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World Cities Summit Mayors Forum 2014 features largest gathering of mayors to date

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SINGAPORE – Over 130 mayors and city leaders from global cities discussed the importance of good governance and community engagement, and how smart technologies will contribute to urban development at the World Cities Summit Mayors Forum (WCSMF) today. Mr Lee Yi Shyan, Singapore’s Senior Minister of State for Trade & Industry and National Development and Chairman of the Forum, highlighted the importance of nurturing a global community of mayors and city leaders to share different approaches and plans in light of common challenges faced by cities, especially rapidly emerging cities in Asia.

The WCSMF 2014 is a key highlight at this year’s World Cities Summit (WCS), a biennial global platform for government and industry leaders to address liveable and sustainable city challenges, share integrated solutions, and forge high-level partnerships.

Currently in its fifth edition, the WCSMF nurtures a global community of mayors and city leaders, to exchange ideas and best practices and explore solutions to address common challenges. WCSMF 2014 features the largest gathering of mayors to date. Also participating in the forum were experts from international organisations, including the United Nations, World Bank, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and Asian Development Bank.

In Mr Lee’s closing remarks at the Forum, he said: “As city leaders, we have the heavy responsibility of mobilising the necessary resources and coordinating different programmes. More importantly, we need to engage the community and galvanise our people so that all can move towards our goals”.

Mayors and city leaders also agreed that it is most important to engage their community and put people at the centre of policy goals.  Lord Mayor Damon Thomas of Hobart, Australia said: “Passion and people involvement are key… unless the people feel connected and proud, it’s not much use.” Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb from Rotterdam, the Netherlands said: “The key (to a sustainable urban ecosystem) is co-creation. No government is in a position to do it alone… The world needs leaders who are willing to share knowledge with corporations and societies.”

Cities also pledged their support for the United Nations Open Working Group’s Sustainable Development Goal that focused on Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements. This will focus the attention and resources of national agencies, local governments, the private sector and civil society towards managing urban challenges and creating more liveable and sustainable cities.

 

WCS Mayors Forum 2015

Mr Lee also announced that next year’s WCSMF will be held in New York City, USA. The city was awarded the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize in 2012 for reinventing and rejuvenating itself post-September 2001 to give residents and tourists renewed confidence and optimism for the city’s future. Mr Mitchell Silver, New York’s Commissioner of Parks and Recreation said: “We are excited that many of you will be coming to New York for the next Mayors Forum.”

The Centre for Liveable Cities (CLC) also launched the publication Liveable and Sustainable Cities: A Framework at the WCSMF, which distilled the key actors and principles of Singapore’s development journey into the CLC Liveability Framework. The book was presented to mayors and city leaders as a resource to help them develop liveable and sustainable cities. The book is available for download via CLC’s website: http://www.clc.gov.sg/documents/books/CLC_CSCLiveable&SustainableCities.pdf

Young Leaders to Seed Change in World Cities Summit 2014

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Over 60 Young Leaders from diverse urban sectors will gather in Singapore on Saturday, 31 May 2014, for the inaugural World Cities Summit Young Leaders Symposium, to catalyse change in cities.

 

The WCS Young Leaders Symposium is a key highlight at this year’s World Cities Summit, a biennial global event for world leaders and industry experts to address liveable and sustainable city challenges, share integrated urban solutions and forge strategic partnerships.

 

Themed “Seeding Change in My City”, the Symposium is a platform for Young Leaders from different urban fields, with the capability to adapt to rapid changes, to pool their knowledge, engage in intellectual discourse and discuss initiatives to tackle challenges faced by cities.

 

The Symposium will bring together government officials, industry experts, urban planners, architects, designers, mobility experts, economists and researchers from 28 countries. Typically aged between 30 and 45, they are united in their commitment to help shape urban development agendas in cities around the world.

 

At the forum, participants will share fundamental changes that their cities need to adopt to facilitate the creation of more sustainable, liveable and desirable cities. They will also discuss practical initiatives that will drive the much-needed changes in their urban environments. The Symposium’s Guest-of-Honour will be Minister of State (National Development) Singapore, Mr Desmond Lee, and the discussion will be chaired by Ambassador Burhan Gafoor, Chief Negotiator for Climate Change, Singapore.

 

Participants at the WCS Young Leaders Symposium include the Mayor of Bandung, Indonesia, Mr Ridwan Kamil; Chief Representative best online casino Officer of GDF Suez China, Mr Raphael Schoentgen; Chairman of the Lien Foundation, Mr Laurence Lien; and Chief Operating Officer for EMBARQ World Resource Institute, Mr Clayton Lane and many other senior personages.

More than 200 Young Leaders were selected from hundreds of nominations to be part of the inaugural initiative. Young Leaders are selected once every two years and each has a three-year tenure. During their term, WCS Young Leaders are invited to exclusive meetings and events to encourage sharing of best practices and initiate projects. Upon completion, members will join the alumnus and mentor other WCS Young Leaders.

“The issues we aim to address at WCS and the solutions that we hope to co-create will impact the world in the decades to come. It is therefore very crucial to include the next generation in the conversation to ensure that their ideas and voices are heard,” said Mr Khoo Teng Chye, Executive Director of the Centre for Liveable Cities. “Through this forum, I hope that the Young Leaders will form lasting partnerships to influence the urban development plans of the future.”

 

For more information, visit www.worldcitiessummit.com.sg

World Cities Summit: Leading Integrated Platform for Urban Sustainability

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World Cities Summit is the exclusive and premier platform for government leaders and industry experts to address liveable and sustainable city challenges, share integrated urban solutions and forge high-level partnerships. 

The fourth World Cities Summit will be held alongside a constellation of premier environmental events including: the sixth Singapore International Water Week; the second CleanEnviro Summit Singapore; and the tenth Ministers’ Meeting on Infrastructure Development in the Asia Pacific Region.  The string of events will be running from 1 to 5 June 2014 at the Sands Expo & Convention Center at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore.

Some 20,000 high-level delegates are expected to attend, including ministers, mayors, government and industry leaders, representatives of international organisations and academics. The involvement of key stakeholders across the spectrum of urban planning, water planning and waste management is critical, given the new and complex challenges facing cities.

 

Singapore – a Strategic Location for Global Events

 

Singapore has a unique convening power for the World Cities Summit because Asia has the most megacities and is experiencing the fastest urbanisation process in the world. Singapore is taking a leadership role in supporting greater debate and action by convening several global events to enable a wider group of public and private sector players to network and tap into the synergies between urban planning, water and environmental solutions.

Through the Summit, Singapore brings together global thought leaders and practitioners from the public and private sectors that specialise in the areas of urban governance and development, to share best practice on urban challenges. The World Cities Summit will provide access to expertise and knowledge on solutions to address urban challenges through plenary discussions and specialised breakout sessions based on topics and regions, as well as networking opportunities.

World Cities Summit highlights

 

Themed “Liveable and Sustainable Cities: Common Challenges, Shared Solutions”, the fourth World Cities Summit will see more than 100 speakers share their expertise and insights at the Summit. They include notable government and industry leaders such as the Minister for Water Resources, Chen Lei from the People’s Republic of China; the Chief Executive Officer of Suez Environnement, Mr Jean-Louis Chaussade; the Founder of Gehl Architects, Mr Jan Gehl; and the Managing Director and Group Chief Financial Officer of the World Bank, Mr Bertrand Badré.

 

Other highlights include:

i. The Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize is a biennial international award that honours outstanding achievements and contributions to the creation of liveable, vibrant and sustainable urban communities around the world. At the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize Lecture, a representative from the 2014 Prize Laureate – Suzhou City – will share insights about how it has achieved remarkable economic prosperity, social progress, and the preservation of its celebrated cultural and historic heritage despite facing rapid urbanisation. This address will then be followed by representatives from the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize Special Mention cities – Yokohama and Medellin – during which they will highlight the good governance and innovations they have adopted in order to address urban challenges. Singapore’s President, Tony Tan will be the guest of honour at the Lee Kuan Yew Prize Award Ceremony and Banquet.

ii. The World Cities Summit Mayors Forum is an invitation only global event for city mayors and leaders to discuss pressing urban issues and share best practice with one another in a peer-to-peer environment. Over 120 mayors and city leaders will spend a day discussing common challenges and share solutions.

iii. The inaugural World Cities Summit Young Leaders is an initiative that involves more than 150 young leaders from the worlds government, industry and academia who are committed to actively catalyse change in cities and help shape urban development agendas. More than 50 of these young leaders will be involved in the WCS Young Leaders Symposium.

iv. High-level Plenary Sessions will provide strategic insights from senior city and industry leaders on leadership and governance, as well as the latest debate on liveability and sustainability.

v. Thematic Tracks will enable in-depth discussions and the sharing of case studies and best practice by city leaders and practitioners on topical urban issues. The themes include: (i) Safe and Liveable Cities; (ii) Will Mayors Rule the World?; (iii) Making Plans into Reality; (iv) Building Resilient Cities; (v) Innovative Urban Solutions for Liveable and Future-Ready Cities and; (vi) Future Mobility.

vi. In-Focus Forums aim to capture the energy of urbanisation across the world and highlight opportunities for investment and partnership in the key markets of China, India, Southeast Asia and Latin America. Public and private sector panellists will discuss projects, focusing on best corporate practices and risk mitigation strategies to meet the challenges and opportunities of sustainable urban development and management.

vii. Site visits will provide first-hand perspectives on how policies and ideas have been implemented successfully in Singapore and give participants a behind-the-scenes look at real issues while providing practical learning experiences. These specially designed case studies include Singapore’s Public Housing, Singapore River and Marina Bay, Cycling the North Eastern Riverine Loop, Skyrise Greenery in Singapore, and Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.

 

For more information on World Cities Summit, visit: www.worldcitiessummit.com.sg

 Register your interest through this link and get a 10% discount.