CityNet E-Newsletter April 2017

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Urban Lighting Workshop: Benefits of Sustainable Urban Lighting

Seoul Metropolitan Government, Lighting Urban Community International (LUCI), and CityNet are organizing the Urban Lighting Workshop in Seoul on 29-30 June 2017. Participating city officials (urban lighting decision-makers) will share best practices and experiences on sustainable lighting, get an idea of the role of lighting in smart city concepts, receive an overview of implementation strategies towards renewed, sustainable lighting and establish new partnerships. For details please contact Felix Kalkowsky at program1@citynet-ap.org, check this website and apply here.

Announcements and Opportunities

Share your local solutions for sustainable development

Participate in 2017 CityNet Congress in Colombo, Sri Lanka from 5-8 November where you can voice your cities' challenges and solutions as well as network and form partnerships with other CityNet members, partners, and business leaders. This year's congress will also mark the network's 30^th anniversary where all members and partners could reflect on our journey together and to work collectively on finding the answer to the future urban challenges.

Link

Call for parallel session for 2017 CityNet Congress

CityNet invites you to submit a proposal to hold a side events during this year's Congress that will be held on 5-8 November in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The CityNet Congress 2017 marks the 30^th anniversary of the Network of cities and stakeholders commited to sustainable urban development in the Asia Pacific region. All proposals will be considered and decided upon through a selection committee at the CityNet Secretariat. Please contact CityNet Program Officer Felix Kalkowsky at programs1@citynet-ap.org to register your interest.

Don't miss the opportunity to support CityNet Congress

Supporting the 2017 CityNet Congress gives you the opportunity to be present among decision makers from the Asia Pacific and connect with urban stakeholders. Approximately 117 cities from 22 countries were represented among the 289 participants and speakers who attended our 2013 Congress in Seoul, South Korea. The speakers included top city leaders in Asia such as Mayor Park Won-soon of Seoul Metropolitan Government. For more information. Please contact CityNet Senior Program Officer Sayel Cortes at partnerdev@citynet-ap.org to register your interest.

Network News

CityNet-UNESCAP-Seoul Metropolitan Government MoA signed

To formalise the collaboration between CityNet, UNESCAP, and Seoul Metropolitan Government to develop the Urban SDG Knowledge Sharing Platform, the three institutions signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) on 30 March 2017, in conjunction with the 2017 Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) held by UNESCAP in Bangkok. They shared a common interest to maintain a strategic partnership within the framework of this Urban SDG Knowledge Platform.

CityNet at the UNACLA meeting on the global development agendas

As a member of the United Nations Advisory Committee of Local Authorities (UNACLA), CityNet attended the organisation's annual meeting under the title "The global development agendas, implications for local governments" in Istanbul. The meeting was chaired by Mayor Kadir Topbas of Istanbul and Mr. Joan Clos, Executive Director of UN-Habitat. The meeting agenda included the opportunities and challenges for local and regional governments, the role of UNACLA in facilitating the dialogue between local and central governments to implement the global agenda at local level, and the voice of local governments in the UN: Strategy of the Global Taskforce.

Transportation Strategy Workshop for Asian Cities

Based on the participants' survey, the most interesting and applicable transportation policy at the Transportation Strategy Workshop for Asian Cities in 2016 is the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and transfer system. CityNet and Seoul Human Resource Development Center (SHRDC), therefore, responded to this by holding the follow up workshop on 9-15 April focusing on BRT in Seoul. Through SWOT and PDM, Program Development Management, analysis, participants were expected to understand any current deficiencies in each city and contemplate about enhancement strategies .

What are your city's most pressing challenges?

The CityNet Secretariat is developing the Medium Term Plan for 2018-2021 which will serve the purpose of reviewing past work and establish a vision for the future to improve the CityNet's role.This Plan will be carried out using the input of members through the survey. Please take few minutes to complete this survey to help us understand your needs and expectations and provide any further details that will assist us to meet your objectives. This survey questionnaire may take 15-20 minutes of your time and may also be dependent on the respondent's pace.

LINK to survey

Welcome CityNet Congress Coordinator

Wason Lee Huynh has just joined the CityNet Secretariat as Congress Coordinator. Wason is experienced in both Private and Public sector, from expanding membership and initiating programs in Least Developed Countries for the Country Planning and Implementation Division at the Global Green Growth Institute to Business Strategy and Development for a Fintech Start-up Venture and expanding the business of e-commerce mobile applications at SKPlanet. Wason's primary focus at CityNet will be managing the Congress, which is the Network's largest event held every 4 years, and supporting the development of new projects and programs.

Yokohama Project Office

Invitation to the 10^th CityNet Disaster Cluster Seminar

CityNet Yokohama Project Office is pleased to announce the dates for the 10^th CityNet Disaster Cluster Seminar to be held in Yokohama from August 31 - September 4, 2017. The seminar will be for the disaster managers in the city governments and will focus on the main DRR topics including prevention, mitigation, disaster education, and response. Official invitation will be sent in mid-May along with the program, registration form and survey.

Toshiba International Foundation grants funds for Teacher Training on Primary Education

CityNet Yokohama Project Office has secured a grant from Toshiba International Foundation for Teacher Training on Primary Education project to be launched in Colombo from May 2017. The grant will enable teachers from both public and private schools in Colombo to undergo practical training to develop lesson plans, techniques and teaching material.

Invitation to the 10^th CityNet Disaster Cluster Seminar

Dr. Vijay Jagannathan, Secretary General of CityNet visited the International Affairs Bureau of the City of Yokohama to formally invite the city to CityNet Colombo Congress to be held in November. The Secretary General met with Director General Mr. Makoto Sekiyama of the bureau and expressed his appreciation for the continued support of Yokohama to CityNet Yokohama Project Office.

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