Europe’s Cities Delivering the Big Global Agendas Brussels, 10th October 2017, 11:15 - 13:00 hrs Wielkopolska Region Brussels Office Rue Montoyer 21, 1000 Brussels Cities for Global Agendas Workshop code: 10B20 www.regions-and-cities-europa.eu Cities for Global Agendas EUROPE’S CITIES DELIVERING THE BIG GLOBAL AGENDAS The new Global Urban Agenda, adopted at the recent Habitat III Conference in Ecuador, will guide Europe’s urban development policies for the next twenty years. It will be a cornerstone in how we deliver the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), agreed upon as the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, and the other major international agendas, in particular the Paris Agreement. It will give an important European boost to SDG 11, which calls for cities and settlements to be “inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable”. The Urban Agenda for the EU is based on the understanding that an integrated and place-based approach to urban development, together with a long-term vision, is necessary to promote prosperous cities in a sustainable and economic way. After the Lisbon Agenda and Europe 2020 objectives, the EU must reflect on its new strategic goals post-2020. These will notably include the new Cohesion Policy, to replace the current 2014-2020 programmes, which leverage around EUR 500 billion across the EU and cover almost all the SDGs; furthermore, sustainable development is embedded in both current and future Cohesion Policy as a binding horizontal principle. In parallel to the new Cohesion Policy, other key EU tools, such as next research Framework Programme, will be decided. In the present debate, we aim to showcase how local and regional authorities are already implementing the big global agendas on the ground. We will do this for each participating area in two ways: • First, by examining the strategic level, what structures and strategies they have in place that relate to the global agendas • Secondly, by giving a practical example – an innovative local project for delivering the agendas. We will end with a discussion of how the EU could integrate these local lessons in a new strategy for Europe and in the cohesion policy post 2020. The discussion will be structured around five main questions: 1. How does your local government implement the SDGs? 2. Which are the current challenges and policy priorities in your local administrations? Do these challenges match the SDGs? What obstacles can you identify when you implement these goals at local level? 3. What is an example of a local project undertaken by your administrations implementing the SDGs. Which SDGs have you addressed? 4. Do you think the future cohesion policy post 2020 should address the SDGs more broadly so that we can get a better local delivery of these goals? 5. Do you think the full range of SDGs should be a cornerstone in the EU budget post 2020? 2 Europe’s Cities Delivering the Big Global Agendas Cities for Global Agendas PANEL DISCUSSION: KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Mr. Christophe YVETOT, Permanent Representative to the European Union, Director of UNIDO, Brussels Office Mr. Nicolas GHARBI, Policy Analyst - Directorate General for regional and urban policy, European Commission CHAIR: Ms. Eva BAÑOS DE GUISASOLA, Policy Adviser - Environment, Energy and Climate, Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) SPEAKERS: Mr. Josep RODRÍGUEZ, Tourism Technical Office, Management of Tourism Services, Economic Local Development Area, Spain Mrs. Iwona MATUSZCZAK-SZULC, Director of the Department of City Development, Poznań City Hall Mrs. Cora HERMENAU, Regional Commissioner for Public Health and Security, IT Coordination and European Affairs, Hanover Region Prof. Andy SHAW, Professor of Industrial Microwave Technologies, Liverpool John Moores University Ms. Lena WETTERSKOG SJÖSTEDT, Director Sustainable development secretariat, City of Malmö Ms. Mette SKOVGAARD, Senior adviser, City of Copenhagen KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Christophe YVETOT Permanent Representative to the European Union, Director of UNIDO, Brussels Office An international lawyer and economist by background, Christophe Yvetot has been working in international organisations for more than 20 years. As Director of the Brussels Office, he supports the policy dialogue and cooperation between UNIDO and the European Union on issues such as the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. UNIDO and the EU are working together in more than 100 countries around the world. He regularly participates in international conferences and negotiations related to the impact of industrial activities on growth and jobs and on the transition towards green industry and sustainable cities. That includes issues related to Sustainable Energy (SDG7), Sustainable Industrialization (SDG9), Sustainable Cities and Communities (SDG11), Sustainable Consumption and Production (SDG12) and Climate Action (SDG13). Christophe Yvetot particularly promotes the role of Sustainable Cities as Hubs of Innovation, Jobs, Industrialization, and Climate Action1). As the world continues to urbanise rapidly, the Europe’s Cities Delivering the Big Global Agendas 3 Cities for Global Agendas importance of cities that are both sustainable and smart has begun to receive widespread recognition by national, state and local governments around the world. Sustainable and inclusive industrialisation of cities provides opportunities for developing synergies, such as decoupling economic growth from environmental degradation, while at the same time creating employment. 1) See Sustainable Cities as Hubs of Innovation, Jobs, Industrialization, and Climate Action, UNIDO at: https://www.unido.org/fileadmin/user_media_upgrade/What_we_do/Topics/Energy_access/13.Sustain able_Cities_Brochure.pdf KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Nicolas GHARBI Policy Analyst - Directorate General for regional and urban policy, European Commission Nicolas Gharbi holds a degree in Political Philosophy and Sociolinguistics from Universitat de Barcelona, and a Bachelor of Arts in Social Science and Anthropology from the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia. Furthermore, Nicholas Gharbi has a Master’s Degree in International Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid from the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, a Master’s Degree of Science in Urban and Regional Planning from the Institute of Regional and Urban Planning- University of Aix-Marseille, a Master’s Degree of Science in Urban Design and Renewal from the University of Lisbon, Faculty of Architecture and a post-graduate certificate in Financing Public Services and Environmental Sustainability from United Nations University. Since October 2012, Nicolas Gharbi works as a policy analyst in the Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy in the European Commission, where he is located at the Competence Centre for Inclusive Growth, Urban and Territorial Development. Among other projects, Nicolas Gharbi coordinates the preparation of the Common Position of the EU and its Member States for the Third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) - New Urban Agenda and the negotiations and programming of the urban and territorial dimension of the European structural investment funds with Spain, Italy, France and Portugal for the programming period 2014-2020. 4 Europe’s Cities Delivering the Big Global Agendas Cities for Global Agendas CHAIR: Eva BAÑOS DE GUISASOLA Policy Adviser - Environment, Energy and Climate, Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) Eva Baños De Guisasola is a Spanish graduate in European law, with Legal Practice and accountancy diplomas and a French D.E.A in environmental law. Her work experience includes: Executive Director at Aqua Publica Europea, Policy Officer for the Environment over nine years within EUROCITIES – the European Network of 140 large cities, as officer at the European Commission in Directorate General Environment/Climate Change Unit, as consultant at Eamonn Bates and at Lovells Boesebeck Droste International law firm. All these positions have been in Brussels, and this since 1999. She has also coordinated European projects as director (Integaire) and been involved in various projects with a focus on the environment (PreSUD on peer reviews) and climate change (Joint Programming Initiative on Climate, Climate KIC Adaptation Services Platform). She worked in Bologna for three years (from April 2012) at CMCC in the SERC division , as Senior Scientific Manager in charge of climate services strategy, networking and liaison on climate services at international level with other organisations or initiatives such as the Mediterranean Climate Change Cities Consortium. Since April 2015 Eva has been working for the Council of Municipalities and Regions in Europe as senior policy advisor on energy, energy and international negotiations on climate. She is involved in the Global Covenant for Climate and Energy and the Covenant in Sub Saharan Africa. Secondments in Birmingham, Vienna, Gothenburg, Washington and Barcelona. Europe’s Cities Delivering the Big Global Agendas 5 Cities for Global Agendas PARTNER DETAILS: Name: Province of Barcelona NUTS Level: NUTS 3 Country: Spain Region: Catalonia Capital: Barcelona Area: 7,719 km² Population: 5,552,050 Density: 719.3 inhab./km² The Province of Barcelona is currently one of the most active territories in the Mediterranean region. It lies within the region of Catalonia and includes the city of Barcelona, its capital, and 310 other municipalities. With a population of 5.5