May Headlines - click to see the full story

28/5/2009 - Seeking best local response for tackling climate change
27/5/2009 - China’s grand plans for eco cities lie abandoned
27/5/2009 - ICLEI Oceania Develops Adaptive and Resilient Communities Program
25/5/2009 - Stockholm named Intelligent Community 2009
25/5/2009 - Living Streets call for every day to be a traffic free day in London's West End
24/5/2009 - 20 years of URBAN experience
21/5/2009 - Obama Administration to host World Habitat Day in Washington
20/5/2009 - Dublin to get directly-elected mayor in 2010
20/5/2009 - Copenhagen Summit: Local governments prepare post-Kyoto climate deal
19/5/2009 - Report Shows Renewables Staying Strong
19/5/2009 - Light Rail Expands in Toronto
18/5/2009 - A glittering ceremony for Dubai award winners
17/5/2009 - Small Towns Work to Keep Young Population
17/5/2009 - Using the Olympics to promote a better urban future
17/5/2009 - A New Suburb Without Cars
17/5/2009 - Call for abstracts: 8th International Conference on Urban Health (ICUH)
16/5/2009 - Understanding the Scale of Urban Environmental Problems
15/5/2009 - Conference: local governance in Central and Eastern European countries
15/5/2009 - UN-HABITAT officials brief British legislators
14/5/2009 - Giovanni Di Stasi awarded 2009 Maximilian Prize
14/5/2009 - Cities against Racism: Extending the European Coalition to Eastern Europe
14/5/2009 - Chinese Municipal Government undergoes radical restructuring
13/5/2009 - The city of Ghent becomes “vegetarian”
13/5/2009 - India call for local government participation
13/5/2009 - 2010 events calendar launched
12/5/2009 - CommunityMatters Conference Postponed
11/5/2009 - The benefits of space in shaping regional energy strategies
9/5/2009 - New Handbook Promotes Cycling and Ecomobility
8/5/2009 - A Special Message from the Secretary General
8/5/2009 - Alarm at access to new buildings for the disabled
8/5/2009 - Supporting small businesses and entrepreneurship in cities - policy and practice
7/5/2009 - European Parliament endorses EUROCITIES-NLAO project 
7/5/2009 - Knoogle New Mobility 1.1
6/5/2009 - Your town or region: an example of eGovernment ?
4/5/2009 - European elections: 60 reasons to vote
3/5/2009 - A new office in Iran
1/5/2009 - European ranking: How do cities and regions communicate?
1/5/2009 - Call for best practices in Youth Policies and Programmes in Latin America and the Caribbean
1/5/2009 - City of Buenos Aires adopts decree to combat climate change
1/5/2009 - Ministers hail UN-HABITAT Lake Victoria project
1/5/2009 - Water Project of the Year
1/5/2009 - Local power for climate change results

Seeking best local response for tackling climate change
European cities and municipalities are invited to present their climate protection activities and apply for the 2009 Climate Star award. The closing date for applications is 15 June.
The Climate Star 2009 will award local solutions to tackle climate change. These local climate protection activities include using less energy, producing energy locally from renewable sources, planning shorter transport distances, promoting walking, cycling.
The winners will be awarded at a special ceremony on 22 October 2009, in Wachau near Vienna, Austria. http://www.klimabuendnis.org/207.html

China’s grand plans for eco cities lie abandoned
Mostly conceived by international architects, China’s eco-cities were intended to be models of green urban design. But the planning was done with little awareness of how local people lived, and the much-touted projects have largely been scrapped. If all had gone as planned, “the world’s first eco-city,” as press releases billed it back in 2005, would now be well on its way to completion. The visionary project called for a grassy island near the crowded metropolis of Shanghai to be transformed from a marshy backwater into a gleaming community of energy-efficient buildings housing 50,000 people.
http://www.peopleandplanet.net/doc.php?id=3548

ICLEI Oceania Develops Adaptive and Resilient Communities Program
ICLEI Oceania has developed the Adaptive and Resilient Communities (ARC). which is a structured capacity building program on climate change adaptation. ARC focuses on achieving tangible increases in community resilience and improvements to councils’ adaptive capacity and is modeled on the adaptive management framework used in the ICLEI Adaptation Toolkit.
ARC is still in its development phase and ICLEI Oceania staff are working hard to complete program development for implementing a one-year ARC Program Establishment Phase in 2009/10. http://www.iclei.org/index.php?id=1149

Stockholm named Intelligent Community 2009
Stockholm was named the world’s most intelligent community 2009 during the Intelligent Community Forum conference in New York on 15 May.
“This is a community that has methodically and substantially redefined the possibilities of urban living and sets an example of how technology can play a role to enhance economic and social development,” said Louis Zacharilla, ICF Co-founder.
The goal of the awards is to increase awareness of the role that broadband and information communications technology (ICT) play in economic and social development at the community level worldwide.
Ulf Kristersson, vice mayor, says “Stockholm's schools, elderly homes and social activities are online: this is how we show that broadband and internet is as important for our public services in the City of Stockholm as for all private companies. Achieving this award in fierce competition is very flattering for all citizens in Stockholm.” http://www.eurocities.eu/include/lib/sql_news_card.php?id=1521

Living Streets call for every day to be a traffic free day in London's West End
On Saturday 23rd May, Oxford Street was closed off to cars, buses and taxis in celebration of the first spring traffic free day. National charity Living Streets, who work to create safe, attractive and enjoyable streets across the UK, are calling for Oxford Street to become permanently pedestrianised, following overwhelming support by the public for a traffic free West End.
A survey carried out by Living Streets on a traffic free day in the West End in December 2007 showed that a traffic free shopping experience dramatically changes people's perceptions of the West End, with 92% of people stating it felt more pleasant for pedestrians. http://www.livingstreets.org.uk/news_and_info/media_news_releases.php?id=951

20 years of URBAN experience
Commissioner Hübner distributed a brochure to several European ministers responsible for regional policy on 24 April, entitled "Promoting sustainable urban development in Europe", when they met in Mariánské Láznĕ in the Czech Republic. It summarises the experience gained during the Community URBAN initiative since the first pilot projects of 1989. It also presents a series of specific examples and recommendations designed to serve as inspiration for the various regions.
It also reiterated the principles of ‘integrated urban development’ outlined by the European Union, i.e. the need to incorporate each urban project into a more global development strategy for cities, along with specific objectives. For example, new green spaces may play a part in a project to renovate a run-down area and new modes of transport must take energy efficiency into account, as well as a reduction in air and noise pollution.
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/sources/docgener/presenta/urban2009/urban2009_en.pdf

Obama Administration to host World Habitat Day in Washington
The Obama Administration will co-host with UN-HABITAT the global celebrations of World Habitat Day in Washington, D.C. on 5 October 2009.
Cabinet Secretary Shaun Donovan, who heads the US Department for Housing and Urban Development, confirmed the decision saying he welcomed the event as an opportunity to foster collaboration between the two agencies.
A group of 15 policy institutes, NGOs, and foundations will join the Department for Housing and Urban Development and UN-HABITAT in organizing a number of high-level events on the occasion of WHD 2009.

Dublin to get directly-elected mayor in 2010
For the first time since the foundation of the Irish Republic, Dublin is to get a directly-elected mayor within a year.
I am confident that the mayor will raise the profile of Dublin, enhance local democracy, and lead the provision of.a more effective and integrated public service across the city and region, Irish Minister for the environment, heritage and local government John Gormley said.
The "regional mayor for Dublin" will have responsibility for establishing strategic policy in relation to planning, housing, waste, water provision and waste water disposal across the four major Dublin local authorities. He will also chair of the Dublin Transport Authority with a direct role in the development of transport strategy in the Irish capital.

Copenhagen Summit: Local governments prepare post-Kyoto climate deal
Hundreds of towns and cities from all over the world will meet to draft a common position to be sent to the United Nations and national governments. The Local governments will be involved in a national-local dialogue to make the national governments recognise the importance of local action in national climate strategies.
Many sessions will also be organised under the general theme of climate change. The Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) will host, on 3 June, a session on water management and climate change.

Report Shows Renewables Staying Strong
REN21’s 2009 Renewables Global Status Report shows that renewables had a strong performance in 2008, despite the economic downturn. Nearly all renewable technologies experienced significant percentage gains in installed capacity. The report also highlights significant policy and leadership changes that facilitated these gains in capacity.
The report shows where the leaders in renewable energy deployment stand nationally and at the local level. The report gives a broad indication of the state of renewable energy markets, the amount and direction of investment, the larger trends in industry, and which policy types are in effect. http://www.ren21.net/globalstatusreport/g2009.asp

Light Rail Expands in Toronto
New light rail projects are taking off in the Toronto area. A new 15km line will be operational by 2013, but the city is still trying to raise funds to replace its aging streetcar stock.
"Toronto's request for two-thirds of the $1.23 billion needed to buy 204 new streetcars is still under consideration, politicians told reporters at the TTC's Harvey shops, where machinists fashion the parts to eke more life out of the deteriorating 30-year-old vehicles.
The new Sheppard route, which will run east about 15 kilometres from the Don Mills subway to Meadowvale Rd., is the third proposed light rail line to the suburbs to receive funding. But it will be the first built. Construction is expected to begin in the fall on a stretch from McCowan to Neilson Rd., for completion by 2013. The line, which will require 35 light rail vehicles (LRVs), is expected to carry 20 million riders a year by 2021. Ottawa has agreed to pay one-third of the $950 million cost, with the province picking up the remainder.

A glittering ceremony for Dubai award winners
Twelve lucky winners from around the world were this week each handed a USD 30,000 cash prize, a gilted wind tower and a certificate for their work in promoting a better urban future in a glittering ceremony marking the seventh Dubai International Award for Best Practices.
The award ceremony was attended by Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, UAE Minister of Finance and Chairman of Dubai Municipality, who personally conferred the prizes. These went to 10 winners from Burundi, China, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Indonesia, Mexico, Senegal, South Africa, Spain, and the United States in the Best Practices category, and to two winners from Palestine and Pakistan in the Best Practice Transfers category.
The award programme is jointly managed by UN-HABITAT and Dubai Municipality.
http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=6668&catid=5&typeid=6&subMenuId=0

Small Towns Work to Keep Young Population
Towns in East Texas have watched their children graduate high school and leave town for generations- in some towns, up to 90% of graduates flee. Job development is key to keeping the kids down on the farm, but older locals balk at growth.
"How do small towns keep more of their young? It's a question that leads to bigger issues affecting rural Texas, said Julie Kelly, spokeswoman for the Office of Rural Community Affairs.
"Some people pass away and their children inherit land (in their hometown), but they've already moved to suburban areas," Kelly said. "There's a lot of concern."
Kelly's state agency provides grants for communities to improve infrastructure — a way to become more attractive to prospective employers and new residents, she said. For example, an electronic records project in the Panhandle links pharmacies and clinics in two small towns to a large Amarillo hospital, thereby overcoming a small-town health care obstacle.
For towns such as Daingerfield, Linden and Overton, however, the formula for sparking population growth is much more complicated, particularly when some townsfolk want to keep things just the way they are."

Using the Olympics to promote a better urban future
The Olympic movement last week committed itself at a meeting with UN agencies to use its influence to promote peace and development through sports events it organizes around the world.
But the organization warned that it will be powerless without stronger support from governments: “One cannot expect the sports movement to succeed where social and political movements have failed," said Mr. Jacques Rogge, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), in an address to delegates gathered at his Lausanne headquarters.
He was address the first International Forum on Sport, Youth and Development 8 May. It brought together the International Olympic Committee (IOC) with UN bodies represented by Mr. Wilfried Lemke, Special Adviser of the UN Secretary General on Sport for Development and Peace, NGOs, sports federations and the academic world. http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=6669&catid=5&typeid=6&subMenuId=0

A New Suburb Without Cars
Vauban, Germany is a new suburb that is part of the 'smart planning movement'. It is car-free, i.e. the streets are car-free, while car ownership is allowed but restricted to two garages, and the cost unbundled. Only 30% of families own cars.
"Street parking, driveways and home garages are generally forbidden in this experimental new district on the outskirts of Freiburg, near the French and Swiss borders. Vauban’s streets are completely “car-free”...
Vauban, completed in 2006, is an example of a growing trend in Europe, the United States and elsewhere to separate suburban life from auto use, as a component of a movement called “smart planning.”
Car ownership is allowed, but there are only two places to park — large garages at the edge of the development, where a car-owner buys a space, for $40,000, along with a home.
As a result, 70 percent of Vauban’s families do not own cars, and 57 percent sold a car to move here."
Automobiles are the linchpin of suburbs, where middle-class families from Chicago to Shanghai tend to make their homes. And that, experts say, is a huge impediment to current efforts to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions from tailpipes, and thus to reduce global warming.
Passenger cars are responsible for 12 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in Europe — a proportion that is growing, according to the European Environment Agency — and up to 50 percent in some car-intensive areas in the United States."

Call for abstracts: 8th International Conference on Urban Health (ICUH)
18-23 October 2009, Kenyatta International Conference Centre, Nairobi, Kenya
'Call for abstracts is now open for the 8th International Conference on Urban Health (ICUH), which is being organised by the International Society for Urban Health (ISUH) in partnership with the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) and the Government of the Republic of Kenya.'

Understanding the Scale of Urban Environmental Problems
A key to effective policy formulation and allocation of resources to project components is the understanding of the scale of urban environmental problems. This understanding will help us in a variety of ways: collect data and information at the appropriate level, identify resources and stakeholders that function and are involved in the particular scale, formulate policy and take appropriate action at the appropriate level. http://www.gdrc.org/uem/problem-scale.html

Conference: local governance in Central and Eastern European countries
The Observatory on Local Autonomy (OLA) is organising a conference on local governance in Central and Eastern European countries (CEEC), taking place on 24 June 2009 in Lille.
Particular focus will be given to Hungarian local government: What impact do Hungarian national policies have on local government? What is the role of local politicians? These are some of the questions which will be addressed at the conference. Two sessions will also be focused on comparing French and Hungarian local administrations.
OLA is a research network created to study in an in-depth and comparative way the local authorities in the European Union Member States and in Croatia. http://www.ccre.org/docs/lille_ola_programme_colloque.doc

UN-HABITAT officials brief British legislators
Two senior UN-HABITAT officials, Paul Taylor and Michael Mutter were invited to make presentations on urbanization and poverty to members of the British parliamentary International Development Committee.
At the end of the almost two hour session, the chairman of the House of Commons Select Committee on International Development Mr. Malcolm Bruce admitted their previous lack of awareness of the importance of urban issues and the large scale urbanization of poverty around the world. Mr. Bruce said that most of the evidence previously presented to the Committee concerned rural poverty.
http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=6664&catid=5&typeid=6&subMenuId=0

Giovanni Di Stasi awarded 2009 Maximilian Prize
Giovanni Di Stasi, former President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, was awarded the Emperor Maximilian Prize on 8 May 2009.
The reward ceremony was held at the Imperial.Palace of Innsbruck in the presence of the President of the Regional Parliament of Tyrol, Herwig van Staa,  the Deputy Governor of Tyrol, Anton Steixner, and the Mayor of Innsbruck, Hilde Zach.
The Emperor Maximilian Prize prize is awarded to personalities and institutions for their achievements in the field of local and regional policies.

Cities against Racism: Extending the European Coalition to Eastern Europe
The Steering Committee of the European Coalition of Cities against Racism (ECCAR) is set to meet in Saint Petersburg (Russian Federation) from 14 to 16 May 2009 to prepare the third General Conference of the Coalition and to reflect on the extension of this regional network to Eastern Europe.
The preparation for the third General Conference of the European Coalition of Cities against Racism (ECCAR) – which will take place in Toulouse (France) from 19 to 20 November 2009 on the topic of “Cities against Racism. New Challenges - New Partners: Let’s Draw our Future” – should be at the heart of the meeting of the network’s Steering Committee to take place in Saint Petersburg from 14 to 16 May 2009.
To be held in the second largest city of the Russian Federation, which joined the Coalition in April 2007, this meeting will prepare the annual ECCAR meeting by measuring its development on different levels – notably the indicators for evaluating municipal policies aimed at fighting racism and discrimination – while trying to mobilize Eastern European cities. Contact: Kornelia Guse, k.guse@unesco.org.

Chinese Municipal Government undergoes radical restructuring
In Tianjin, one of the four province-level municipalities of China, ceremonies are held this week to inaugurate a few new government agencies. This marks the actual implementation of the structural reform of the Municipal Government. The aim of the reform is to streamline policy making and execution, which have been difficult due to overlapping responsibilities of different agencies and departments
http://www.futuregov.net/articles/2009/may/08/chinese-municipal-government-undergoes-radical-res/

The city of Ghent becomes “vegetarian”
In Belgium, Ghent has become this Wednesday, 13 of May, the first city worldwide to promote a weekly meatless day.Thursday has been proclaimed “vegetarian day” during a festive ceremony.
Public officials will be the first to give up meat a day per week, followed by schoolchildren in September. The 5000 city personnel will receive a free “vegetarian map” of the city, and a free vegetarian cooking brochure will be sent to all 1.500 restaurants. There will be vegetarian cooking classes for both professionals and individuals.
Two reasons motivated the city to introduce the “vegetarian Thursday”:
According to the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation), livestock is responsible for 18% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Any reduction of meat consumption will bring benefits to the environment. Furthermore, Europeans eat too much meat, which heightens cholesterol levels as well as the risk of some cancers, diabetes and obesity. Other Belgian cities have already shown interest to follow Ghent's example.

India call for local government participation
New ideas, transparency and accountability are still being resisted at various levels in the government, according to the National Knowledge Commission (NKC)—a body set up by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in 2005 to prepare a road map for transforming India into a knowledge society.
In its final report to the nation, NKC Chairman Sam Pitroda, has blamed “rigid organisational structures with territorial mindsets” for this “resistance to new ideas, experimentation, process re-engineering, external interventions, transparency and accountability”.
Stating that India is too large, too complex and too diverse a country for “one size fits all” solutions, Mr Pitroda has emphasised on decentralisation and community participation at the local level as the key to devising effective programmes for implementation.
http://www.futuregov.net/articles/2009/may/11/india-calls-decentralisation-and-local-govt-partic/

2010 events calendar launched
Urbanicity has published the first draft of it's 2010 events calendar, with over 40 urban related events already listed. To add an event to the calendar, which is the world's foremost source of urban related event information, please contact Kate More (k.more@urbanicity.org)

CommunityMatters Conference Postponed
The Orton Family Foundation announced  the postponement of its national COMMUNITYMATTERS® conference until October of 2010. Faced with the reality of the global economic downturn and reports of sharply declining enrollment at other conferences across the country, the Foundation reluctantly dropped plans to hold its conference this November.
“This was a difficult decision, but I think we made the right call,” said Bill Roper, President & CEO of the Foundation. “In light of the real prospect of lower enrollment, it became clear that our efforts to connect with as broad an audience as possible would be compromised.”
 
The benefits of space in shaping regional energy strategies
How can local and regional government best shape their regional energy strategies? This will be the main question of the workshop taking place in The Hague, on 22-23 June 2009.
The workshop "Regions and Cities implementing.Sustainable Energy Strategies - The added-value of Satellite Information and Services" is organised by Eurisy, the network to promote the benefits of space for European society, in cooperation with the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) and the Assembly of European Regions (AER).
It will aim to demonstrate that local and regional government have substantial leverage for action, notably by using innovative satellite information and services to save energy and make the most of the alternative renewable energy sources available.
This non-technical workshop will feature transferable experience and best-practices, introduced by regional actors using these innovative tools as part of successful regional energy strategies.

New Handbook Promotes Cycling and Ecomobility
GTZ SUTP, in partnership with Interface for Cycling Expertise (I-Ce) and the Sustainable Urban Mobility in Asia (SUMA) initiative, have created and launched "Cycling-inclusive Policy Development: A Handbook". The handbook provides planners, engineers, community leaders and advocates with vital information on how to develop cycle-friendly policies, facilities and transportation systems. Cycling is a great example of EcoMobility, which is transport without the use of motorized vehicles such as a car. The Global Alliance for EcoMobility, supported by ICLEI, aims to reduce dependency on private motorized vehicles, and promote environmentally friendly modes of transportation
SUTP members can download the handbook online and non-members can register at SUTP (free of charge) and then download the publication. http://www.sutp.org/

A Special Message from the Secretary General
With half of humanity now living in an urban environment, the world is at the dawn of a new urban era.  Expo 2010 in Shanghai, under the theme “Better City, Better Life”, is the first global exposition dedicated to the potential and the problems of urban living in the 21st century.
The United Nations pavilion at Expo 2010, with the theme “One Earth, One UN”, will showcase the wide-ranging efforts of the UN system to help the world to achieve sustainable urban development.  The exhibitions will display not only our knowledge and best practices, but also our unity of purpose advancing this crucially important agenda.
I encourage all UN system agencies, programmes and funds to seize this opportunity to communicate with a large global audience.  Let us, together, show the world the many ways in which the United Nations promotes social justice and harmony, environmental protection and the overall well-being of the world’s urban-dwellers.
Ban Ki-Moon, UN Secretary General

Alarm at access to new buildings for the disabled
Thousands of people with physical disabilities are unable to access new buildings being reconstructed in Southern Lebanon, according to a new report released here.
Assessments conducted by UN-HABITAT in Tyre, Jabal Amel and Bint Jabeil in Southern Lebanon revealed that accessibility for people with disabilities to public spaces and buildings, as well as to private houses, had not been taken into consideration in the reconstruction work going on in the towns.
The findings were presented during a consultative seminar entitled “Towards a Barrier Free Environment”, organized by the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities, UN-HABITAT, the Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union and the unions of municipalities of Tyre, Jabal Amel and Bint Jabeil, held on May 8. http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=6643&catid=5&typeid=6&subMenuId=0

Supporting small businesses and entrepreneurship in cities - policy and practice
EUROCITIES on 8 May brought together European Commission officials with representatives of cities, specialist networks, regions and the private sector to discuss the experiences of SME support in cities.
Maive Rute, European Commission Director for SME’s Competitiveness highlighted the key EU level support tools and mechanisms – emphasising for example, the importance of financial tools such as JEREMIE (Joint European Resources for Micro to Medium Enterprises initiative) to help SME development.
Given the challenging economic context facing companies and entrepreneurs within cities at present, it was timely to hear of The Hague’s innovative part-EU funded support programmes for business start-ups. Loans combine with practical guidance and training to give comprehensive support. In addition, Barcelona Activa emphasised the importance of supporting women entrepreneurs if we are to make the most of our cities’ potential, while UEAPME (European Association of Craft, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises) highlighted how all public policy from transport planning to education affects the success of our SMEs – and therefore the need for ‘SME proofing’ our policies.

European Parliament endorses EUROCITIES-NLAO project 
In its resolution on ‘active inclusion of people excluded from the labour market’, the European Parliament has highlighted the role of cities in monitoring the implementation of active inclusion strategies. Specifically, the resolution noted that the European Commission and EU Member States should give local authority observatories “a strong role in the future policy process”.
This parliamentarian initiative represents a strong endorsement of the EUROCITIES Network of Local Authority Observatories on Active Inclusion (EUROCITIES-NLAO), a network of five EUROCITIES member cities and the Brussels office, which monitors how policies for people at risk of social exclusion are implemented at local level.
The EUROCITIES-NLAO will contribute to further policy development through national reports and European reports, in particular in the areas of training/employment as well as social and supported housing. This pilot project runs from March 2009 until August 2010. After this period, there is the potential to widen the range of services monitored and to further extend the network to cities in other European countries. 
 
Knoogle New Mobility 1.1
Knoogle New Mobility 1.1 is the first iteration of a power search engine  aimed at better linking a world-wide learning community in support of urgent, climate-driven transport reform in cities. Knoogle is specifically tailored to help policy makers, local government, researchers, NGOs, activists, consultants, concerned citizens and the media keep up efficiently with the work and plans of the programs, groups, and sources leading the field of sustainable transport and sustainable cities, worldwide. http://newmobilityagenda.blogspot.com/2009/05/toolkit-building-world-wide-learning.html

Your town or region: an example of eGovernment ?
The European Commission invites local and regional governments to participate to the European eGovernment Awards 2009. The biennial European eGovernment Awards Consortium will pick the public sector  eGovernment ‘s  best practices. The awards are open to public organizations from  EU member states, EFTA countries and candidate countries.
The aim of the awards is to promote the exchange of good practices, and to show how electronic and web technologies can improve service delivery to citizens and businesses across Europe. Four categories are open: single market, empowering citizen, empowering businesses, and administrative efficiency.
Applications can be submitted online until 10 June (4 p.m) on http://www.epractice.eu/awards, in English. They must include a 30 000 to 50 000 characters case presentation.

European elections: 60 reasons to vote
The European Commission has published a document giving citizens 60 concrete reasons to vote. The economic crisis, climate change, transports, justice...It addresses all the fields of European policies.
This document aims to show citizens that the European Parliament's decisions affect them directly. For each field of activity, it explains to what extent EU policies have a direct impact on citizens' daily lives; it also provides a glimpse of the range of competences of the European Parliament on these issues.
http://www.ccre.org/news_detail_en.htm?ID=1597

A new office in Iran
A new UN-HABITAT Disaster Mitigation Office was officially opened on Saturday in the Iranian capital. The opening ceremony was held at the premises provided and equipped by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.
After the traditional ribbon cutting major personalities addressed the audience. They included the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Manoucher Mottaki, and the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Mr. Mohammad Saieedi Kia.
The Executive Director of UN-HABITAT, Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka, congratulated the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development for having taken the initiative of establishing the new office "at a time when disasters are causing more and more destruction and casualties all over the world".

European ranking: How do cities and regions communicate?
Westminster Watchdog, the think-tank that seek to further the quality of public administration, has published a report on how European cities and regions communicate.
The report is based a project called European Monitor of Government Communications. It aims to examine the level of communication of public institutions (ministries, public institutions selected regional and municipal) with regard to external and internal communication, as well as corporate identity.
One of the main findings of the report is that on average, EU cities, followed by EU ministries, communicate better than EU regions. In terms of external communication, on average, the regions in Greece, Bulgaria and Romania use more elements of communication than other EU regions. The cities in Belgium and Netherlands also use more elements of corporate identity than European cities.
The final ranking is based on the number of means of communication that are employed by the institutions. Besides, an expert jury evaluates the communications projects that have been realised in the last year. http://www.westminsterwatchdog.eu/content/files/151/emgc_2009_int.pdf

Call for best practices in Youth Policies and Programmes in Latin America and the Caribbean
The call falls within the framework of a collective project of international, regional and governmental organizations of which UNESCO is the Coordinator, in addition to academic and civil sectors to identify, disseminate and transfer best practices in youth policies and programmes in the region. The deadline for submission of proposals is 26 May 2009.
A representative - of the selected proposal - from each government or NGO will be invited to an International Meeting in Mexico in September 2009. All expenses (transport, accommodation, and meals) will be covered by the Organizing Committee. The meeting will provide a space for exchange with decision makers from different sectors. More information is available at http://youthpractices.ucol.mx

City of Buenos Aires adopts decree to combat climate change
The city of Buenos Aires is establishing a government team to combat climate change.  Mauricio Macri, the Head of Government of the City of Buenos Aires, created by Decree 137/09 an inter-Ministerial team to create protection strategies to combat global warming together with the necessary policies to implement them.
Action plan - An action plan will consider how vulnerable the city is, how it can cope the consequences of climate change, how households may be affected, what are the potential adaptation measures and what it would cost.
Targets: buildings and transport - This work program will include the following action: a design guide on energy efficiency for buildings and hotels, and subsidies to support sustainable construction and launching the city's first hybrid bus, within two months.

Ministers hail UN-HABITAT Lake Victoria project
Ministers responsible for water in East Africa have backed a proposal to expand a UN-HABITAT initiative aimed at benefiting towns in the region.
In a joint statement after a historic April 22-23 meeting bringing together water ministers, senior officials including permanent secretaries from both the water and finance ministries, and development partners in Entebbe, Uganda, the ministers cited the positive impacts a UN-HABITAT Lake Victoria water and sanitation initiative is having on towns around the continent's greatest lake.
They also called on development partners including the European Investment Bank and the African Development Bank to consider financing capital investments and capacity building activities for an expanded initiative through concessional loans and grants. http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=6587&catid=5&typeid=6&subMenuId=0

Water Project of the Year
Singapore’s Deep Tunnel Sewerage System (DTSS) was crowned the ‘Water Project of the Year’ at the Global Water Awards 2009 in Zurich, Switzerland last night.
The DTSS was selected as the water project with the most significant contribution to water technology and environmental protection.  The annual Global Water Awards, organised by the Global Water Intelligence, is widely recognised as one of the most prestigious symbol of achievement in the global water industry.
The DTSS will be showcased at the Singapore International Water Week 2009, along with many other innovative and sustainable water technologies and infrastructures in June 2009. Come 22 to 26 June, close to 10,000 delegates and trade visitors are expected to gather in Singapore to address challenges, showcase technologies, discover opportunities and celebrate achievements at the second Water Week this year. The Changi Water Reclamation Plant will be the star of this year’s Water Week where it will officially be opened by Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Local power for climate change results
The international agreement to be reached at the Copenhagen COP15 in December will fall short of expectations if local level governments’ key role in combating climate change is not recognised.
This was EUROCITIES’ message at a meeting this week with MEPS, representatives from Commissioner Piebalgs’ Cabinet, and the Permanent Representation of Sweden to the EU.
Politicians from some of Europe’s largest cities appealed for a formal recognition in the EU’s contribution to the agreement. Ronan Dantec, Vice-President of Nantes Metropole, said:
“Climate protection depends not only on agreement between nation states. Making a real difference depends on how people live their everyday lives - local action led by local government. We all know that local authorities are crucial to the effective implementation of policies and measures needed for Europe to reach its targets in this area.” http://www.eurocities.eu/include/lib/sql_news_card.php?id=1510