UCLG delegation in the second round of climate talks in 2010
UCLG delegation, chaired by the city of Nantes, is attending the second round of climate talks in 2010 which is taking place in Bonn, Germany to prepare the next COP to be held in Cancun, Mexico at the end of the year.
The meetings convene the UNFCCC Convention subsidiary ... + info
UCLG delegation, chaired by the city of Nantes, is attending the second round of climate talks in 2010 which is taking place in Bonn, Germany to prepare the next COP to be held in Cancun, Mexico at the end of the year.
The meetings convene the UNFCCC Convention subsidiary bodies from Monday 31 May to Wednesday 9 June 2010; the working group on Kyoto Protocol and the working group on the convention from Tuesday 1 June to Friday 11 June 2010.
A text to facilitate negotiations among Parties has been tabled by the Chair of the working group on the convention (AWG-LCA).
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UCLG is discussing the future agenda of Local and Regional Leaders World Summit ONLINE! JOIN US!
The Local and Regional Leaders World Summit, taking place in Mexico from 16-20 of November 2010 will be preceded by online discussions. The idea is to allow local and regional authorities and practitioners from different parts of the world to have a common place where they can raise questions, discuss ... + info
The Local and Regional Leaders World Summit, taking place in Mexico from 16-20 of November 2010 will be preceded by online discussions. The idea is to allow local and regional authorities and practitioners from different parts of the world to have a common place where they can raise questions, discuss issues, share experiences and work together to develop new knowledge.
A Summit should be an inclusive experience. It should gather thoughts and ideas from both UCLG members engaged in the work of the organization but also from a much broader audience that is equally interested in the work of local and regional governments around the world. In order to ensure this interaction, we are opening a series of on-line forums as part of the Summit’s website.
These forums will run from June until September 2010.
Weekly forums will deal with some of the topics that UCLG members have identified as important for the future agenda of local and regional authorities internationally. They have been organised under four categories, ’Promoting Innovation’, ’What should be the new Global Governance?’, ’The City in 2030’ and ’Climate Change and Local Governments’.
To know more about the Pre Summit Interactive Online Forums
JOIN US!
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Workshops on Local Finances and Strategic Planning, 25-27 June, Batam, Indonesia
UCLG and its regional Asia Pacific Section UCLG ASPAC are jointly organizing two workshops on 25-27 June in Batam (Indonesia). One on local finances in partnership with UNITAR and the financial support of the European Union and the French Government. One on strategic planning, of the Committee on ... + info
UCLG and its regional Asia Pacific Section UCLG ASPAC are jointly organizing two workshops on 25-27 June in Batam (Indonesia). One on local finances in partnership with UNITAR and the financial support of the European Union and the French Government. One on strategic planning, of the Committee on urban Strategic Planning, supported by Cities Alliance and the ministry of foreign affairs of Norway.
The first day of the workshop will be dedicated to a debate on the (fiscal) decentralization situation in the Asia Pacific Region and the development of regional agenda on main fiscal decentralization priorities for the region.
Direct access of local governments to funding of regional institutions will be the main theme of the 2nd day, with presentations from the Asian Development Bank and the French Development Agency. The workshop will close with a presentation on the impact of aid effectiveness on local government.
The 3rd day is dedicated to position UCLG ASPAC in the field of strategic planning. The Asian chapter of the policy paper of UCLG on this topic will be debated, and networking and city to city (and Association) mentoring opportunities will be explored.
Mayors, financial experts and representatives of local government associations and individual local governments from Australia, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam will participate.
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Peripheral cities gathered in Getafe
The Second Forum of Local Authorities of the Periphery (FLAP) gathered, between 10 and 12 June in Getafe, 600 mayors and officials from around thirty countries, invited by the FLAP and the Committee of UCLG for Peripheral Cities. The mayor of Getafe, Pedro Castro, said during the presentation of ... + info
The Second Forum of Local Authorities of the Periphery (FLAP) gathered, between 10 and 12 June in Getafe, 600 mayors and officials from around thirty countries, invited by the FLAP and the Committee of UCLG for Peripheral Cities. The mayor of Getafe, Pedro Castro, said during the presentation of the event that mayors from the five continents share "the space of peripheral cities which, being in the margin of cities, have less equipment, endowments, infrastructure and services."
"These are cities of metropolitan areas that have the same problems and seek the same solution, that is to say more integrated cities, more cohesive, who fights poverty and integrates innovation," he said.
The goal of the Forum, which was celebrated under the framework of the Spanish presidency of the European Union, is to agree for a commitment letter on the metropolis of solidarity, sustainable and democratic society, as recognized in the conclusions of the meetings and activities.
The panel discussions focused on gender equality, metropolitan planning, recognition of the periphery as producers and innovative in the field of culture, participation and the involvement of adolescents and youth, culture of peace as a basis for coexistence, decentralized cooperation between the peripheries, the commitment to intercultural and participatory democracy.
The Committee of Peripheral Cities of UCLG brings together the members of the worldwide network ’Cities in the periphery & participatory democracy’. It shows the need for recognition of the social and political situations of peripheral cities within their conurbations and within the world of cities. It supports the construction of the engagement letter to be presented at the next World Congress of UCLG in Mexico.
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Local governments in the second round of talks on climate change in Bonn, 31 May to 11 June
The UCLG delegation, led by the city of Nantes, has been following the second round of talks on climate change, which took place in Bonn, Germany from 31 May to 11 June 2010. This marked the first occasion since the COP 15 in Copenhagen last December where the Parties worked on the negotiating texts.
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The UCLG delegation, led by the city of Nantes, has been following the second round of talks on climate change, which took place in Bonn, Germany from 31 May to 11 June 2010. This marked the first occasion since the COP 15 in Copenhagen last December where the Parties worked on the negotiating texts.
These two weeks allowed local governments’ representatives the opportunity to renew contact with national delegations and groups of States including: Mexico, Switzerland, Korea, Spain- currently holding the Presidency of Europe, Belgium, France, Brazil, Democratic Republic of Congo- as President of the African group, Central Africa, Gabon and others, and to thank them for their constant support in the negotiation process, especially in Copenhagen.
The delegation has also been closely following issues which are gaining importance in the negotiations and finding deeper agreement between Parties. One of these issues was the question of use and conservation of forests (REDD), which was watched by a representative of the city of Manaus, in the Amazon region, Brasil. Regarding the necessary education, training, and public awareness of citizens in the world as indicated in article 6 of the convention, local governments called upon the Parties to support the actions of cities in developing countries and the possibilities offered by the growing number of cooperation between north and south local governments, and to accurately integrate the efforts they produce in the communications that each country is supposed to deliver regarding reduction of gas emissions.
The recognition of the added value of the participation of observer organisations, including local and regional governments’ organisations, in the process was also at the heart of the discussions, within constituencies and Parties. Many States, including Mexico, host of the next Conference of the Parties, expressed their attachment to this participation in the process.
Although there has been some progress in the agreements on the main issues of a post-2012 agreement, with most parties willing to compromise to find an agreement for the end of the year and thereby avoid repeating Copenhagen, matters prove far more difficult when it comes to the text. As the talks ended, Local governments were still recognized in the main parts of the Convention text, but the future of this text has been questioned heavily and the Parties requested the proposal of a new text for the next session, which will be held during the first week of August, in Bonn.
Further talks, the final ones before COP 16 in Cancun, Mexico in December, will take place in China in October.
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Pre-Programme Invitation to the Local and Regional Leaders World Summit - Mexico City, 16-20 November
On behalf of its President and the Mayor of Mexico City, United Cities and Local Governments has officialy sent the invitation to attend the Local and Regional Leaders’ World Summit, the 3rd World Congress of UCLG. This Summit will be hosted by the government of Mexico City, between 16th and ... + info
On behalf of its President and the Mayor of Mexico City, United Cities and Local Governments has officialy sent the invitation to attend the Local and Regional Leaders’ World Summit, the 3rd World Congress of UCLG. This Summit will be hosted by the government of Mexico City, between 16th and 20th November this year and will bring together around 3000 high-level representatives of the cities, regions and other local governments, their associations and partners.
The Summit will focus on three central themes:
- Global crises, local impacts
- The City of 2030
- Local and Regional governments - partners in the new global governance
The Congress portal www.uclgcongress.com gathers interesting perspectives on the Congress topics and let people to participate in interactive forums:
1. Promoting Innovation: Identifying best practices for dealing with tough challenges such as the financial crisis.
2. What should be the new Global Governance: Should it include new actors? Is it about different decision making? What should the role of local and regional authorities be?
3. The city in 2030: What will it be like? What do we want to keep? What do we need to change?
The sessions of the Summit will be held in the historical buildings of the centre of Mexico City, offering a rare opportunity for participants to experience life at the heart of one of the largest cities in the world, as well as its cultural diversity and centuries-old heritage.
Future participants are invited to register before 30 July to benefit from early registration fees.
Please click here to access the Pre-programme-Invitation
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UCLG in the Third Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations
UCLG participated in the Third Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, promoting the work that cities can undertake for peaceful co-existence between cultures. This year’s edition of the Forum took place from 27 to 29 May, and was held in the city of Rio de Janeiro, at the invitation ... + info
UCLG participated in the Third Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, promoting the work that cities can undertake for peaceful co-existence between cultures. This year’s edition of the Forum took place from 27 to 29 May, and was held in the city of Rio de Janeiro, at the invitation of the Brazilian Government.
Taking as its focus the theme ‘Bridging Cultures: Building Peace’, the Forum aimed, through its plenary and twelve thematic sessions, to address the challenge of building inclusive societies. ‘How do we build communities rooted in ‘convivencia’- living together in peace, based on trust and mutual respect?’ asked United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
‘Living together in Urban Societies’ - the thematic session organized by the UCLG Working Group on the Local Dimension of the Alliance of Civilizations and the Council of Europe, aimed to explore Ban Ki-moon’s question in its urban context. The UCLG Presidency was represented at the session by Co-President Kadir Topbas, Mayor of Istanbul, Turkey.
Other panelists at the session were the Brazilian Minister for Cities, Marcio Fortes, the Mayor of Lisbon, Portugal, Antonio Costa, the Mayor of Seville, Spain, Alfredo Sánchez Monteseirín, and the Mayor of Clichy-sous-bois, France, Claude Dilain. Participants raised three important points: that local governance has an important role to play in enhancing the diversity advantage of multi-cultural urban societies; that poverty and inequality in divided cities are challenges that must be addressed; and that new technologies and education can be instrumental in promoting a better understanding of cultural diversity.
To know more about the Forum.
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