[29 April 2016] -- Resilient Cities 2016, the 7th Global Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation, will take place from 6 to 8 July 2016 in Bonn, Germany. This year, and looking ahead to Habitat III, the congress will feature three thematic pillars: (1) Inclusive and Resilient Urban Development; (2) Financing Urban Resilience; and (3) Local Implementation of Global Frameworks (Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, urban resilience targets of the Sustainable Development Goals).
Cities Alliance is pleased to make a financial contribution as a Supporting Partner for the Forum and the lead partner for the “Inclusive and Resilient Urban Development” theme.
Despite increased attention on the most vulnerable and poor residents of cities, there has been little interaction from international resilience actors on the issue of informality. This year, Resilient Cities will focus on how cities can work with the urban poor, including those living in informal settlements and working in the informal sector, to increase citywide resilience. Questions of secure housing, access to basic services, and inclusive governance will be considered. The inclusive and resilient theme will also link to discussions on how to finance urban resilience – from the bottom up and from the top down – and how to advance local progress on the Sustainable Development Goals.
Cities Alliance was an endorsing partner for the 2015 congress and organised a panel on Innovative resilience planning in Africa’s growing cities, which explored practical struggles and successes for developing measurable and verifiable approaches to improve resilience in fast-growing African cities. ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability joined the Cities Alliance in 2015, was elected to the Board in 2016 and currently chairs the Joint Work Programme on Resilient Cities.
