and for the incorporation of mechanisms that will localize the new agenda.
The Executive Bureau celebrated the campaign around the need to include a stand-alone goal on Sustainable Urbanization and agreed on the need to develop the Agenda of Local and Regional Governments that will feed into the international debates and in particular into the Habitat III process. It called members to participate in the Global Taskforce meetings envisaged to take place on 15-16 September in conjunction with the First Preparatory Committee of the Habitat III Conference.
Join the Campaign: www.urbanSDG.uclg.org
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Local and regional governments mobilise for climate
In view of the Climate Summit, taking place on 23rd September, networks of local authorities, including the leading networks UCLG, ICLEI and C40, are mobilising to highlight commitments already made by local governments of all sizes both in mitigation and adaptation to climate change. The Executive Bureau of UCLG committed to contribute to the Climate talks and to actively work to develop a local and regional position for the Climate Negotiations.
As regards the topic of biodiversity, the Deputy Secretary General of the Governors Association of Korea (GAOK) called members to participate in the Biodiversity Conference that will be taking place in Pyeongchang, Republic of Korea, from 6th to 17th October 2014. Biodiversity is an essential component for the future of cities and an essential part of the world’s sustainability, he stated.
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Haikou, host of the next UCLG World Council
The City of Haikou, China, will host the World Council on 24-26 November 2014. Following a survey sent to UCLG membership, the meeting will focus on Public Services. The Director General of Haikou Foreign Affairs Office, Mr. Han Bin, reaffirmed Haikou’s interest to showcase their city and to welcome all the UCLG meetings.
The 2nd Edition of the UCLG International Award on Urban Innovation will take place in Guangzhou, China, on 27-29 November in conjunction with the World Council. Members were called to participate in both events.
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The 2015 Statutory Agenda
The 2015 Executive Bureau meeting will be held in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Citizen involvement, urban planning and mechanisms of auto financing for urbanization are the proposed topics for the meeting.
The 2015 World Council will be hosted by the City of Paris, in conjunction with the Climate Conference (COP21). The Deputy Mayor of Paris expressed the great commitment to continue contributing to the agenda of UCLG and to the cause of local governments internationally. He further confirmed Paris’ commitment to work with other UCLG members and partners to ensure visibility of local governments in the Climate Conference, COP 21.
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[PHOTOS] UCLG Executive Bureau 2014
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[VIDEO] BT Global City Leader's Summit
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[STORIFY] #UCLGMeets
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[IN PRESS] UCLG in Liverpool
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