CITY MATTERS BULLETIN 
March 2008
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CITY MATTERS BULLETIN March 2008 |
| Welcome to the March edition of City Matters, brought to you by Urbanicity in partnership with UN Habitat Best Practices and Local Leadership. Education and Information Update Forward City Matters to a friend or colleague here or Sign up to receive City Matters here . |
| Education and Information Update |
New Articles at Urbanicity The Urbanistas versus Big-Box Retail .. |
| Latest News Headlines | |
Full stories can be seen at Urbanicity News Introducing participatory budgeting for better service delivery and transparency in Africa Second round of France's local election: socialists take over major cities Carfree areas seeking municipalities Mayor sets out his priorities for women at London Capital Woman event 2007: A Banner Year for Renewables in the U.S. Three “Garbage Crusaders” in Modern Cosmopolitan Beijing "Virtual Water” Innovator Awarded 2008 Stockholm Water Prize Eco-driving for developing cities Islamabad to become Pakistan’s ‘green city’ Strong increase in heart disease in African townships and cities International Women’s Day 2008: “Investing in Women and Girls” EUROCITIES has now published its contribution to the consultation opened by the European Commission's Green Paper on Urban Mobility EUR 4 million for poverty reduction in 90 cities A bright future forecast for India’s largest cities How to curb emissions from transport? Report from the European Environment Agency Football, Europe and local government: an Austrian tournament Johannesburg City-level Comprehensive Development Framework and Slum Up-grading The Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change Does Migration Reduce Regional Disparities? The Role of Skill-Selective Flows 25 European cities and regions provide a model for local and regional sustainability in EU27 CEMR: 25 Years working on Women’s Political Advancement at Local Level UN-HABITAT completes EUR 1.2 million housing rehabilitation in Lebanon EUR 4 million for poverty reduction in 90 cities Smaller cities will grow most in coming decades Melbourne offers best all-round environment Consultation on the Covenant of Mayors for energy efficiency . To read the full stories and more news, please visit www.urbanicity.org/news.asp
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April Intelligent Public Transport Systems European Conference on Bicycle Transport and Networking Small Urban Municipal Conference Sustainable Urban Transportation Cities and Urban Regions of Latin America City and County Performance Summit May Transition Towards Sustainable Mobility Whole City Changes: Champion Cities Mayors Conference on Urban Biodiversity Reducing Transport Noise in Urban Areas June Major Cities of Europe Conference League of Historical Cities Conference World Conference on City Diplomacy The City and Urban Development Summit World Conference on Disaster Management
For a full listing of forthcoming conferences, visit: www.urbanicity.org/events.asp
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| Conference Features |
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Call for Papers Reminder - Rebuilding sustainable communities for children and their families after disasters This conference will focus on four main objectives:
The conference will seek to contribute to, and recommend, future policy formulation and implementation processes by local, regional and national governments as well as multilateral agencies and grass-roots organizations. The goal of these efforts is to bring specialists from various disciplines (health, education, community planning, etc.) to explore and make recommendations on how to reconstruct sustainable communities that will be safe for children and their families after disasters. The Call for Abstracts closes on May 2nd. A list of suggested topics can be seem here and submission details are here Call for Papers – Coastal Cities Summit 2008 Approximately 2.7 billion people--over 40% of the world’s total population--currently live in coastal cities. In 1995 alone, an estimated 50 million people migrated to the coastal zones of the United States. Combined with increasing birth rate and life expectancy, as well as future climate change, the escalating strain on public resources means that coastal city managers face unprecedented challenges.
First Announcement - World Sustainable Building 08 The World Sustainable Building (SB) Conference series, which has been held every three years, is the peak gathering of the world’s leading technical experts and researchers on sustainable built environments. SB08 Melbourne will continue a traditional focus on technical developments and case studies. CSIRO (Australia's national research organisation), leading universities and research groups in Australia and from around the world, are all expected to release new research. SB08 has a multifaceted program that builds strong and effective linkages across stakeholder groups to advance sustainability knowledge and practice through market and industry transformation. Site visits of leading-edge Australian commercial, residential and industrial developments are planned.
Call for Papers - World Toilet Summit and Expo 2008
Call for Papers is now on! Some possible topics include: • Creating a Sustainable Marketplace for Sanitation Go here for details. Abstracts should be submitted to Ginn Lee at ginnlee@worldtoiletevents.com by 5 May 2008. First Announcement – World Forum on Human Rights The 3rd World Forum on Human Rights will take place at the International Convention Centre of Nantes Métropole (France) from Monday 30th June to Thursday 3rd July 2008. The Forum of Nantes was created, from the start (in 2004), to support and develop the networks of actors involved in the protection, the respect and the implementation of the Human Rights by strengthening the solidarity between these different actors (political leaders, NGO activists, academics and international experts, representatives of international organisations...). Therefore, open discussions, exchange of opinions and free dialogue, on an equal footing are necessary: this is the reason why the World Forum on Human Rights exists. In this year of 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the 3rd Forum of Nantes will focus on the following topics: - Monday 30th June 2008 – 60 years after… The pertinence of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This third Forum is organised by the Permanent International Secretariat Human Rights and Local Governments, association by French Law (Law of 1901), located in Nantes /Pays de la Loire (France). To consult the programme of the Forum, register online and for more information: http://www.spidh.org/en/the-forum-2008/index.html Call for Presentations - Rail~Volution. Theme: Reshaping Communities in an Energy Challenged Future. Rail~Volution is a conference for passionate practitioners - people from all perspectives who believe in the role of land use and transit as equal partners in the quest for greater livability and greater communities. The success of the conference depends on the quality and diversity of presentations. Rail~Volution solicits your story-sharing expertise, experience, success and challenges, including:
The Bay Area - with its tradition of innovation in transportation and land use planning -- is the dynamic setting for Rail~Volution 2008. Conference Update - World Cities Summit 2008
The World Cities Summit, a premier international conference on public governance and the sustainable development of cities, has confirmed a line-up of prominent speakers for its inaugural summit in Singapore from 23 to 25 June 2008, which will include Singapore’s Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew and Asian Development Bank President Haruhiko Kuroda. Among these distinguished speakers are mayors from ‘model cities’, such as Mr John So, Mayor of Melbourne, repeatedly voted one of the world’s most liveable cities; Mr Hiroshi Nakada, Mayor of Yokohama, a city lauded for the use of environmentally-friendly urban transportation; and Ms Kerry Prendergast, Mayor of Wellington, where the UN Environment Programme will hold World Environment Day 2008. The inaugural event will also provide engaging platforms for discussions on specific topics through its plenary and various break-out sessions, including one on solid waste management, a critical issue in many urban areas. Another highlight is the Learning Journeys, which offers delegates a chance to witness, first-hand through tours around Singapore, how the country has developed into a ‘liveable and vibrant’ city. More information on the World Cities Summit can be found at www.worldcities.com.sg. Final Call for Papers - ISOCARP International Congress
The call for abstracts closes April 1st:The Congress welcomes abstracts from City and Regional Urban Planners from all over the world and from any interested individual, party or organisation, young planning professional, expert and interested professional from other related disciplines (ISOCARP members and/or non-members). Further information is available at: http://2008.isocarp.org/ First Announcement -WEFTEC.08 If it’s about water, it will be at WEFTEC! Join us in Chicago, Illinois and see for yourself how The Water Environment Federation (WEF) continues to make WEFTEC the largest water quality event of the year. Design your own education program from our vast array of Technical Sessions, Workshops, Facility Tours, and Presentations that cover topics including collection systems, membrane technology, nutrient removal, water reuse, recycling and reclamation, public education, and many more! Enhance your learning experience by visiting the show floor to see the newest products and services from over 1,000 exhibiting companies! Trained staff is on-hand to answer all of your technical and purchasing questions. Visit www.weftec.org for more information. Online registration opens April 7, 2008!
Special Focus on Sanitation at the World Water Week 2008 in Stockholm
The World Water Week (August 17-23, 2008) in Stockholm is the leading annual global meeting place for capacity-building, partnership-building and follow-up on the implementation of international processes and programmes in water and development. As part of the UN International Year of Sanitation, the 2008 World Water Week in Stockholm ‘Progress and Prospects on Water – For a Clean and Healthy World’ will place special focus on sanitation issues. With more than 2 and half billion people lacking access to safe sanitation and over 5,000 children dying each day from preventable diseases as a result, the 2008 World Water Week aims to elevate the debate and share experiences from both the successes and failures in order to learn how to best move forward for progress. The week will highlight issues ranging from global response, urban sanitation, national policy and community dynamics, to research, implementation and socio-economic approaches. European Transport Conference
The Conference is unique in Europe, attracting over 500 transport practitioners and researchers to a meeting place, where they can find in-depth presentations on policy issues, research findings and best practice across a broad spectrum of transport modes. Call to Register - REAL CORP 008: Mobility Nodes as Innovation Hubs
The international conference REAL CORP 008 focuses on these 21st-century-transport- and innovation-hubs that are exceptionally challenging for urban and transport planning, architecture and real estate development. Some of the questions to be dealt with:
Registration is now open at: www.corp.at
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City Matters Bulletin is published monthly by Urbanicity Ltd 72 Fairview Crescent, Waiheke, New Zealand in conjuction with UN Habitat Best Practices and Local Leadership |
Tel: Intl 64 9 3725115 Email: a.campbell@urbanicity.org Web: www.urbanicity.org |
In support of the UN International Year of Sanitation, World Toilet Organization, presents an action-oriented platform which features high-level discussions between public and private sectors to promote clean toilets, sanitation technology and hygiene issues. 
ISOCARP is proud to announce/present its 44th International Planning Congress which will be held in the City of Dalian, China from 19 – 23 September 2008. The theme: ' Urban Growth without Sprawl; a Way towards Sustainable Urbanisation' is introduced by Prof. Dr. Detlef Kammeier, General Rapporteur of the congress and responsible for the scientific contents and its outcome. The Congress includes plenary sessions (a.o. Opening Statement on behalf of Dr Anna Kajumulo Tibaijuka, Under Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of the UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), five workshops and post congress tours.
81st Annual Water Environment Federation
The demands on Europe's transport systems continue to both increase and change as a result of a number of factors - economic growth, social change, demographics and the need to become less unsustainable. Such change demands innovative and robust responses which are affordable. Transport practitioners and researchers throughout Europe are responding to these challenges and the European Transport Conference, now in its 36th year, is the key annual event for sharing innovation, best practice and networking with colleagues from more than 30 countries. 
Transport hubs are nerve centers of our modern mobile society and rapidly become economic centers - the new "Airport Cities" are remarkable examples. Where many people come together information and knowledge is shared and new ideas are created, and so airports, train stations, motorway rests become knowledge- and innovation hubs.