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Cities of tomorrow’s challenges – Prioritisation and comments on proposed list of challenges

Corinne Hermant-de CallataÿChristian Svanfeldt

Brussels, Cities of tomorrow, Workshop 3, 20-21 December 2010

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Replies to questionnaires on challenges

• 22 replies

• Additional replies by representative organisations (CECODHAS, ISOCARP)

• Ranking was not done for each challenge

• Definitional issues: some formulations were not appropriate / too aggregated

• “Ordering” issue

• 33 additional challenges proposed by 15 experts

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Part 1: the challenges

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Draft list of challenges (1)

• How to counter social/spatial segregation/polarisation?

• How to foster social inclusion and economic integration of disadvantaged groups, especially migrants?

• How to ensure economic transitions? (entrepreneurial environment; local & social economy; knowledge/green economy ; a viable manufacturing sector)?

• How to manage and adapt to demographic changes: ageing; shrinkage; migration?

• How to maintain and attract a broad range of skills/competencies? How to stimulate job creation and availability?

• How to achieve a sustainable mobility (pedestrian, bike, clean urban transport, car, new transport modes, accessibility)?

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Draft list of challenges (2)

• How to achieve greater energy efficiency and manage the transition towards a carbon-neutral city?

• How to manage natural resources (water, waste, air, soil and land)?

TRANSVERSAL CHALLENGES

• How to ensure territorial cohesion and coherence? How to manage relationships between cities and their surroundings (hinterland; urban/peri-urban; metropolises)?

• How to foster cities' attractiveness (e.g., education, culture, sports, creativity and cultural/industrial heritage; safety and security; public spaces and public services)?

• How to ensure financial sustainability?

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Ranking of challenges - general importance

The top 5 (very high)

• Counter segregation / polarisation

• Foster social inclusion

And, with same scores:

• Natural resources

• Economic transitions

• Mobility

scoring: 11/ 10/ 9/ 9/ 9

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Ranking of challenges - general importance

Ranking of challenges per priority

0

5

10

15

20

25

Very High

High

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Ranking of challenges - relevance at EU level

The top 5 (very high):

• Energy

Then, with the same score:

• Natural resources

• Counter segregation / polarisation

And then

• Economic transitions

• Foster social inclusion

scoring: 12 / 9/ 9/ 8/ 7/

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EUROPEAN COMMISSIONRanking of challenges per relevance at EU level

Ranking of challenges per relevance at EU level

0

5

10

15

20

25

Very High

High

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Clustering of the 33 additional challenges

• Values and visions

• Governance

• Democracy

• Culture and education

• Address cities’ potential

• The resources / climate challenge

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New proposed challenges: values and visions

• What is making society? Culture and common values

• How to rethink local democracy to meet challenges of 21st century (including tax system); How to engage with citizens to increase participation and ensure that hopes and needs are recognized and achieved (social capital); How to place human beings in the middle of any public action, as Europe has to move towards a ‘’new civilisation’’, as the crisis of ‘Europe’ legitimacy is growing a lot, as well as exclusion?

• How to ensure European funds… to achieve "visions" of the cities?; Develop a continuing strategic foresight capacity at all levels; Sustainable city models (integrated) as umbrella challenge.

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New proposed challenges: governance

• Reform of governance structures ; Integrated approach at all challenges/issues as a challenge in itself for coping with territorial cohesion

• Metropolitan governance; Metropolitan urban area; How to improve city governance?

• How to overcome variable geography, boundaries and structures; Effective communication and coordination among key stakeholders; Improving organisational cultures of administrative bodies

• How to protect "planning" from political transitions?

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• Local and interlevel democracy

• How to deepen cooperation though explicit and comprehensible commitments?

• Interscalar governance collaboration (including urban-rural relations; including relations global-EU-nations-regions-cities)

• How to encourage ‘’new ways of local governance’’, at horizontal level, in empowering the society and its stakeholders and citizens, to make local democracy at the engine of the system?

• Promote participation as an important tool for planning and managing the cities

• A transversal challenge : level of trust between citizens and towards local authorities and participation of the citizens to the decisions that have an impact on their lives

New proposed challenges: democracy

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New proposed challenges:a new mindset - culture and education

• Foster change of mindset towards a new 21st Century Enlightenment; Managing …Upgrading managers to address new challenges; Learning and coping with complexity; Education towards urban issues

• Education for all and by all

• Foster creativity and providing conditions for a dynamic change while protecting local and old cultures

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• Role of cities in creating wealth and added-value

• Role of cities in reallocating wealth / managing surpluses

• Attractiveness of the city centre (creation of the City Centre Management)

• How to achieve an integrated vision of innovation – crossing technological progress, new social solutions and cultural dynamic

New proposed challenges:address cities’ potential

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New proposed challenges:the resources / climate challenge

• Climate neutral cities (including the energy and water correlates)

• How to manage natural resources (water, waste, air, soil and land) in a sustainable way, limiting urban sprawl

• How to manage human resources or complex human/natural resources in places?

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New proposed challengesQuotations

• “Public authorities can play the role of head of orchestra, whilst a lot of musicians play music with their own instruments.”

• “Importance of building on the long term universalism, humanism (ethics + progress)”

• “We must avoid that competition between cities kills cooperation and stable alliances.”

• “A possible role of EU is in experimenting alternative ways of organizing and delivering local services (services of general interest)”

• “If you cannot predict future, invent it!”

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Part 2: the relevance of EU level

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Clustering of answers / relevance of EU level

• Address migration

• Governance

• Incitation & normalisation

• Capacity building at local level

• Funding and supporting investments

• Research, information, knowledge, experience

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Address migration

• A relevant issue even if rather unpopular

• Coordinating migration policies among EU member states / Liberalising immigration, defining and implementing stronger policies; An integrated migration policy on the EU level (as hard to tackle it on smaller scales)

• Fund inclusive practices; Centres for integration of migrants and disadvantaged groups; Promote and support local and national schemes to tackle discrimination in employment; Include migrants and socially disadvantaged people in storytelling and urban promenades, taking advantage of their own experience of urban and rural life

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Governance

• Reconcile scale differences in Territorial Cohesion

• Establish the metropolitan area governance!

• Invite experiments at all levels (urban and non urban)

• To force the member states to reduce bureaucracy

But need to rethink the definition of "territories” - City/Cities regions more appropriate

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Incitation & normalisation

• “Setting the policy agenda”

• Normative constraints

• Normalisation and impulsion

• Support legislative frameworks

• Regulating measures and sanctions e.g. in the field of energy

• Broad guidelines (e.g. promoting “open cities” concept)

• Benchmarks

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Capacity building at local level

• Support initiatives in the field of education; Assist learning processes by cities / change of attitudes through education at local level

• Promote exchange of experiences; Presentation and promotion of leading examples; Exchange of information on practices at local, regional, national levels / Integrate EU wide issues of energy security with best practices of energy saving

• Support for cities through assistance and expertise; e.g. consultations during the creation of business plans and financial plans; Train cities’ agents

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Funding and supporting investments

Fund …• Basic infrastructure projects• Social and health infrastructures projects

• Foster development of new technologies and organisational developments (integrated metropolitan transport systems)

• Encourage local generation (solar panels, biomass, wind turbines, etc.) + major infrastructures for renewable energy

• Large transformation investment

But also • Whatever may foster cities’ attractiveness in areas mentioned• Inclusive practices

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Research, information, knowledge, experience

Promoting knowledge about issues at stake

Research of best models, e.g. for natural resources management

Supporting research on green and social economy

Creating and publishing indicators

Capitalising on experience, e.g. organize dialogue with all stakeholders concerned about experiences already engaged in “economic transition”

Promoting broad social platform of research and debate

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Conclusion 1: focus additional challenges

• Values and visions

• Governance

• Democracy

• Culture and education

• Address cities’ potential

• The resources / climate challenge

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Conclusion 2: the relevance at EU level

• Address migration

• Governance

• Incitation & normalisation

• Capacity building at local level

• Funding and supporting investments

• Research, information, knowledge, experience

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http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/conferences/citiesoftomorrow/index_en.cfmhttp://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/conferences/citiesoftomorrow/index_en.cfm

corinne.hermant@ec.europa.eu or christian.svanfeldt@ec.europa.eucorinne.hermant@ec.europa.eu or christian.svanfeldt@ec.europa.eu