News Archives

30/11/2011 - 121 local governments in Japan report to cCCR.
30/11/2011 - Muslim Community Drives New Redevelopment Project.
29/11/2011 - UN-HABITAT extends support of water provision to 15 new cities in Eastern Africa.
28/11/2011 - 2010 Winter Olympics provided economic and cultural boost.
27/11/2011 - ICLEI part of global network pledging to green pilgrimages.
26/11/2011 - Less Crime Through Urban Design.
26/11/2011 - Luanda, capital of Angola, retains title of world's most expensive for expats.
25/11/2011 - Can Cincinnati Create a Truly Urban Casino? .
25/11/2011 - Great international interest in urban technology solutions made in Vienna.
25/11/2011 - Handbook shows way for public authorities to successfully buy green.
24/11/2011 - In Beach Towns, Parking Bans are DIY.
24/11/2011 - How to correct Chicago's open space shortage: 10 ideas that could help city's park-poor neighborhoods away from the lakefront.
24/11/2011 - EUROCITIES winners! .
23/11/2011 - City program aims for 1,000 benches in 5 boroughs.
23/11/2011 - Streetcars are Go in Cincinnati.
23/11/2011 - Metropolitan Police inspector Andrew Bayes speaks to French Mayors about the riots.
22/11/2011 - Dubai's Dirty Problem.
22/11/2011 - Study shows health benefits of bike sharing schemes (Spain) .
22/11/2011 - Share your city’s success story and become the next Big Idea @ Cities of Migration! .
21/11/2011 - Mass Transit Projects' High Cost Give Minimal Results.
21/11/2011 - Municipal Leadership on Immigrant Integration.
21/11/2011 - Join us in quest for better cities, Clos tells students.
21/11/2011 - "Reverse Graffiti" Artist Illustrates How Dirty Our Cities Really Are.
20/11/2011 - Interview of the Mayor of Helsinki, CTUR Partner.
19/11/2011 - Cities cooperating beyond their boundaries: Evidence through experience in European cities.
19/11/2011 - Creative Planning Helped to Avoid Transit Cuts.
18/11/2011 - Bremen inaugurates first bicycle barometer (Germany) .
18/11/2011 - Many Opt To Pay Parking Fines Rather Than Parking Fees.
18/11/2011 - A leap forward for cities in efficient cluster support.
18/11/2011 - Are Americans Ready to Live in Smaller Homes? .
17/11/2011 - Saving Pompeii with EU support.
17/11/2011 - We are Hamburg! Won't you join us? .
17/11/2011 - Electric SPARTACUS tram to connect Belgium and The Netherlands.
16/11/2011 - Speed Bumps Could Do More Than Slow You Down.
16/11/2011 - Durban initiative to clean up carbon footprint.
16/11/2011 - Join the seminar on street violence, November 29, 2011, in Paris.
15/11/2011 - St. Pölten Manifesto: European regions, cities and organisations for a better cohesion policy.
14/11/2011 - New Delhi Mayor Welcomes “Mayor’s Urban Planning Quick Guide”.
13/11/2011 - ICLEI Members are liveable communities.
12/11/2011 - How to Build a Better Park.
12/11/2011 - Let your city shine! .
11/11/2011 - Making a City in the Heart of the Oil Sands.
11/11/2011 - Learning Cities.
10/11/2011 - D.C. Programs Hope To Revitalize A Dying Waterway.
10/11/2011 - Cape Town awarded World Design Capital 2014.
9/11/2011 - Industrializing India.
9/11/2011 - Municipal employers and trade unions concerned about effects of crisis.
8/11/2011 - St. Pölten Manifesto: European regions, cities and organisations for a better cohesion policy.
8/11/2011 - Planners Working to Avoiding Transportation Disaster at Olympic Games.
7/11/2011 - Bordeaux's transport system representing 100 million trips per year and 54.7 million passengers.
7/11/2011 - Americans Think Planning Process is Unfair.
6/11/2011 - Are your buildings worth an award for being green?
5/11/2011 - The Challenge of City Branding.
5/11/2011 - LG Action final report and case study series on local climate and energy action.
4/11/2011 - New Immigrants Not Moving to Cities.
4/11/2011 - Cities cooperating beyond boundaries.
4/11/2011 - China's Architectural Personality Crisis.
3/11/2011 - ERDF budget 2014-2020: significant changes on urban policies.
3/11/2011 - Safer Drinking Scenes throughout Europe, learning from each other in order to prevent binge and heavy drinking.
3/11/2011 - Streetcars On The Rise Once Again.
3/11/2011 - Smarter Nairobi to respond to population explosion.
2/11/2011 - Citizen action and participation shape states and societies.
2/11/2011 - Investment in metropolitan Europe will drive recovery.
2/11/2011 - 13 cities are already ENGAGEd! Are you?
1/11/2011 - Municipal Leadership on Immigrant Integration.
1/11/2011 - Serbian municipalities awarded full ownership of streets, squares, parks and roads.
1/11/2011 - Building clean and efficient cities – a movie from the Urban Climate Project.

121 local governments in Japan report to cCCR
ICLEI Japan Office, with the support of Ministry of Environment, Japan and British Embassy Tokyo, has been implementing a unique cCCR project: 'Local Governments Climate Registry, Japan Project (Registry-Japan project)'.
The goal of the Registry-Japan project is to promote information sharing and disclosure among local governments in Japan as well as resolve a language issue.
Due to the language difference, it is a challenge for most of the municipalities in Japan to register their climate data to the cCCR website. Part of the project is that ICLEI Japan sends the survey to local governments and collects the data which will be analyzed and disclosed to the public through a newly developed website and the upcoming seminar in Japan.
Some of Japan’s data is also available on the cCCR website with the cooperation of Bonn's Climate Center, which organizes and manages the cCCR project and website.
ICLEI Japan sent the survey to 220 local governments in September and received 121 reports as of 2 November, which includes 225 mitigation projects and 314 action plans.
http://citiesclimateregistry.org/

Muslim Community Drives New Redevelopment Project
In Mumbai, a tight-knit community of Ismaili Muslims are beginning work on their 16.5 acres redevelopment project. The cluster of land, which is said to be in the heart of the city's southern tip, is to be completed by 2017.
"Bhendi Bazaar is home to the Dawoodi Bohras, a community of Muslims led by the 52nd Dai His Holiness Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin," says Carrie Baptist.
This community-driven project that will reshape the neighborhood will include plans to build mixed-use towers, with large public spaces and parking lots for cars.
"Overseen by the Saifee Burhani Upliftment Trust, the plan will re-house 25,000 people and 1,200 commercial establishments at no cost to the current inhabitants, giving each household full ownership of a 350 square-foot flat. It is a "no profit, no loss" project, as construction costs will be offset by profits from the construction of four towers — with parking, a mall and market-sale apartments — on 20 percent of the plot. Not only will this development be the first of its kind in Mumbai, but it will also change the face of the main city, as the area borders a main highway in southern Mumbai," says Baptist
http://www.thepolisblog.org/2011/11/community-driven-visions-of-modernity.html

UN-HABITAT extends support OF water provision TO 15 new cities in Eastern Africa
UN-HABITAT announced it will be expanding its successful Lake Victoria Water and Sanitation Initiative to fifteen more cities in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi, with support of US$4.2 million from the African Development Bank.
The announcement came during a visit to the sites by key international government representatives to see first-hand the work in Kenya's Kisumu, Bondo and Homa Bay municipalities in the West of the country.
Speaking during the visit, UN Undersecretary General and Executive Director of UN-HABITAT, Dr Joan Clos said: "With support of our donors and partners, we are excited to be able to expand our invaluable work in water and sanitation provision in this region. The lake provides a livelihood for nearly one-third of the populations of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania combined and the majority of these people are living without adequate water and sanitation. By providing these basic services we are paving the way for improved health and faster development in the region."
Lake Victoria provides livelihoods for around 30 million people in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. It is estimated that more than half of these people live below the poverty line. The rapidly growing urban centres in the Lake Victoria basin are playing an increasingly important role in the economic development of the region. However, the unplanned growth is having a serious impact on the already stressed ecosystem, threatening not only the environment but also the health and livelihoods of those that depend on the lake.
The Lake Victoria Water and Sanitation Initiative currently covers eleven cities in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. The expansion into Phase II will mean that water and sanitation provision is extended to nearly one million. With funds from the African Development Bank, UN-HABITAT will support the project implementation by providing hygiene training in schools and other public institutions and by extending the capacity of facilities upgraded in Phase I of the initiative.

2010 Winter Olympics provided economic and cultural boost
British Columbia's economy grew in 2010 with new businesses, jobs and an increase in visitor spending, all likely related to the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, says a University of British Columbia study that measured the impact of the Games.
In addition to the economic benefits, the report also noted other positive outcomes including the development of sport and culture across Canada, the inclusion and participation of Aboriginal groups and minorities and a heightened recognition of persons with disabilities.
"Throughout the Olympics and in the weeks immediately following, there was a real sense of success and pride among British Columbians and Canadians," says Rob VanWynsberghe, lead author of the study. "These feelings were well-founded, some real success stories came out of these Games.
The Olympic Games Impact (OGI) study Games-time report is the third in a series of four reports required by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to measure the overall impact of the 2010 Winter Games.
Led by VanWynsberghe, an assistant professor in the Department of Educational Studies at UBC, the OGI study uses 126 IOC-mandated indicators to assess the social, economic and environmental impacts of the Olympics on Vancouver, Whistler, British Columbia and Canada.
http://zunia.org/post/2010-winter-olympics-provided-economic-and-cultural-boost/

ICLEI part of global network pledging to green pilgrimages
A ban on cars on pilgrimage routes; solar panels for cathedral roofs; provision of fresh clean, water for pilgrims, and the planting of thousands of trees around sacred sites - these are just some of the initiatives which the founder members of the Green Pilgrimage Network pledged to implement yesterday. ICLEI Secretariats in both the Europe and Southern Asia are involved in the Network, which is the first in the world aimed at greening pilgrimage.
Secretary-General of Alliance of Religion and Conservation (ARC) one of the main organisers, Martin Palmer said, “Cities from China to Norway and faiths from all around the world today commit to making one of the most powerful religious experiences – pilgrimage – a living witness to a commitment to protect our living planet.”
Around 100 million people go on pilgrimage each year, according to the Alliance of Religions and Conservation. Such huge movements of people inevitably cause environmental problems around the world’s sacred places. Pilgrimage sites that once had 1,000 people a week arriving mostly on foot are now handling tens of thousands of people descending by coach or car, and requiring refreshments that are not only spiritual.
This places pressure on water and food supplies, sewage and waste disposal, accommodation and energy resources, while the carbon emissions involved in travel to pilgrim sites inevitably carries an environmental impact. The Network will strive to help the many faiths make their sacred sites and pilgrim cities as environmentally sustainable as possible. The launch event took place at the Sacred Land conference, where more than 90 delegates from around the world, representing all the major faiths converged.
The Hajj remains the biggest annual pilgrimage, with around two million Muslim pilgrims travelling to Mecca in Saudi Arabia each year. The beauty of places like this risks being damaged, as does their wildlife and biodiversity. This is important as sacred places are often also places with vital biodiversity, usually because their religious value over the centuries has protected them from development.
The Green Pilgrimage Network will bring faith and city representatives together to green sacred places, and will also reach out to pilgrims themselves to encourage them to ‘tread lightly upon the Earth’ – both at home and on their journeys.

Less Crime Through Urban Design
Environmental criminology may not be the most well-known field, but in this profile of Nikki Filipuzzi and her work throughout Calgary, Tamara Gignac shows how even the right amounts of shrubbery and light can make the city safer.
"The idea that man-made elements of our surroundings may encourage illegal activity and foster fear and apprehension is increasingly gaining acceptance among law enforcement agencies and municipalities.
'It’s not that Calgary is designed ‘wrong,’'said Filipuzzi, 'but I think we build so many sprawling communities so quickly that we don’t stop to consider crime. We’re not developing neighbourhoods in a way that reduces fear.'"
http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Better+urban+planning+reduce+crime/5633900/story.html

Luanda, capital of Angola, retains title of world's most expensive for expats
Luanda, the capital of oil-rich, is the most expensive city in the world for expatriates to live in while London is now cheaper than Rio de Janeiro, Hong Kong and Sydney, a survey has revealed. The southern African city won the dubious accolade for the second year running, narrowly edging out Tokyo, which was followed in third place by the Chadian capital N'Djamena, Moscow and Geneva.
Singapore also made the top ten for the first time, along with Sao Paulo in Brazil. The largest city in the western and southern hemispheres, it and its neighbour Rio de Janeiro have become the most expensive locations for expatriates in the whole of the Americas since the real hit its highest mark against the US dollar in 12 years.
Meanwhile London, previously as high as second on the list, has dropped to 18th position due to the rapid climb of other world cities. While its remains among the most expensive world cities to rent a property, go to the cinema or drive a car, it is dwarfed by others in the cost of basic goods and services.
http://www.urbangateway.org/content/news/luanda-capital-angola-retains-title-worlds-most-expensive-expats

Can Cincinnati Create a Truly Urban Casino?
With its first casino currently under construction, Cincinnati is attempting to redefine the stereotype with a consciously urban design that turns the typical casino inside-out.
Despite an industry standard built around attracting visitors and keeping them trapped, the new Cincinnati casino seeks to avoid the "casino island" effect, says Stephen Samuels, a local urban planner who led early efforts to organize the community to plan for the casino’s arrival.
Instead, the gaming destination will have multiple entrances, outward-facing restaurants, and a transparent facade in an effort to complement a diverse collection of surrounding neighborhoods and activities.
http://www.theatlanticcities.com/design/2011/10/reimagining-the-downtown-casino/372/

Great international interest in urban technology solutions made in Vienna
TINA VIENNA processes the best and most innovative Viennese solutions for dissemination, presents them at international level and in doing so meets with great interest. Numerous international organisations and representatives of cities and regions inform themselves on Vienna’s solutions in the field of urban and environmental technologies and the activities of TINA VIENNA. As a representative of the Korea Institute of Construction Technology, Ms Hye-Jin Cho from South Korea visited TINA VIENNA in October 2011 to obtain information on Vienna’s urban technologies and the projects and activities implemented by the City of Vienna, particularly in the area of smart city technologies.
http://tinavienna.at/great-international-interest-in-urban-technology-solutions-made-in-vienna/

Handbook shows way for public authorities to successfully buy green
Freiburg, Germany, 31 October 2011 - Over 2 trillion Euros is spent on public contracts on a yearly basis in the EU, translating to 19 percent of its GDP. It is clear that there is huge potential to make this spending more sustainable. ICLEI has been working with the European Commission to produce guidance on green public procurement (GPP) which will help public authorities to reduce their environmental impact, while complying with the procurement rules. The result is the new edition of the Buying Green! Handbook, published on 26 October 2011.
The Handbook is an indispensible tool for public authorities, offering step-by-step guidance to help them reduce the environmental impact of their purchases. It identifies strategies for GPP and explains in detail how these can be implemented at each stage of the procurement process. In addition to explaining how GPP can be put into practice under the EU procurement rules, numerous examples from cities and regions across the EU-27 illustrate its positive economic and environmental impacts.
For example, CO2 emissions would be cut by 15 million tonnes per year if the whole EU adopted the same environmental criteria for lighting and equipment as ICLEI member city Turku, Finland, leading to a 50 percent reduction in electricity consumption. The authorities featured in the Handbook range from the small municipality of Beckerich, Luxembourg, which has switched to more than 90 percent renewable sources for its electricity, to the Central Procurement Directorate of Hungary, which awarded green contracts worth over €335 million last year.
By addressing factors such as energy and water consumption, reduction of hazardous substances, use of recycled materials and proper waste management, GPP can also help deliver cost savings across a number of product and service groups. Cities reaping the rewards of these savings include ICLEI member city Vienna, Austria, which saved €44.4 million and over 100,000 tonnes of CO2 between 2004 and 2007, through its EcoBuy programme.
While it is intended for public sector procurers, the Handbook is also a useful reference for policy makers and businesses who are either implementing their own green purchasing or responding to tenders. Topics covered include: how to secure political and in-house support for greener purchasing; engaging with suppliers to ensure successful tenders, sources of information and criteria; legal and value-for-money considerations; life-cycle costing and comprehensive guidance for construction, timber, electricity and food and drink contracts.
A short summary document and the full Buying Green! Handbook are available at: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/gpp

In Beach Towns, Parking Bans are DIY
It's notoriously difficult to park in Southern California beach cities, but as Tony Barboza reports, not all "no parking" signs are legitimate.
"The hot spots for phony signs are where the priciest real estate meets the most desirable surf and sand.
'Those are the areas where systemically we have this problem,' said Lisa Tent, the senior code enforcement officer in Malibu who has sent pointed letters to homeowners who live near Lechuza Beach, ordering them to remove the signs in front of their homes. Many cooperate, but not always for long."
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-adv-fake-beach-parking-20111110,0,1628151,full.story

How to correct Chicago's open space shortage: 10 ideas that could help city's park-poor neighborhoods away from the lakefront
Ideas are bubbling that can help Chicago fix the dismaying lack of open space away from its park-rich lakefront.
New York is closing lightly trafficked local streets and turned them into temporary playgrounds. San Francisco is taking parking spaces and transforming them into permanent mini-parks. In Chicago, transportation planners are quietly plotting how to weave abandoned railroad lines and disconnected strips of riverfront parks into a network of trails that would rival the city’s heavily used lakefront bike path.
Residents of Chicago’s most park-poor areas, meanwhile, haven’t been waiting for City Hall to bring more green space to them. They’ve been holding rallies and marches. And they’re starting to get results.
In spite of Chicago’s massive budget deficit, such examples reveal that Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the people of his city have plenty of creative, cost-efficient weapons at their disposal as they seek to transform the city’s “park deserts.”
Those weapons include big pots of federal money that can create bike trails and make it easier to walk or bike to the city’s existing parks. Designers also can be enlisted in the battle for better parkland, recognizing their ability to craft imaginative landscapes that make even the smallest parks powerful magnets (above, a new park alongside the future Bloomingdale Trail).
http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/theskyline/2011/10/how-to-correct-chicagos-open-space-shortage-10-ideas-that-could-help-citys-park-poor-neighborhoods-a.html

EUROCITIES winners!
EUROCITIES members Bydgoszcz, Zaragoza and Rotterdam were honoured during the network’s annual conference, EUROCITIES 2011 Genoa, for their pioneering urban regeneration projects. The awards recognise outstanding achievements by city administrations in carrying out local actions which improve the quality of life for citizens.
More than 50 entries were submitted in three categories: participation, cooperation and innovation, and judged by an independent jury in the context of the conference theme, ‘planning for people’.
A shortlist of nine cities was drawn up in August, and the following winners were announced at a ceremony at the Acquario di Genova on 2 November 2011:
-Cooperation: ‘The Mill Island’, Bydgoszcz
-Participation: ‘Este no es un solar – this is not a plot’, Zaragoza
-Innovation: ‘Do-it-yourself houses’, Rotterdam
Presenting the awards, Paolo Pissarello, Vice-Mayor of Genoa and chair of the jury, remarked:
“This year’s winners demonstrate the capacity of local authorities to design and implement urban regeneration initiatives responding directly to the needs of citizens. By planning for people we are creating more liveable cities.”

City program aims for 1,000 benches in 5 boroughs
Pedestrians across the city will now have new places to rest.
The Department of Transportation launched its CityBench program, through which it will install 1,000 benches across the five boroughs at places like bus stops, commercial districts and senior centers over the course of three years. The first benches, at Chelsea's Covello Senior Center, were unveiled Thursday afternoon.
“Older New Yorkers are extremely active, and investing in benches around the city gives them the opportunity to set out for their destination and have the pleasure of taking breaks when they need it,” said Department for the Aging Commissioner Lilliam Barrios-Paoli, in a statement.
These benches were designed with comfort in mind, said Ignacio Ciocchini, the director of design for Chelsea Improvement Co., who designed the benches. Each seats three people, with room for their personal belongings, children or pets, he added. The benches are wider than average, to allow more space between individuals. Two of the benches were installed at the Covello Senior Center.
http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20111020/REAL_ESTATE/111029991

Streetcars are Go in Cincinnati
In Cincinnati, voters have defeated an attempt to block the city's new streetcar, which now will move forward and could be operational as early as 2013. The new streetcar will link downtown and the uptown district around the University.
According to Kaid Benfield, "the streetcar will help tremendously because it will not only be a sustainable form of transportation to jobs and amenities but also attract investment near its stops, due to the of the permanence of its fixed route. One would think this would be a no-brainer."
Not only will the streetcar serve two significant centers, downtown and the uptown district, but Benfield says, "it will serve and help renew the wonderful historic district of Over-the-Rhine, which only a decade ago had fallen into such serious disinvestment and abandonment that 90 percent of its properties had become vacant and at least one survey called it the most dangerous neighborhood in America."
Kevin Osborne, reporter for the CityBeat writes, "Studies have indicated the local streetcar system would spark nearly $1.4 billion in new development on vacant and dilapidated properties along its route."
http://sustainablecitiescollective.com/kaidbenfield/31364/cincinnati-voters-clear-way-streetcar-joining-national-trend

Metropolitan Police inspector Andrew Bayes speaks to French Mayors about the riots
The Deputy Chief of the department of Crime Prevention and Partnerships of the London Metropolitan Police, Andrew Bayes, met with some 30 French Mayors to talk about the August riots in England and the response of the police, during the Executive Committee of the French Forum for Urban Security, on October 5, 2011, in Paris.
Mr Bayes recalled that the riots started after a young man, Mark Duggan, was shot dead during a police operation in North London on August 4th. The Independent Police Complaints Commission is currently carrying an investigation on this incident. He also recalled that a policeman had been killed in Tottenham during the 1985 riots.
Mr Bayes explained that since the riots, the police had spent a lot of time in the affected neighbourhoods, patrolling the streets and meeting residents. He said that the Metropolitan Police had been overwhelmed by the scope and violence of the riots, as well as by the fact that looters used social networks and encrypted text messages.
Since there is no national police in Great Britain, Scotland Yard had to call police forces from all over the country to help it control the situation: 49 of the 52 regional police forces sent officers to the capital. On August 9, some 16,000 men were patrolling the streets of London in the most important deployment ever registered in the country. This massive response, said Mr Bayes, restored calm and order.
http://www.efus.eu/en/topics/risks-forms-of-crime/collective-violence/partners/2464/

Dubai's Dirty Problem
In Dubai, the Burj Khalifa is the tallest building in the world. But it shares one problem will all skyscrapers in Dubai - there is no central sewage infrastructure to accommodate the waste they produce.
According to Maggie Koerth-Baker, Kate Ascher, author of The Heights: Anatomy of a Skyscraper, explain what happens to sewage from the Burj and Dubai's other tall buildings.
In order for these tall buildings to dispose their waste, the buildings have access to "a municipal system but many of them actually use trucks to take the sewage out of individual buildings and then they wait on a queue to put it into a waste water treatment plant, said Ascher." These trucks, she says can wait up to 24 hours before they get to the head of the queue.
Ascher explains that Dubai emerged in the last 50 years from a sleepy Bedouin town to what it is today and "literally can build anything, including a building of 140 or 150 stories. But designing a municipal network of sewage treatment is in some ways more complex."
http://boingboing.net/2011/11/08/what-happens-when-you-flush-a-toilet-in-the-worlds-tallest-building.html

Study shows health benefits of bike sharing schemes (Spain)
A study on the health impacts of the Bicing bike sharing scheme in Barcelona, shows that the initiative saves 12 lives every year. In addition, the scheme contributed to reduced yearly CO2 emissions by an estimated 9.000 metric tons.
A study done under the TAPAS (Transportation Air pollution and Physical ActivitieS) project, by researchers at the Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology (CREAL), in Barcelona, concluded that this city’s bike sharing system is a life saver, responsible for saving an estimated twelve lives every year.
Despite the concerns with the health hazards related with accidents and exposure to air pollution, this study found that the health benefits, resulting from the increased physical activity of users, far outweigh the risks.
In addition, according to the same study, Barcelona’s bike sharing system is directly responsible for reducing CO2 emissions by an estimated 9.000 tons per year. Moreover, the senior author of the study, Mark Nieuwenhnuijsen, sees potential for improvement in both the environmental and health fronts, since the percentage of all trips done by bicycle in Barcelona, is still relatively low compared with other European cities.
http://www.eltis.org/index.php?uid=ZGZkZQLX&ID1=5&id=60&news_id=2828

Share your city’s success story and become the next Big Idea @ Cities of Migration!
Successful cities are led by innovative, forward-looking local governments that work hard to serve the best interests of the public, including new immigrants. These cities view inclusion and the diversity of the city as core values and assets in today’s global economy.
Local governments have significant capacity to use the authority and instruments of public office to integrate migrants and provide equal opportunities for all residents.
Cities of Migration wants to know more about what local governments around the world are doing to make immigrant integration a success. How can city services, policies and practices help build inclusive, resilient communities and contribute to a shared urban prosperity?
We invite you to share innovative, sucessful examples of immigrant integration practice that are led and delivered by local governments. Be the next Big Idea @ Cities of Migration.
Deadline for Entries: January 30, 2012
http://citiesofmigration.ca/good-ideas-in-integration/municipal/submit-a-good-idea/

Mass Transit Projects' High Cost Give Minimal Results
Factors such as age, labor costs, real estate, and construction all factor into why cities are paying more money for transit projects, but are still getting less on their return, writes David Lepeska for The Atlantic Cities.
Subway costs have remained relatively low internationally in comparison to places like New York. While Singapore is building the world's longest and fully automatic underground transit line at $130 million per kilometer, New York's subway line is costing $1.7b per km, the most expensive line of all time.
"Robert Paaswell, engineering professor at the City College of New York and director of the University Transportation Research Center, says costs are so high in Chicago and New York because their systems are the country's oldest and thus the most expensive to upgrade," writes Lepeska.
Also, United States population find public transit projects less of a priority in comparison to other European countries.
“There's no urgency by governments or citizens here to get subways done, and when it finally happens the construction causes so much inconvenience that people don't like it,” said Paaswell, a former CTA executive director. “In Europe, they don't care too much about it, they just blast right through and get it done.”
http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2011/11/1-billion-doesnt-buy-much-transit-infrastructure-anymore/456/

Join us in quest for better cities, Clos tells students
UN-HABITAT Executive Director Dr. Joan Clos on Tuesday told students at the University of Nairobi that he considered universities as strategic partners in the quest for sustainable urban development.
In a speech on the Challenges of urbanization in Sub-Saharan Africa and the role of universities,he spoke of the need to rethink our cities and to elaborate a new urban paradigm: "Urban planning and design is the key to a sustainable urban future in the medium and long term. Concepts such as density, diversity, equity, efficiency should be the base for this new paradigm," he said. "Hope is with the universities of developing countries. The universities are strategic partners for UN-HABITAT and we will cooperate with them to face the growth of urban areas and to focus on urban planning and design as a solution to improve our cities. It is your turn to change the paradigm and to create better cities."
The audience of several hundred included many students, the Director General of the United Nations Office in Nairobi, Ms. Sahle-Work Zewde; the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of Nairobi, Professor George Magoha; Professor Paul Syagga, from the Department of Real Estate and Construction Management; Mr. Tom Odongo, Director of Planning at the City Council of Nairobi; and Professor Peter Ngau, from the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Nairobi.

"Reverse Graffiti" Artist Illustrates How Dirty Our Cities Really Are
Grist profiles a British street artist who specializes in creating images on dirty urban spaces (like tunnel walls) by simply washing away the grime.
The images Curtis creates may be beautiful, but they hide an ugly truth: the walls, tunnels and other surfaces he uses for a canvas are layered in pollutants. As Greg Hanscom writes,
"Street artist Paul Curtis, better known as 'Moose,'...doesn't use spray paint or wallpaper paste -- the usual tools of this trade. Instead, he wields scrub brushes, old socks, cleaning fluid, and, when he's living large, a high-pressure hose. He creates images by cleaning shapes into filthy urban surfaces such as retaining walls, signs, and tunnels. People have called it 'reverse graffiti,' 'clean graffiti,' and 'negative space.'
He is fond of carving the forms of flowers and trees onto dirty surfaces, adding organic forms, as delicate as paper cutouts, to the hard edges of the urban landscape. 'The environmental message [in my art] is unavoidable,' he says. 'I'm writing in grime.'"
http://www.grist.org/cities/2011-11-04-dr.-dirt-street-artist-scrubs-images-into-the-urban-landscape

Interview of the Mayor of Helsinki, CTUR Partner
CTUR is an URBACT project made up of 10 European cities looking for joint, effective and sustainable solutions in the field of cruise traffic and urban regeneration. Helsinki, the capital and largest city in Finland is a partner city of the project. Designated “World Design Capital” in 2012, the city is currently working on a major project which will turn the area of Hernesaari into a new seaside residential, business and leisure district. The Mayor of Helsinki, Jussi Pajunen, shares his views and projects in this interview conducted by Marianna Kajantie from the City of Helsinki Cultural Office.
http://urbact.eu/en/header-main/news-and-events/view-one/news/?entryId=5092

Cities cooperating beyond their boundaries: Evidence through experience in European cities
At the start of a new millennium, Europe is faced with major challenges, most of them resulting mainly from the globalisation process. The issues at stake cover a wide range of policy domains, the main ones being economic competitiveness and regeneration, social cohesion, demographic change, environmental sustainability, cultural development and democratic renewal. These challenges are linked, so answers to one of the challenges can even create problems regarding another. The policy of Europe 2020 reflects the urgency to meet some of the overriding challenges at all levels. The success in meeting these challenges will depend on the ability of Europeans to innovate, to accept new concepts and values, in other words new solutions to problems and new lifestyles.
http://www.eukn.org/E_library/Skills_Capacity_Building/Partnership_Working/Cities_cooperating_beyond_their_boundaries_Evidence_through_experience_in_European_cities

Creative Planning Helped to Avoid Transit Cuts
The Milwaukee County Transit System had planned to reduce service due to a reduction in state aid in 2012. According to Jeramey Jannene, "with some last minute creative planning, they were able to avoid many cuts thanks to the use of CMAQ funds."
In Milwaukee, the transit system had proposed a new express system, the Bayshore – Airport Express, that will use Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) Improvement funds to fund the project instead.
The CMAQ funds, according to Jannene, are "allocated out of a competitive bidding process, and will provide funding to institute 'express service' for two years along a number of key corridors which will replace segments of a number of routes."
Jannene says that the express service "will connect Bayshore, UWM, Downtown, and Bay View with stops roughly every 1/4 of a mile, seven days a week, with headways of 10-15 minutes during the rush hours, and 15-20 minutes during off-peak times."
http://urbanmilwaukee.com/2011/10/27/introducing-the-bayshore-airport-express-bus-service/

Bremen inaugurates first bicycle barometer (Germany)
A 25% cycling mode share makes Bremen a “champion” cycling city and the cycling capital in Germany for cities of over 500,000. A newly installed bicycle barometer is another step the city is taking to raise further awareness of cycling and to highlight its importance as a daily transport mode.
Following the official opening of the bicycle street “Wachmannstrasse” in early September, on the 21st September 2011 the first bicycle barometer in Bremen was inaugurated by Dr Joachim Lohse, Senator for Environment. It marks a further step Bremen is taking to improve the infrastructure for non-motorised traffic and to further increase the cycling share in the city. The bicycle barometer, located on the Wilhelm Kaisen Bridge, is the first of eight bicycle counters the city is planning to install in the coming months (the Wilhelm Kaisen counter will be the only one with a digital display).
The counter collects data for different time frames (hour, day, month, year) through loops under the pavement. The data are automatically displayed and later analysed to determine the development of cycling in the city. The information is also transmitted to the traffic management centre.
http://www.eltis.org/index.php?uid=ZGZkZQLX&ID1=5&id=60&news_id=2885

Many Opt To Pay Parking Fines Rather Than Parking Fees
In downtown Chicago, the parking lots add an extra $2 "congestion" tax for parking the whole day. Instead, many park illegally at Metra Station receiving parking tickets just to avoid the congestion pricing.
According to Mick Swasko and Ted Gregory, parking illegally and receiving a $15 ticket is cheaper than driving to downtown Chicago and parking for the day, due to the extra $2 "congestion" tax for parking in public garages or lots.
"Officials have proposed doubling the price of parking tickets to $30, from $15, to change the economic equation of those willing to pay a ticket for a place to park," said Swasko and Gregory.
Many residents are willing to pay others to rent out monthly parking spots just to avoid congestion pricing, "like one ad found on Craigslist now seeking $75 a month with six months' payment up front for a spot near Metra's Route 59 station in Naperville," said Swasko and Gregory.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-parking-crunch-20111103,0,3020478.story

A leap forward for cities in efficient cluster support
CLUSNET closing conference held in Lyon on 13 - 14 October 2011
Participants from all over Europe met for the CLUSNET project’s final conference on 13-14 October 2011 in Lyon, to discuss the results of the three-year cooperation on city based cluster support policies.
Chaired by renowned urbanist Greg Clark, the event proved an excellent opportunity for cities to share views and experiences. Örjan Sölvell and Göran Lindquist, professors from the Stockholm School of Economics, presented the project’s final report, ‘Organising clusters for innovation: lessons from city regions in Europe’. The study highlights innovation gaps, the main challenges for cluster management, and recommendations for overcoming these. Their research identified the two main ways of organising and managing clusters, and other aspects related to clusters and innovation.
Nikos Pantalos, on behalf of the European Commission, gave a summary of EU initiatives on cluster support. He also shared his views on smart specialisation and the potential benefits of the internationalisation of clusters, for example through the European Enterprise Network. CLUSNET cities also presented their own experiences and lessons learnt from the project.
The evening reception, held in Lyon’s city hall, was hosted by Jean-Michel Daclin, Vice President of Greater Lyon.
On the second day, participants took a tour of the Rhone-Alpes cinema studios, an important part of the Lyon media cluster, where they learnt about ‘imaginove’, one of the most important local clusters on media.
Financed by INTERREG IVC, the project brings together the cities of Lyon, Barcelona, Budapest, Dortmund, Eindhoven, Gothenburg, Helsinki, Leipzig, Manchester and Munich with EUROCITIES and the Stockholm School of Economics (SSE). The objective was to improve the effectiveness of cluster support policies in larger European city-regions, exchanging best practices between the participants and further developing international cooperation between clusters, cluster managers and cities.

Are Americans Ready to Live in Smaller Homes?
As the world population reaches 7 billion some U.S. builders are working on smaller, compact homes.
According to Joyce, as the world population continues to grow and developing continue to consume goods on par with developed nations, resource availability shrinks. Zeta Communities in California is constructing pre-built homes that are as small as 300 square feet. The homes are built and assembled in a factory and are highly efficient, according to Zeta President Naomi Porat.
"The population all around the world is moving toward the cities," says the former real estate executive. "Land is a vital resource, there's not a lot remaining, so we need to think about creative ways to use space."
http://www.npr.org/2011/11/01/141868233/as-population-consumption-rise-builder-goes-small

Saving Pompeii with EU support
At the end of October, torrential rain caused serious damage to the world famous archaeological site at Pompeii in Italy. Violent storms had already caused part of the site to collapse in 2010.
On 7 November, Regional Policy Commissioner Johannes Hahn visited Pompeii and agreed with the Italian authorities on an action plan entailing investments of EUR 105 million, to be financed from a national contribution and a European contribution, to ensure that Pompeii’s precious legacy of the past is preserved.
The European investment will be funded from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) under a programme entitled ‘Attrattori culturali, naturali e turismo’, designed to support the cultural, natural and tourist attractions of Campania, Puglia, Calabria and Sicily between 2007 and 2013.
For more information visit:
http://ec.europa.eu/italia/attualita/primo_piano/pol_regionale/hahn_roma_pompei_it.htm

We are Hamburg! Won't you join us?
Each year the city of Hamburg recruits over 600 people for training towards jobs in areas such as the city administration, taxation, police and fire services. Annual monitoring of the city’s vital signs – from economic data to demographic profiles – also made it clear to city officials that their recruits did not represent the diversity of the city’s population. Young people of migrant origin were underrepresented with the city administration and services.
http://www.eukn.org/E_library/Social_Inclusion_Integration/Community_Development/Citizens_Participation/We_are_Hamburg_Won_t_you_join_us

Electric SPARTACUS tram to connect Belgium and The Netherlands
The Flemish government has decided to implement a high-speed electric tramway between the cities of Hasselt (Belgium) and Maastricht (The Netherlands). The new line has the potential of attracting 6.8 million travellers per year.
In the framework of the Spartacus project, that aims to enhance public transport connections in the Belgian province of Limburg, a fundamental choice was made for one of the lines covered by the project. It concerns the connection between Limburg's principal city of Hasselt and the city of Maastricht just across the border with the Netherlands. Public transport operator De Lijn first had to conduct a study into the potential number of travellers between both cities. Simulations estimate this potential at 6,800,000 travellers per year. This means that the tramline could be as successful as the Belgian Coastal tram, one of De Lijn's most successful tram lines (12,8 travellers a year, but operating at a higher frequency and with carriages twice as long as the envisaged Spartacus tram).
The new infrastructure will cost €122.2 million and will be realised through public-private partnerships. The choice for electrification implies a higher investment cost, but will pay for itself through lower exploitation costs. Moreover, 12 electric carriages (€48 million) will be bought or hired and a new depot will be built (€23 million). De Lijn has been charged with the task to develop collaboration agreements with The Netherlands and the Flemish cities and municipalities.
http://www.eltis.org/index.php?uid=ZGZkZQLX&ID1=5&id=60&news_id=2880

Speed Bumps Could Do More Than Slow You Down
A technology company in Maryland has developed a speed bump that captures the kinetic energy of the cars driving over it and sends it back into the grid.
New Energy Technologies, the company in question, says the cost of the construction is paid back in energy created in 2-3 years:
"It is targeting installations in parking lots, border crossings, exit ramps, neighborhoods with traffic calming zones, rest areas, toll booths, and travel plazas. Electricity would power roadway signs, street and building lights, storage systems for back-up and emergency power, the company says."
http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/intelligent-energy/speed-bumps-could-make-renewable-electricity/10078

Durban initiative to clean up carbon footprint
With the huge UN COP17 climate change summit just 18 days away, the eThekwini municipality has revealed a ground-breaking project as part of its greening programme to offset the carbon footprint of Durban’s hosting of the event.
eThekwini's deputy head of environmental planning and climate protection, Debra Roberts, said that a special initiative nicknamed ‘Community Ecosystem Based Adaptation’ (CEBA) would help clean up the city after the event.
Each CEBA credit will cost about $10 (R80) and the money raised will be used for the official CEBA greening site along the Umbilo River catchment area. Unemployed people from the neighboring communities will then be employed as ‘green collar’ workers to first remove alien plants and trees. The project therefore does not only benefit ecological sustainability of the river, but also the social sustainability of poor communities
Initial funding for the project would come from the city, corporates and through the Wildlands Conservation Trust. It is estimated that the project would result in offsetting about 16 000 tons of carbon, which would more than cover the conference’s local carbon footprint.
The funds raised through CEBA credits would see COP17 delegates, businesses and even ordinary Durbanites being able to actively contribute to this pioneering climate change adaptation initiative.
The CEBA initiative will be officially launched during COP17.
More about ICLEI's involvement with COP17, please visit www.iclei.org/climate-roadmap

Join the seminar on street violence, November 29, 2011, in Paris
Gangs, riots, and violence committed by groups of young people in the public space are important issues for many European cities. Efus launched the “EU RECO STREET VIOLENCE” project in order to collect the existing knowledge and practices on this subject. Supported by the European Commission, this project also gathers the Spanish and Belgian Forums for Urban Security, the Emilia-Romagna Region (Italy), the National Community Safety Network – NCSN (UK) and database specialist Psytel.
The objective is to include all the information gathered in a database accessible online.
Efus is organising, together with the project partners, a working seminar on November 29, in Paris. European experts, specialists of the national Forums as well as member cities from several countries will exchange on the various issues of street violence, in particular the phenomena of gangs and gang-like structures and riots.
Efus member cities are cordially invited to participate in this event, and share their experience with the partners of the project.
If you are interested, please contact us at: sperber@efus.eu

St. Pölten Manifesto: European regions, cities and organisations for a better cohesion policy
Welcoming the draft cohesion regulations, regions, cities and their representative organisations agreed that there is still a lot to do to ensure that the full impact of cohesion policy is felt on the ground. They emphasised the importance of maintaining an adequate level of funding, a strong integrated approach to territorial development, and stressed the importance of partnerships directly involving local and regional authorities in the decision-making process.
This came in response to the publication of the legislative proposals for the future cohesion policy by the European Commission and to the current budget proposals, following a summit of European territories held on 21 October in St. Pölten - Niederösterreich (A). Speaking for the first time ever with one voice, they adopted the “St. Pölten Manifesto”, a declaration urging the Council of the EU and the European Parliament to support regional and local interests in cohesion policy.
http://www.ccre.org/news_detail_en.htm?ID=2173

New Delhi Mayor Welcomes “Mayor’s Urban Planning Quick Guide”
A meeting was held in New Delhi 20-21 October 2011 to discuss the preparation of a globally relevant guide on urban planning for mayors and elected local government officials.
“Today New Delhi has overtaken Mumbai as the largest city in India with a population of just over 21 million people”, said Mayor Rajni Abbi to inaugurate the meeting. “Daily, I am confronted with the reality of lopsided planning which ignored the poor living in rapidly growing neighborhoods at the margins of the city. While it led to prosperity and better living conditions for city residents living nearer to the core, outlying neighborhoods were simply ignored. Unfortunately, this has led to growing levels of urban poverty. City leaders have a special role and responsibility in urban planning, and I commend UN-Habitat for taking the initiative for designing this guide.” she said.
Over two days, a group of mayors, city planners and urban academics met to agree on ways in which local governments elected officials can use urban planning as a means of reducing poverty, enhancing local economic developing and making our cities for sustainable and livable. The meeting was organized a month after the mission of UN-Habitat’s Executive Director Dr. Joan Clos undertaken to India during which commitments to increase collaboration between the agency and the Government of India were made.
http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=10559&catid=5&typeid=6&AllContent=1

ICLEI Members are liveable communities
The International Awards for Liveable Communities (LivCom Awards), endorsed by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), is the World’s only awards competition focusing on best practices regarding the management of the local environment.
The objective of LivCom Awards is to develop and share international best practice, with as further goal improving the quality of life of individual citizens through the creation of ‘liveable communities’.
This year's LivCom Awards kicked off on 24 October in Seoul with about 450 delegates from 77 cities registered in 26 countries and ended in a big success on 30 October 2011.
http://www.iclei.org/index.php?id=1487&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=4734&tx_ttnews[backPid]=983&cHash=49d5a17115

How to Build a Better Park
New Urbanist Peter Katz presents his guidelines for creating a popular urban park. First published in 1995, Katz's ideas still hold up.
Katz bemoans the "windswept plazas and sterile atria" created by corporate developments in downtowns across the country:
"A public park should look and feel truly public. Being bounded by streets or sidewalks on all sides is one sure way to communicate "publicness." The presence of civic buildings and monuments also reinforces this public character.
Conversely, spatial relationships get confusing when private houses or buildings back up to a park, without a clear public zone in between. This ambiguous edge fosters conflict between those who live next to the park, and others who come from the surrounding area. A better approach would be for houses to front the park, so that porches, front yards, and streets buffer the edge between public use and private enjoyment."
This is 1 of 5 tips Katz presents for making great urban parks.
http://newurbannetwork.com/news-opinion/blogs/peter-katz/15519/what-makes-good-urban-park

Let your city shine!
The 6th annual RegioStars awards will include a ‘CityStar’ category
The European Commission’s annual ‘RegioStars’ awards recognise good practices in regional development and highlight innovative projects which serve as an example to other regions.
The 2013 awards will feature a new category, ‘CityStar’, focusing on integrated approaches to sustainable development in cities. This is an ideal opportunity to showcase a development project in your city. Cities are encouraged to submit proposals which demonstrate the merits of an integrated approach.
Successful cities will be asked to present their projects to an independent jury during the 2012 Open Days, and an awards ceremony will take place in February 2013. The deadline for 2013 entries is 20 April 2012, and details of the criteria can be found at the link below.
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/cooperate/regions_for_economic_change/regiostars_en.cfm

Making a City in the Heart of the Oil Sands
Fort McMurray is one of Canada's fastest-growing, wealthiest and most expensive cities...with no downtown.
As the base of operations for the oil sands of northern Alberta, Fort McMurray has experienced such massive growth that little attention has been paid to making it a place worth living in. But its residents are extremely well-paid -- so much so that many of them can afford to live elsewhere and fly in. Now Fort McMurray is trying to turn itself into a real city.
"Fort McMurray is cold. It’s remote. It’s pricey: Food is 73 per cent more expensive than the Alberta average, while shelter commands an 88 per cent premium. It’s a town built on work. Its definition of play has tended to include more drinking and more drugs than other places. Its downtown is, in places, uncomfortably seedy. Its trucks seem to outnumbers its pedestrians.
The municipality has spent $535,000 hiring a cadre of consultants and urban designers...in hopes of shaping it into something great. Taken individually, their ideas are hardly breathtaking: a network of river parks and paths. Wider sidewalks and better transit. An Ottawa-like outdoor skating area on the Snye, an arm of the Clearwater River. A downtown civic centre. A public square surrounded by restaurants. An arena fit for a WHL team. A stadium fit for a professional baseball team. An outdoor performance centre. Taken together, though, those ideas point to a place that might sound, to many, attractive."

Learning Cities
Cities are on the rise as nations and states see their control and importance shrinking, delegates at a conference on 'learning cities' were told last month.
The meeting 20-21 October meeting was held by UN-HABITAT with the Spanish Secretariat of State for Housing and Urban Affairs, and the Ministry of Public Works.
"Nations and States are shrinking in their control and importance and thus cities are rising," said Tim Campbell, director of the Urban Age Institute. "When cities learn, they reduce the risk of change. They also learn to improve their economies, their land use, their planning."
For details on the event at the Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, a UNESCO world heritage site, click here.
http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=10580&catid=5&typeid=6&subMenuId=0

D.C. Programs Hope To Revitalize A Dying Waterway
Pollution has caused the Anacostia River to suffer, writes Ryan Donahue, and efforts to revitalize the area were put on hold just as the recession began. Since then, the District has implemented programs to help restore this neglected area.
According to the Washington Post, the Anacostia is known by some Washingtonians as "the Potomac's ugly cousin, the barrier that sets off the city's poorer sections from Capitol Hill." In an effort to clean this area, Congress devoted $130 million for cleanup of the river. In 2010, the "Anacostia River Cleanup Initiative" began which is a program that adds a 5-cent tax on plastic bags. Donahue states that the program "has been a major success, dramatically cutting plastic bag litter, and raising $2.5 million for building trash-blocking grates and supporting local cleanup efforts."
The Capitol Riverfront is another program established by the city, located at the base of the Anacostia. Alongside is a 16-mile system of trails which will be dubbed the Anacostia Riverwalk. The Riverwalk will incorporate "underused parks along the river," and will link both sides of the river and be connected by a system of bridges that will allow users to create loops of various lengths, says Donahue.
http://cityparksblog.org/2011/10/21/revitalizing-d-c-s-forgotten-river-with-parks-and-trails/

Cape Town awarded World Design Capital 2014
Cape Town has been named World Design Capital for the year 2014, ahead of fellow shortlisted cities, Dublin and Bilbao.
The sought-after accolade was awarded to the Cape Town this morning at the International Design Alliance (IDA) Congress in Taipei.
The Executive Mayor of Cape Town, Patricia de Lille, accepted the award on behalf of Cape Town, South Africa and the African continent.
In her acceptance speech de Lille said: “It is an honour for me to be addressing you here today as mayor of the first African city to be named a World Design Capital. A city belongs to its people and it must be designed for – and with – them and their communities. For many years, people have been applying innovative solutions to our challenges. They have been using design to transform various aspects of life. But they have often been working without an overarching social goal in mind. Such is the nature of individual industry.’’
The Cape Town Partnership started the World Design Capital bidding process over a year ago, on behalf of the City of Cape Town, with the formation of a Bid Committee tasked with framing the theme of Cape Town’s bid and sourcing content and case studies for a compelling bid book. The theme was “Live Design. Transform Life”. It was a bid for the City, country and the continent.
http://www.iclei.org/index.php?id=1487&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=4729&tx_ttnews[backPid]=983&cHash=b63e362383

Industrializing India
The government plans to build 24 industrial cities that stretch from New Delhi to Mumbai for a corridor bigger in land size than Japan, write Matthias Williams and Lyndee Prickitt for Reuters.
The $90 billion project, called the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor, must overcome a long history of failed infrastructure plans:
"'It's a very crucial project for supporting GDP growth,' said Pratyush Kumar, President & CEO of GE Transportation in India, a company with interests from railway engines to wind turbines. So far it is not involved in the DMIC project.
"'Nobody is saying that it's not moving, but the glacial pace will choke the GDP ambitions,' he said. "The pace has to pick up and they need to get away from this whole decision-making paralysis of 'hey, we can't award large projects because of all the scams'.'"
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/26/us-india-cities-idUSTRE79P0RG20111026

Municipal employers and trade unions concerned about effects of crisis
Municipal employers and trade unions are deeply concerned about current economic and social developments in the EU, as these undermine the provision of public services, especially by local and regional authorities,.which are faced with a steadily decreasing allocation of resources.
Such was voiced by the European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) and the Employers Platform of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR-EP) in a joint statement on the impact of the economic crisis on the local and regional public service. This statement comes following the Euro Summit of the Council of the EU meeting, held on 26 October 2011.
Anders Hammarback, president of the EPSU Standing Committee for local and regional government, reminded that “due to the cuts, unprecedented restructuring in local and regional government is ongoing in some countries of the European Union, with staff reductions and pay cuts while at the same time national social dialogue is undermined in the countries concerned”.
EPSU and the CEMR-EP also recall the skills needed to successfully reform the local and regional government sector.
Steve Comer, chair of CEMR's Employers Platform, stressed: “while we are observing strategies on how to improve training and education for the highly-skilled, we should not forget that due to demographic changes we need to better value certain skills, and notably with regards to child and elderly care.

Planners Working to Avoiding Transportation Disaster at Olympic Games
Olympic Planners have just ten months left to prepare for an anticipated 15 million trips a day during the event in an already congested city. So far, about 6.5 billion pounds ($10.2 billion) has been invested.
Recalling the 1996 Atlanta Games, "with bus drivers getting lost, athletes arriving moments before their events and overloaded trains that couldn’t get residents home," the improvements were prompted by the International Olympic Committee's demands to prevent such issues from coming up again.
"Among the biggest problems are the streets themselves — laid out as they are in a pattern relatively unchanged since medieval times. That means only a handful of thoroughfares, and even those are nothing like the great boulevards that bisect cities like New York and Paris. Earmarking some lanes for Olympic traffic could cause disruption — because they are the main ones."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/london-olympic-planners-work-to-avoid-transport-chaos-at-games-recalling-atlanta-deba

Bordeaux's transport system representing 100 million trips per year and 54.7 million passengers
Bordeaux Metropole is one of the largest urban areas in France, home to around 720,000 people and serving a large metropolitan area of 1.1 million citizens. Like any modern city, Bordeaux faces the challenge of providing an efficient and accessible public transport system to ferry its inhabitants – and the many tourists who flock to the city every year – back and forth. Bordeaux has grown swiftly over the past decade. The city was faced with an influx of traffic and identified the need to develop an alternative mode of transport.
http://www.eukn.org/E_library/Transport_Infrastructure/Public_Transport/Trams_Light_Rail/Bordeaux_s_transport_system_representing_100_million_trips_per_year_and_54_7_million_passengers

Americans Think Planning Process is Unfair
A new survey found that 64% of Americans think that the relationship between local officials and developers makes the approval process unfair.
The Saint Index asked people a lot of questions about city planning, and concluded that NIMBYism is more prevalent than ever, and skepticism over the planning process is the rule of the day. Nearly 1 in 5 people surveyed had actively fought a development from being built:
"Opposition activities include forming neighborhood groups, calling and writing elected officials, signing or gathering petitions, attending and speaking out at local hearings, fundraising, and hiring lawyers and experts such as traffic engineers and environmental consultants."
Asked why they were opposing development, "protecting the environment" ranked highest, followed by the more direct impacts like property value and increased traffic.
Lots of interesting results over at The Saint Index.
http://www.planetizen.com/node/51908

Are your buildings worth an award for being green?
As part of this year’s UN climate change conference (COP17), the World Green Business Council will be presenting the first annual WorldGBC Government Leadership Award.
The award will highlight world-leading policies by city and regional governments that maximize the opportunity of buildings to mitigate carbon emissions in the environment. Buildings are responsible for 40% of global carbon emissions and therefore represent the single greatest opportunity to mitigate carbon in the environment.
As governments at the city and regional level are best positioned to implement policies that support green buildings and communities, the WorldGBC is formally recognizing international best practice in city and regional government policy to build green. Konrad Otto-Zimmermann, Secretary general of ICLEI, will be part of the judging panel for the awards.
Cities and local governments can be nominated by Green Building Councils from around the world, and ICLEI Regional offices will work with Members to make nominations for the award.
Does your city have green buildings that are worth an award?
Then contact membership@iclei.org or find out more on the WorldGBC website. http://www.worldgbc.org/site2/programs/awards/

The Challenge of City Branding
Branding a city, writes Scott Doyon, isn't as easy as creating a product brand. Cities already have identities, so a new brand can ring false if it isn't in harmony with reality. Case in point: Dunwoody, Georgia.
Dunwoody recently released a new logo and slogan, which looks remarkably like the Walmart logo and has received "less than flattering" feedback, according to Doyon:
"Like any organization, cities yearn to present themselves. To embody their complex wholeness in snappy visual shorthand. To brand themselves."
The problem is that the desire to present an image can often be aspirational and conflict with the actual image of the city:
"...cities are living organisms, built upon evolving visions with a legacy of past behaviors and no shortage of current, on-the-ground realities, which means—like it or not—they already have a brand."
http://www.terrain.org/columns/28/guest.htm

LG Action final report and case study series on local climate and energy action
The final public report reflects highlights and summarises achievements. Further, 30 short cases are available in multiple languages (English, Danish, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Polish), to inspire local governments to become more ambitious and engage in local climate and energy action. Take a look on - www.lg-action.eu/results

New Immigrants Not Moving to Cities
A report from the Brookings Institution finds that the growing population of foreign-born residents in the U.S. is eschewing larger cities, settling instead in suburbs and smaller cities.
Meanwhile, large metro areas like Los Angeles and Houston are seeing a drop in their immigrant populations, writes Nate Berg:
"Of the largest 100 metropolitan areas in the U.S., 47 saw increases in their foreign-born populations of at least 50 percent since 2000. And as those numbers grow and spread, it’s increasingly the suburban areas of large metros that are absorbing the growth. Of the top 95 metropolitan areas, the suburbs of 70 are home to more than half of their foreign-born populations."
A map showing the spread is available at The Atlantic Cities.
http://www.theatlanticcities.com/neighborhoods/2011/10/suburbia-land-of-immigrants/309/

Cities cooperating beyond boundaries
EUROCITIES has published a report on metropolitan area cooperation within the EU
The EUROCITIES metropolitan areas working group met in Brussels on 22 September 2011 to finalise a report on metropolitan area cooperation within the EU.
‘Cities cooperating beyond their boundaries’ was drafted jointly by Lille Metropole and Oslo with contributions from around 40 cities that have participated in the working group over the past year.
The report states that the role of functional urban areas is increasingly important across EU member states. Public administrations are adapting to new policy challenges while seeking to find more effective solutions. High-performing functional urban areas are crucial for driving economic development.
The report presents practical examples from across the EU demonstrating the increased prominence of metropolitan areas. The examples suggest that the role of metropolitan areas is generally best shaped through bottom-up processes in local partnerships.
The report explains that metropolitan area governance will best succeed when adapted to work alongside existing political and administrative structures. Finally, the report argues that functional partnerships should be promoted and facilitated with support at national and EU level.
The paper will be launched at the Polish presidency conference in Warsaw on 24 – 25 October 2011 on effective instruments to support territorial development.
http://www.eurocities.eu/include/lib/sql_news_card.php?id=1981

China's Architectural Personality Crisis
Liu Yugie offers and considered and compelling analysis of the state of architecture in China today, and asks if "is China a playground for international architects or an abused testing ground for bad design?"
The article draws attention to the public perception of many foreign architects as creators of 'playground architecture,' enabled by China's savings and lax planning and construction laws. Throughout Beijing and Shanghai, large set piece buildings of varying quality by international architects have sprung up 'like mushrooms.'
"Constant global media coverage has portrayed China as an open stage for ambitious, innovative urban design, a reputation which initially pleased those who were commissioning the building, but later raised doubts and reflections of whether the country was being misused as a testing ground for maverick projects," writes Liu.
Zaha Hadid described China as the "perfect blank canvas," and has is an active participant in the largest urban construction movement in human history. But doubters, such as Peng Peiking of Tsinghua University are angered by how obviously foreign architects have co-opted China's eagerness to build dazzling modern cityscapes. Peng supports his criticism by pointing out that many of these designs would never be accepted by the architects' home countries because they would have failed city planning concerns, stricter sustainable development demands and tighter budgets.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/sunday/2011-10/16/content_13907364.htm

ERDF budget 2014-2020: significant changes on urban policies
Energy efficiency and renewable energy are set to be one of the 11 investment priorities under the new EUR 346 billion European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) budget for 2014-2020. The financial regulation proposal published by the European Commission on October 6 concerning the ERDF is of prime importance for local authorities as it defines what European funds should be used for and how they should be spent.
http://www.energy-cities.eu/ERDF-budget?pmv_nid=2

Safer Drinking Scenes throughout Europe, learning from each other in order to prevent binge and heavy drinking
Massive alcohol consumption by young people in public spaces, often referred to as “binge drinking”, is a growing phenomenon in most European cities. It has therefore become a focus of attention and is now mentioned frequently as a priority of local policy. This type of consumption must be taken into account on three levels: sanitary risks, potential anti-social behaviour and an increased risk of victimisation. Being interviewed is Mark Burton Page, who works for the European Forum for Urban Security (EFUS) on the project “Safer Drinking Scenes”: The Binge Drinking phenomenon (2011 – 2013). “This research will focus on the culture behind binge or heavy drinking within 10 European cities. We want to look into prevention but also look at repression of heavy alcohol consumption within Europe.”
http://www.eukn.org/Interviews/2011/Safer_Drinking_Scenes_throughout_Europe_learning_from_each_other_in_order_to_prevent_binge_and_heavy_drinking

Streetcars On The Rise Once Again
The Obama Administration has decided to provide federal funding for a variety streetcar projects. Over the past few months, cities including San Antonio have proposed routes that will run through densely populated areas.
Beginning in 2009, the Department of Transportation began encouraging many cities to apply for federal funds that would assist in construction of these streetcar projects. Washington, D.C. has been encouraging cities to think about new transit ideas, says Yonah Freemark:
"The fact that streetcars can be built with lower per-mile costs than other forms of rail transit, their ability to attract denser development in some cases, and the possibility of farming off most of their costs to another government entity has made them incredibly appealing. Washington, seeking transit projects that are visible and reinforce dense communities, has been a willing partner in this effort."
Freemark doesn't entirely approve of the shift to streetcars, however:
"...the difficult side of the story is that many of the projects are planned to be constructed in a manner that provides an inferior quality of service than the bus lines they replace."
http://www.thetransportpolitic.com/2011/10/10/the-appeal-of-modern-streetcars-continues-to-mount-but-there-are-obstacles-to-it-bringing-mobility-gains/

Smarter Nairobi to respond to population explosion
A Nairobi Smarter Cities round-table organized under the auspice of the IBM 'Smarter Cities Initiative' explored ways to prepare Nairobi for rapid urban growth, including intelligent transport systems.
Nairobi's population, like many other fast growing cities in the global South, is expected to double within the next decade. This presents challenges in providing basic infrastructure and services. To respond to such challenges, IBM, the global software company, established a 'Smarter Cities Initiative' which has seen over 2,000 projects worldwide providing software solutions and systems for 'smarter' cities in various sectors.
http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?cid=10535&catid=5&typeid=6&AllContent=1

Citizen action and participation shape states and societies
Almost 450 resources are now available on the archive website of the Development Research Centre on Citizenship (DRC Citizenship), Participation and Accountability. DRC Citizenship was an experiment in global research. In 2001, the UK Department for International Development (DFID) funded a coordinating team, based at the Institute of Development Studies, to assemble a research consortium to investigate how citizens hold institutions to account and claim their rights.
http://www.eukn.org/E_library/Urban_Policy/Citizen_action_and_participation_shape_states_and_societies

Investment in metropolitan Europe will drive recovery
Deputy Mayor of Poznan represented EUROCITIES at a Polish presidency conference in Warsaw today
Representing EUROCITIES in Warsaw at the Polish EU presidency conference on territorial cohesion, Tomasz Kayser, Deputy Mayor of Poznan, said:
“We welcome warmly the Commission draft regulations as a strong starting point for achieving an ambitious urban agenda in the future cohesion policy. There are clearly many innovations with the potential to strengthen the role of cities delivering integrated development on the ground. Investment in metropolitan Europe will drive smart, sustainable and inclusive growth for the benefit of all – not only for those living in cities.”
Mr Kayser highlighted the concrete impact of cohesion policy in his city, where the cohesion fund is supporting investment in public transport and waste management. “This is how Europe directly benefits the quality of life of Poznan’s citizens”, he said.
Commenting on the involvement of partners in partnership contracts and operational programmes, Mr Kayser stressed that elected governments, and in particular the leaders of major cities, must be around the table. The direct involvement of local government is necessary to achieve coherent strategies, efficient spending and better value for money. As the political platform for Europe’s major cities, EUROCITIES is also interested in the expanded EU dialogue promised by the Commission’s proposal for an ‘urban platform’.
On the minimum of 5% allocation for integrated urban development, Mr Kayser added: “if we agree that the integrated approach is the most effective, then we should be committed to resourcing it ambitiously. Nevertheless, this is a good start and we welcome the delegation of funds to cities”.
EUROCITIES also welcomes the recognition that a focus on functional areas will assist territorial cohesion. EUROCITIES recently issued two reports* linked to this variable geography.
Mr Kayser concluded: “As Europe’s major cities, we look forward to working constructively with the European Parliament, national governments and the Commission to finalise a good set of regulations with effective instruments for cities.”

13 cities are already ENGAGEd! Are you?
Energy Cities invites you to join the ENGAGE campaign : an innovative and participative initiative designed to help local authorities reach their energy & climate objectives www.citiesengage.eu

Municipal Leadership on Immigrant Integration
Cities are major players on the global migration stage. Local governments are waking up to the impact of immigration, building inclusion into public policy while responding to new opportunities for business development and infrastructure design.
Mayoral voice and leadership can direct policy and also change hearts and minds. City leaders like Mayor Bloomberg of New York City are helping re-frame how we think about immigration.
Starting this month, Cities of Migration launches Good Ideas from Successful Cities: Municipal Leadership on Immigrant Integration. We invite you to share outstanding examples of city leadership on immigrant integration. So how do successful cities do it? We want to know more about how local governments use the instruments and authority of public office to promote immigrant and city success.
http://citiesofmigration.ca/good-ideas-in-integration/municipal/

Serbian municipalities awarded full ownership of streets, squares, parks and roads
Thanks to the adoption of the Serbian Law on Public Property in September 2011, towns and municipalities in Serbia now have full ownership of streets, squares, parks as well as municipal and unclassified roads,.all of which were previously nationalised.
The Standing Conference of Towns and Municipalities of Serbia (SCTM) had been advocating the decentralisation of public property for over ten years, pushing for a more rational use of property and for a reform of the public sector in Serbia. The law has now established three levels of ownership for public property: the state, provinces and local authorities.
“Towns and municipalities finally know what is theirs,” states Djordje Stanicic, secretary general of SCTM. “This law is vital as it allows for local authorities to responsibly manage the public property under their jurisdiction, to ensure the development of their local communities, to implement local projects and initiatives, and to create new conditions for employment.”

Building clean and efficient cities – a movie from the Urban Climate Project
ICLEI South Asia prepared a movie on the Urban Climate Project – Building clean and efficient cities.
Through the Urban Climate Project, ICLEI South Asia with support from the National Institute or Urban Affairs (NIUA), assisted the two project cities Coimbatore and Rajkot, India. They helped to implement infrastructure projects through technical and financial support for pilot interventions by including cleaner and efficient technologies and also to model GHG deflections to showcase benefits.
Watch the 'Urban Climate Project Movie'!
http://www.dailymotion.com/Brand_Builders#videoId=xksmmu

October 2011 News.

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