Around 54% of the world’s population lives in cities – and the number is growing.
More urban dwellers means more wealth creation, but also higher pressure on urban services (energy, water, health, transport, housing), which in turn produces adverse effects on the environment and challenges to the quality of life.
At the global level, this creates a major challenge in terms of climate change. It also makes cities best placed to tackle this issue.
European cities are keen to cooperate with other cities around the world, to share knowledge and create innovative solutions, and to generate new economic opportunities in the process.
The IUC programme helps them do this, and it can help your city too!
IUC creates city-to-city or region-to-region cooperation involving EU and non-EU partners.
Part of the solution is to work closely with the private sector, and the programme will help to bring together businesses inside and outside the EU.
In Asia, the programme is divided into two parts covering the region, specifically China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Republic of Korea and Vietnam. Please scroll-down to see further details about the two project components.
I. City-to-city Cooperation on Sustainable Urban Development
EU cities are paired up with peers from China to cooperate on issues relevant for their sustainable urban development. Chosen cities are being supported to share knowledge and best practices on sustainable urban solutions.
This will be achieved partly through the development of local action plans, which will outline activities and pilot projects to achieve tangible results. A global knowledge-exchange platform will be established with resources and best practices on overcoming specific urban development barriers.
Countries covered: EU Member States and China
II. Sub-national action under the Global Covenant of Mayors initiative
Cities and other sub-national localities in the Asian countries are encouraged to join the Global Covenant of Mayors initiative. Through the Global Covenant of Mayors, local governments commit to acting on mitigation, adaptation and access to energy.
Signatory cities benefit from support in the form of technical expertise and cooperation to act on their energy and climate commitments.
Asian countries and special territories covered: China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Republic of Korea and Vietnam.
- 07September 7, 2017https://www.iuc-asia.eu/event/uea-melaka-summit-2017/
The UEA Summit was held in Melaka – Malaysia – in September 2017. The IUC Team was part of the event.
The Urban Environmental Accords (UEA) is an international collaborative organization working to develop the Urban Environmental Evaluation Index together with UNEP, and apply it to cities worldwide. The UEA was established on June 5, 2005 in the City and County of San Francisco on the occasion of World Environment Day, at a gathering of representatives from 53 cities under the agreement that each city would autonomously implement the accords, comprising 21 actions across seven key areas, and evaluate the outcomes.
The UEA conprises 156 Cities in 52 Countries (October 2017).
The UEA Secretariat:
- Promotes cooperative relationships between cities through the sharing of best practices and technological know-how, while respecting other cities’ rights.
- Develops environmental-friendly policies for the creation of low-carbon green cities, and supports cities in developing countries which are vulnerable to the threat of climate change and less equipped to deal with it.