City Space Architecture meets the 12th World Urban Forum in Cairo (2024)
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The Council Board of City Space Architecture at the 12th World Urban Forum in Cairo (from left to right): Manfredo Manfredini (New Zealand), Greg Mews (Australia), Michelle Pannone (USA) and Luisa Bravo (Italy).
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The World Urban Forum (WUF) is the premier global conference on sustainable urbanisation. It was established in 2001 by the United Nations to examine one of the most pressing issues facing the world today: rapid urbanisation and its impact on communities, cities, economies, climate change and policies.
The 12th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF12) took place in Cairo on 4-8 November 2024 under the theme "It All Starts at Home: Local Actions for Sustainable Cities and Communities" and was the largest in the Forum’s history, with participants at the venue and online totaling more than 63,000 people from 182 countries, 60 ministries and 96 mayors, and more than 700 partner-led events. The Forum also marked a return to the African continent after 20 years. The opening ceremony featured four heads of state, from Yemen, Sudan, the State of Palestine, and the host country Egypt. Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, President of Egypt, noted that WUF12 comes at a time of crises and wars, and called for halting the destruction of settlements, supporting poor communities, and developing new projects to provide housing for all. The Forum took place between two major global events: the UN General Assembly’s adoption of the high-level Pact for the Future in September 2024, and the UN Climate Change Conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, which was expected to adopt a new collective quantified goal for climate finance. WUF12 was, therefore, an opportunity to lend momentum and solidify key global commitments for sustainable development.
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City Space Architecture actively participated as an accredited stakeholder and partner of UN-Habitat and promoted and coordinated three events selected by WUF12 Secretariat and included in the official program of the Forum:
- Training event: Public Space Academy, for the advancement of knowledge and design of public space to present anddiscuss the importance of public space, intended not merely as a design activity related to landscape urbanism or infrastructure facilities, but rather as a key component of a complex technical and political process dealing with land use, environment, infrastructure networks, social issues, and policy-making, in response also to global trends such as massive urbanization, privatization, and gentrification. It was promoted in collaboration with the Ove Arup Foundation, UN-Habitat and the German University in Cairo (GUC) and included group sessions facilitated by City Space Architecture's senior mentors and GUC students as junior mentors, and an exercise on Cairo's public spaces in new suburban developments;
- Networking event: Inclusive and Equitable Public Space, a policy framework promoted in collaboration with World Blind Union, Global Infrastructure Basel Foundation (in regard of the Safe and Sound Cities Program - S2Cities) and with Consortium from Sustainable Urbanization (CSU), this event was intended to help demonstrate levels of progress towards achieving inclusive, accessible, sustainable and resilient public spaces at the local level in line with the New Urban Agenda (NUA) and SDG 11, in regard of women, youth, older persons and persons with disabilities, ensuring accessibility, safety and equity;
- Side event at the Urban Library: Shaping the public space discourse with unheard, marginalized and young scholars promoted in collaboration with UN-Habitat and with CAPS - Centre on African Public Space, to present three thematic issues of The Journal of Public Space, that open opportunities for marginalized scholars to argue their perspectives in the academic world. The three issues are: 1) Public Space and Placemaking in African Cities, related to the African continent, developed in collaboration with CAPS - Centre on African Public Spaces; 2) Let Her Guide You, on gender perspectives, with the engagement of young scholars that have been working on the Her City programme - in collaboration with UN-Habitat; 3) Young Gamechangers, presenting young perspectives on health and well-being, as part of the Young Gamechanger initiative developed by UN-Habitat in collaboration with WHO.
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In addition, City Space Architecture was selected as an exhibitor to participate in the WUF12 Urban Expo with an exhibition on Planning Values in Cities with Affordable Housing and Public Spaces for All developed in collaboration with ISOCARP - International Society of City and Regional Planners, RTPI - Royal Town Planning Institute, UPSC - Urban Planning Society of China and APA - American Planning Association. The WUF12 Urban Expo hosted over 140 exhibitors from 51 countries. We partnered with these global planning organizations as members of GPN - Global Planners Network and we all together celebrated World Town Planning Day on 8th November focusing on the theme "Homes Start with Planning" recognizing the role of planning and planners in delivering homes that meets the needs of our communities, and in helping to create equitable, inclusive, and sustainable public spaces for all.
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Training event of the Public Space Academy, opening with (from left to right): our Founder and President Luisa Bravo, Husam AlWaer (University of Dundee, UK), Sara Candiracci (Arup), Jose Chong (UN-Habitat, Leader of the Global Public Space Programme), Silvia Covarino (German University in Cairo, Egypt).
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Thank you to all participants and to our five senior mentors who moderated the group discussions from the City Space Architecture network: Anna Barker (University of Leeds, UK), Justin Hyatt (Carfree Cities Alliance, Spain), Daniela Hidalgo Molina (Universidad Espíritu Santo, Ecuador), Greg Mews (University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia), Heba Elhanafy (Africa Urban Lab, Œcumene Spaces For Dignity, USA). Thank you also to local mentors from the German University in Cairo (GUC), such as (GUC students - Junior Mentors) Bassel Mahmoud, Carla Samer, Hala Hazem, Carla Samer, Ghadah Ahmed, Salma Ahmed, Jomana Akram, Yara Elnaggar; (GUC Junior Teaching Assistants) Bashar Khaled ElShehaby, Mariam Ahmed Aboul Seoud; (GUC Instructors) Fatma Mohamed Elmowalled, Neveen Farag Ayoub, Christiane Sami Banna, Minora Mohamed Hafez.
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The Public Space Academy team (from left to right): Vija Viese (Communications Officer), Luisa Bravo (Founder and Director), Egle Pilipaviciute (Global Outreach Officer).
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Networking event opening with (from left to right): our Founder and President Luisa Bravo, Kelly Donovan (Senior Programme Manager at the Global Infrastructure Basel Foundation, Switzerland), Nina Efedi Okoroafor (Youth Representative from Africa at World Blind Union), Sebnem Hoskara (Director of Urban Research and Development Center at the Eastern Mediterranean University, Cyprus), Lance Jay Brown, FAIA (Founder and Past President at the Consortium for Sustainable Urbanization, USA).
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Read the report of the event written by the Global Infrastructure Basel Foundation.
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Thank you to all participants and to the three respondents from the audience: Vija Viese (Urban Designer and Researcher, PhD candidate at Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway), Theodore Liebman (Perkins Eastman, US), Manfredo Manfredini (Associate Professor, School of Architecture and Planning, The University of Auckland, New Zealand).
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Side event at the Urban Library, opening with our Founder and President Luisa Bravo (Founder and Editor in Chief of The Journal of Public Space) for the launch of three special issues of the journal: "Public Space and Placemaking in African Cities", "Let Her Guide You", "Young Gamechangers".
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Group picture with key participants (from left to right): Greg Mews (University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia) Manfredo Manfredini (University of Auckland, New Zealand / Associate Editor of The Journal of Public Space). Anna Barker (University of Leeds, UK / Editor of the issue "Let Her Guide You"), Elin Andersdotter Fabre (UN-Habitat), Salma Mohamed Mahmoud Elshafie and Merham Keleg (authors of an article in the special issue "Young Gamechangers"), Luisa Bravo (Founder and Editor in Chief of The Journal of Public Space), Anne-Sophie Spinaci (author of an article in the special issue "Young Gamechangers"), Cherie Enns (University of the Fraser Valley, Canada / Editor of the issue "Young Gamechangers"), Christelle Lahoud and Amr Elsayed (UN-Habitat).
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Read the report of the event published by UN-Habitat Youth on Empowering Young Researchers: Amplifying Youth Voices for Healthier Public Spaces.
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City Space Architecture's booth at the Urban Expo, developed in collaboration with ISOCARP - International Society of City and Regional Planners, RTPI - Royal Town Planning Institute, UPSC - Urban Planning Society of China and APA - American Planning Association. Group picture with (from left to right): Lindsey Richards (RTPI President), Egle Pilipaviciute (City Space Architecture), Beatrice Crabb (RTPI International), Ada Hoi Yee Lee (RTPI Policy Specialist), Victoria Hills (RTPI CEO), Luisa Bravo (City Space Architecture President), Vija Viese (City Space Architecture), Elisabeth Belpaire (ISOCARP President), Angela Brooks (APA President), Petra Hurtado (APA Chief Foresight & Knowledge Officer), Jua Cilliers (Commonwealth Association of Planners President), Frank D'hondt (ISOCARP Secretary General), Markus Appenzeller (ISOCARP Board Member).
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City Space Architecture presented its key projects at the booth, while our members contributed to the exhibition with an overview of the amazing interdisciplinary work they are developing across disciplines and continents.
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City Space Architecture (from left to right): Greg Mews (Australia), Egle Pilipaviciute (in the background, Lithuania), Manfredo Manfredini (New Zealand), Daniela Hidalog (Ecuador), Vija Viese (Norway), Luisa Bravo (Italy), Ahmed Helmy (Egypt), Anna Barker (United Kingdom), Michelle Pannone (USA).
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Celebration of World Town Planning Day with partners and friends at the Urban Expo.
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Our Founder and President Luisa Bravo was also a speaker at a networking event organized by UN-Habitat on "A Global Public Space Network - Mainstreaming the role of public space through partnerships".
In 2011, Member States mandated UN-Habitat - through the Governing Council Resolution 23/4 - to establish an approach that (1) supports the role of public space in addressing the challenges of a rapidly urbanising world, (2) to coordinate global multi-stakeholder, multi-level and multi-sectoral partners and experts on public space, and (3) to provide direct assistance to cities in their public space initiatives.
As a direct result, the Global Public Space Programme (GPSP) was launched in 2012 to support local governments in the development of accessible, safe, inclusive, and sustainable public spaces. Over the past years, GPSP has worked in 55 countries, 102 cities, supporting over 2.8 million people in accessing quality public spaces and developing 11 key strategic normative products to promote local capacities on public space development. The Programme has also supported local governments in monitoring their progress toward the SDG 11.7.
The Global Public Space Network gathers over 800 members from governments, private entities, academia and civil society, that set their mandate on mainstreaming and building local capacities on the role of public spaces in sustainable urban development. GPSP and its Network of partners worked together to enhance community inclusion and cohesion, economic empowerment, climate change adaptation and resilience, political engagement, health and well-being of urban dwellers, through public spaces. In particular, strong regional networks are evolving, with active public space communities in Latin America, Africa, Europe, North America and Asia.
City Space Architecture has been a partner of UN-Habitat since 2016 and cooperates with the Global Public Space Programme.
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Key participants (from left to right): Ghanashyam Giri (Mayor of Chandragiri Municipality, Nepal), Elin Andersdotter Fabre (UN-Habitat), Luisa Bravo (President of City Space Architecture, Italy), Carlos Moreno (Scientific Director of the ETI Chair at the Sorbonne Business School, France), Mariana Alegre (Lima Cómo Vamos / Sistema Urbano, Peru), Jose Chong (UN-Habitat, Leader of the Global Public Space Programme), Ethan Kent (Founder of PlacemakingX, USA), Yogi Chellappan (Think City’s Climate Resilience Team in Penang, Malaysia), Amir Gohar (Amaken Placemaking Network), Ayanda Roji (Centre on African Public Spaces, South Africa).
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