Summary report, 6–7 June 2016

The Habitat III Informal Hearings with Stakeholders took place from 6-7 June 2016, at UN Headquarters in New York. The meeting brought together representatives of more than 110 stakeholders to exchange views with member states and observers on the recently submitted zero draft of the Habitat III outcome document. The UN General Assembly (UNGA) mandated the meeting in December 2015 (A/RES/70/210).

The meeting included panels on: key recommendations by Co-Chairs of the General Assembly of Partners for Habitat III (GAP); vision—Quito Declaration; transformative commitments for sustainable urban development; effective implementation; implementation at the local level; follow-up and review; and partnerships for the New Urban Agenda.

BRIEF HISTORY

As a result of the First UN Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat I), which took place in Vancouver, Canada, from 31 May to 11 June 1976, the Vancouver Declaration on Human Settlements officially established the UN Centre for Human Settlements as the major UN agency mandated by the UNGA to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all. By UNGA resolution 32/162 of 19 December 1977, the Commission for Human Settlements was also established as the governing body for the UN Centre for Human Settlements.

With six out of every ten people in the world expected to reside in urban areas by 2030, UN-Habitat notes that cities face unprecedented demographic, environmental, economic, social and spatial challenges. According to UN-Habitat, more than 90% of this growth will take place in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. Hence, urban areas are central to sustainable development efforts. Habitat III will build on the work from Habitat I and the second UN Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II), as well as on recently agreed global frameworks, including: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) 2015-2030; the Paris Agreement on Climate Change; and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development.

HABITAT II: Habitat II convened in Istanbul, Turkey, from 3-14 June 1996, on the 20th anniversary of Habitat I. The Habitat Agenda and the Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements, adopted by the Conference, outlined over 100 commitments and strategies to address shelter and sustainable human settlements. With the adoption of the Habitat Agenda, the international community set itself the twin goals of achieving adequate shelter for all and ensuring sustainable human settlements development. Habitat II also reaffirmed the commitment to the full and progressive realization of the right to adequate housing.

56TH SESSION OF THE UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY: In its resolution 56/206 of 21 December 2001, the UNGA decided to transform the UN Centre for Human Settlements into UN-Habitat. The UNGA also decided, in the same resolution, to transform the Commission on Human Settlements into the Governing Council of UN-Habitat. The Governing Council, which was also made into a subsidiary body of the UNGA, reports to the General Assembly through the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and provides overall policy guidance, direction and supervision to UN-Habitat.

WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: The World Summit on Sustainable Development convened in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 26 August to 4 September 2002. The Johannesburg Plan of Implementation (JPOI), adopted by the Summit, calls for achieving a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers by 2020, as proposed in the Cities Without Slums Initiative.

The JPOI calls for actions at all levels to: improve access to land and property, adequate shelter and basic services for the urban and rural poor; use low-cost and sustainable materials and appropriate technologies for the construction of adequate and secure housing for the poor; increase decent employment, credit and income; remove unnecessary regulation and other obstacles for microenterprises and the informal sector; and support slum upgrading programmes within the framework of urban development plans.

22ND SESSION OF THE UN-HABITAT GOVERNING COUNCIL: This session took place in Nairobi, Kenya, from 30 March to 3 April 2009, on the theme: “Promoting affordable housing finance systems in an urbanizing world in the face of the global financial crisis and climate change.” The session reviewed the activities of UN-Habitat and adopted its work programme and budget for the biennium 2010-2011. It also adopted 11 resolutions, including on: affordable housing finance; cities and climate change; strengthening the development of urban young people; guidelines on access to basic services for all; South-South cooperation in human settlements; and human settlements development in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

5TH WORLD URBAN FORUM: Designated by the UNGA as an advisory body, the World Urban Forum (WUF) is an open-ended think-tank designed to encourage debate and discussion on the challenges of urbanization, and to strengthen the coordination of international support for the implementation of the Habitat Agenda. The Fifth Session was held from 22-26 March 2010 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on the theme “The right to the city: bridging the urban divide.” The session included six dialogues, which focused on the following key aspects of sustainable urbanization: the right to the city; inclusive cities; equal access to shelter and basic urban services; cultural diversity in cities; governance and participation; and climate change. The World Urban Campaign was also launched during the Forum, with the objective of elevating the drive by UN-Habitat and its Habitat Agenda partners for better, smarter, greener and more equitable cities to a new level.

23RD SESSION OF THE UN-HABITAT GOVERNING COUNCIL: This session took place from 11-15 April 2011, on the theme “Sustainable urban development through expanding equitable access to land and housing, basic services and infrastructure.” The session reviewed the activities of UN-Habitat and adopted its work programme and budget for the biennium 2012-2013. The session also adopted 18 resolutions, inter alia, on: gender equality and empowerment of women in sustainable urban development; support for pro-poor housing; access to quality urban public spaces; urban youth development; strategies and frameworks for improving the lives of slum dwellers, beyond the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) target; governance of UN-Habitat; safer cities and urban crime prevention; country activities by UN-Habitat; formulation of a global housing strategy; expanding equitable access to land, housing, basic services and infrastructure; and DRR, preparedness, prevention and mitigation.

RIO+20: The third and final meeting of the Preparatory Committee for Rio+20, pre-conference informal consultations and the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) convened back-to-back in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 13-22 June 2012. During those ten days, government delegations concluded negotiations on the Rio outcome document, “The Future We Want,” and held, among other events, an Urban Summit that involved roundtables on, inter alia, multi-level governance and how cities across the world can learn from each other. It also launched the process for developing and adopting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the elaboration of a post-2015 development agenda.

7TH WORLD URBAN FORUM: The Seventh World Urban Forum (WUF7) took place from 7-11 April 2014 in Medellín, Colombia, on the theme “Urban Equity in Development - Cities for Life.” The meeting issued a declaration that recognized the transformational power of cities and that equity is the foundation of sustainable urban development. Calling for cities to become more inclusive and prosperous for all, the Declaration identifies as important issues, inter alia, the need for: an urbanization model that puts people first and fosters social cohesion, especially among socially marginalized groups, such as women, youth and indigenous peoples; comprehensive and participatory planning; national urban policies; gender equality and balanced land development; better urban resilience to climate change and other disasters; and safe and affordable transportation. The Declaration recognizes the post-2015 development agenda, SDGs and Habitat III processes as opportunities to affirm the importance of well-planned cities and the potential for urbanization to be a positive force for present and future generations.

UN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SUMMIT: This Summit took place from 25-27 September 2015, at UN Headquarters in New York. The Summit adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which includes 17 SDGs and 169 associated targets. SDG 11 addresses urban areas, aiming to “make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.” The Goal, in particular, contains targets to, by 2030: ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums; provide access to safe, affordable, accessible and sustainable transport systems for all, improving road safety, notably by expanding public transport, with special attention to the needs of those in vulnerable situations, women, children, persons with disabilities and older persons; enhance inclusive and sustainable urbanization and capacity for participatory, integrated and sustainable human settlement planning and management in all countries; reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management; and provide universal access to safe, inclusive and accessible, green and public spaces (in particular for women and children, older persons and persons with disabilities). The Goal also aims to: support positive economic, social and environmental links between urban, peri-urban and rural areas by strengthening national and regional development planning; by 2020, substantially increase the number of cities and human settlements adopting and implementing integrated policies and plans towards inclusion, resource efficiency, mitigation and adaptation to climate change, resilience to disasters, and develop and implement, in line with the Sendai Framework for DRR, holistic DRR at all levels; and support least developed countries (LDCs), including through financial and technical assistance, in building sustainable and resilient buildings utilizing local materials. The SDG on sustainable cities and human settlements is interlinked with other SDGs on: ending poverty; ending hunger; ensuring healthy lives; ensuring education opportunities; achieving gender equality; ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all; promoting sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth and decent work for all; building resilient infrastructure and promoting sustainable industrialization; reducing inequality within and among countries; ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns; combatting climate change; conserving and sustainably using oceans; protecting terrestrial ecosystems; promoting peaceful and inclusive societies; and strengthening the means of implementation (MOI). 

PREPARATIONS FOR HABITAT III: PrepCom 1: The 1st Preparatory Committee Meeting (PrepCom 1) for Habitat III took place from 17-18 September 2014 at UN Headquarters in New York. PrepCom 1 provided space for exchanging opinions, ideas and expectations related to the implementation of Habitat II and the process leading to Habitat III. The meeting launched the elaboration of the New Urban Agenda focusing, in particular, on how to address climate change and sustainable development in the context of urban environments. Sessions focused on: lessons learned in the context of US urbanization; gender issues; public transport; grassroots organizations; public spaces; civil society; UN system – Committee on Habitat III; the City We Need; and local and regional governments for Habitat III. 

PrepCom 2: Habitat III PrepCom 2 took place from 14-16 April 2015, in Nairobi, Kenya. PrepCom 2 addressed progress to date in the implementation of Habitat II and discussed accreditation of non-governmental organizations and other major groups to Habitat III and its preparatory process. PrepCom 2 also considered the process for preparing and finalizing the Issue Papers as well as deliberated on the modalities for the Policy Units.

Policy Units: The Habitat III preparatory process established ten Policy Units, comprised of 20 experts each from academia, government, civil society and other regional and international bodies. The Policy Units intend to explore state-of-the-art research and analysis, identify good practices and lessons learned and develop independent policy recommendations on particular issues regarding sustainable urban development. They have identified the challenges to the New Urban Agenda and the policy priorities and critical issues for implementing the New Urban Agenda, as well as developed action-oriented recommendations for its implementation. 

Thematic Meetings: A series of thematic meetings took place to develop declarations, including on: civic engagement, on 7 September 2015, in Tel-Aviv, Israel; metropolitan areas, from 6-7 October 2015, in Montreal, Canada; intermediate cities, from 9-11 November 2015, in Cuenca, Ecuador; sustainable energy and cities, on 20 January 2016, in Abu Dhabi, UAE; financing urban development, from 9-11 March 2016, in Mexico City, Mexico; public spaces, from 4-5 April 2016, in Barcelona, Spain; and informal settlements, from 7-8 April 2016, in Pretoria, South Africa.

Regional Meetings: Regional meetings have also taken place to develop declarations: Asia-Pacific, from 21-22 October 2015, in Jakarta, Indonesia; Africa, from 24-26 February 2016, in Abuja, Nigeria; Europe, from 16-18 March 2016, in Prague, Czech Republic; and Latin America and the Caribbean, from 18-20 April 2016, in Toluca, Mexico.

Habitat III Informal Consultations: The Habitat III Open-Ended Informal Consultative Meetings took place from 25-29 April 2016, at UN Headquarters in New York. The meeting was organized around daily themes on: regional perspectives; transformative commitments for sustainable urban development; effective implementation; and how to enhance MOI.

Panels took place to examine the recommendations and outputs of the ten Habitat III Policy Units on: the right to the city and cities for all; socio-cultural urban framework; national urban policies; urban governance, capacity and institutional development; municipal finance and local fiscal systems; urban spatial strategies – land market and segregation; urban economic development strategies; urban ecology and resilience; urban services and technology; and housing policies.

Panels were also organized around the outcomes of seven Habitat III thematic meetings on: civic engagement; metropolitan areas; intermediate cities; sustainable energy and cities; financing urban development; public spaces; and informal settlements. One session also captured outcomes of Habitat III regional meetings, namely Asia-Pacific, Africa, Europe, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

Habitat III Informal Hearings with Local Authorities Associations: The Habitat III Informal Hearings with Local Authorities Associations took place from 16-17 May 2016, at UN Headquarters in New York. The meeting brought together representatives of more than 120 local and regional governments to exchange views with member states and observers on the recently submitted zero draft of the Habitat III outcome document. The UNGA mandated the meeting in December 2015 (A/RES/70/210).

The meeting included panels on: key recommendations on the Habitat III draft outcome document from a regional perspective; presentations by members of the Global Task Force of Local and Regional Governments on transformative commitments for sustainable urban development; building the urban structure—establishing a supportive national, sub-national and local framework; planning and managing the urban spatial development; enhancing the means of implementation; and follow-up and review of the New Urban Agenda.

First Informal Intergovernmental Meetings: The First Informal Intergovernmental Meetings convened from 18-20 May 2016, at UN Headquarters in New York. The meeting provided the first opportunity for member states to comment on the zero draft of the New Urban Agenda. The meeting included sessions on: overview of the structure and main messages of the draft outcome document for the New Urban Agenda; the preamble and Quito Declaration (vision) of the Zero Draft; transformative commitments of the New Urban Agenda; effective implementation; and follow-up and review.

HABITAT III INFORMAL HEARINGS WITH STAKEHOLDERS REPORT

On Monday, Co-Chair of the Habitat III Preparatory Committee Maryse Gautier, France, welcomed participants and introduced the Habitat III Informal Hearings with Stakeholders. She highlighted the importance of the hearings as part of the participatory approach developed by the Bureau to be used in preparation for, and during, Habitat III.

Habitat III Secretary General Joan Clos welcomed the participants, stressing this session is a key opportunity for major groups and stakeholders to speak to member states in the context of the negotiations on the draft outcome document. He lauded the participatory process which ensured stakeholders inclusion and integration at every step, not only in presenting their views but also contributing their expertise. Highlighting Habitat III as a step forward in strengthening partnerships with stakeholders, he stressed they will be the main partners on the ground, playing a vital role in implementing the New Urban Agenda once adopted.

General Assembly of Partners for Habitat III (GAP) President Eugenie Birch expressed appreciation for the comprehensiveness of the draft, its commitments, and its recognition of stakeholders’ participation. She presented the GAP, its creation, objective, organization and structure, highlighting its call for the creation of an open multi-stakeholder post-Habitat III coordination mechanism focusing on knowledge, advocacy, innovation, monitoring and investment. She called for further efforts to formulate a bold, aspirational vision statement.

GAP Vice President Shipra Narang Suri said the consensus at Habitat III should not only be achieved among member states but also stakeholders. She described the partnership for the New Urban Agenda proposed by GAP as: rights-based and people-centered; rooted in decent work and social inclusion; gender responsive; planet sensitive; contextualized; just and participatory; evidence-based; and grounded in subsidiarity. Underscoring the vision on transformative commitments, she stressed the need to further develop: women’s rights and gender; the role of stakeholders in the follow-up and review process; and the recognition of the new urban reality, which includes an increasing number of humanitarian and environmental crises in cities.

KEY RECOMMENDATIONS BY CO-CHAIRS OF THE GAP: On Monday, GAP President Birch and GAP Vice President Narang Suri opened the session, which included a panel composed of GAP Partner Constituent Groups (PCGs).

Bert Smolders, Business and Industries, called for the New Urban Agenda to be clear, action-oriented and measurable, recommending incorporation of, inter alia: developing guidelines on the quality of urban development to enable private sector engagement; strengthening of public-private partnerships (PPPs); and increasing the prominence of water in the text.

Katia Araujo, Women, stressed the New Urban Agenda provides a unique opportunity to incorporate women’s needs, calling for the preamble to outline a gender responsive framework that is mainstreamed throughout the text. She emphasized the importance of secure land tenure for women and universal access to services.

Jane Katz, Civil Society, highlighted: placing adequate housing at the center of the Agenda; incorporating public transport; prioritizing secure land rights, especially for women; developing systems that prioritize participation by stakeholders; engaging with responsible members of the private sector; and requiring government budget transparency.

Mildred Crawford, Farmers, noted that despite their centrality to urban-rural linkages primary food producers and farmers are excluded from the zero draft. She stressed that, as small and medium enterprises (SMEs), local food producers are good partners in sustainable urban development, noting that the women’s contributions cannot be left behind. She outlined the need to connect small-scale producers to markets by developing councils to encourage consumption of sustainable local products.

A video from Jerko Rǒsin, Parliamentarians, was made available online.

Nicholas You, Media, noted that media was not previously represented as a stakeholder group at major UN conferences. Emphasizing that if the New Urban Agenda is to become actionable, it must make sense to people on the street, he called for a bolder vision to capture the imagination of the public. He also called for adding a qualitative dimension to monitoring and reporting, including real life stories from those implementing the Agenda. 

Daria Cibrario, on behalf of Rosa Pavanelli, Trade Unions and Workers, said there is scope for improvement in terms of ambition, vision and concrete actionable items. She stressed the Agenda is weak on worker protections, urban inequalities and social economic inclusion, noting that the absence of workers from the draft undermines the legitimacy of the New Urban Agenda. She also expressed concern that current policies have resulted in overreliance on PPPs, and urged not making the same mistake.

Ana Marie Argilagos, Foundations and Philanthropies, welcomed having more seats at the table. She noted the unique attributes of foundations, including the luxury of long-term views, an appetite for risk and their independence from governments. She emphasized the need for: capacity; city-level access to finance mechanisms; high quality data to assess implementation; links between urban and rural areas; and links between the New Urban Agenda, the SDGs and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

Rose Molokoane, Grassroots, stressed addressing the living conditions of the urban poor, noting that housing policies should promote equity, increase security of tenure, and develop participatory processes that include women, the urban poor and grassroots organizations. She called for referring to the informal economy, strengthening links between informal work and informal settlements, ending the practice of “first eviction” and, in reference to data collection, emphasizing community collected data.

Supporting the adoption of the New Urban Agenda, Ndinini Sabaya Kimesera, Indigenous People, stressed the need for an inclusive urban agenda that respects the diversity of all groups. She called on states to protect indigenous peoples’ livelihoods and natural resources in cities, and on the New Urban Agenda to promote cultural and traditional knowledge and policies that recognize indigenous and marginalized people in city planning.

Emilia Saiz, Local Authorities, acknowledged the Secretariat and Bureau’s efforts for an inclusive process. She stressed the need for a bold ambition in the draft outcome document and for proper financial resources at the proper level, noting the role of the New Urban Agenda is to foster an enabling environment for the implementation of the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.

Katherine Kline, Older Persons, highlighted a vast demographic shift in cities, noting the need to acknowledge older persons as contributors to society and city development. She stressed that life-long education and age-friendly cities should be proposed for greater inclusiveness, and the need for social protection floors but also disaggregated data.

Ishtiaque Zahir, Professionals, stressed the role of professionals in plan making at all levels, in developing new tools for the implementation of the New Urban Agenda and in monitoring and sharing progress. He noted the need for a global mechanism to finance the mapping of urban solutions and initiatives, the new “Peoples in Partnership,” where people’s and stakeholders’ voices are at the center, and the importance of GAP recognition in all UN meetings.

Enrique Silva, Research and Academia, lauded the recognition of Research and Academia in the draft outcome document. Noting the need for meaningful, sound data for effective polity on sustainable human settlements, he noted the importance of the multi-stakeholders Advisory Committee proposed by GAP. He stressed multi-level knowledge production and dissemination; a “transdisciplinary” approach that includes local and indigenous knowledge in policy and implementation; and the importance of the data challenge, noting that data can be collected at subnational level.

Joyati Das, Children and Youth, welcomed the zero draft, its aspirational vision and people-centered approach. She stressed, among others, the need to include the most vulnerable, involve all stakeholder groups, gather intelligence from diverse sources, address increasing income inequality and focus on urban equity.

During discussions, Disability Inclusive and Accessible Urban Development Network called for remembering that those with disabilities are members of each of the GAP PCGs as a cross-cutting group and for encouraging all to consider disabilities in the context of the New Urban Agenda.

GAP President Birch summarized outcomes from the panel, noting the necessity of: establishing national urban policies that allocate appropriate actions to various spheres of government; identifying rules that will allow activities at various levels; developing the physical framework and planning structure in which proposed activities can take place; creating the ability for national, regional and local governments to finance activities; and developing multi-stakeholder partnerships, which requires wording that spells out what those partnerships will be and how they will push the agenda forward.

Kenya noted the diversity of stakeholders reflects the universality of the New Urban Agenda. He called for strengthening UN-Habitat by ensuring universal membership. He welcomed inclusion of women and youth, the private sector and cities and municipalities. He stressed development of a financial package or mechanism to enable development of informal settlements into centers that attract development.

The Non-Communicable Disease Alliance noted the important role of the New Urban Agenda in ensuring health, stressing that ill health undermines sustainable development.

The Howard Center for Family, Religion, and Society underscored that the family is left out of the New Urban Agenda, saying that the most sustainable solutions to challenges are often within the family.

Chile emphasized leaving no one behind, highlighting the precarious situations of many urban settlements. In response, Molokoane said that partnerships between local, regional and national governments, and the grassroots can foment change. Silva said precariousness could be addressed by providing sufficient resources to local governments. Smolders noted that small businesses are powerhouses for economic development and should be included in discussions, while acknowledging that the private sector has played negative roles in informal settlements and eviction and calling for developing policies that are better for informal settlements.

Un Techo para Mi Pais called for expanded focus on a “right to transformation” of citizens who live in informal settlements and incorporating issues such as security and accessibility to address the problems of those that live in informal settlements.

The International Council on Monuments and Sites noted that the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development speaks forcefully about the protection of cultural and natural heritage, saying the New Urban Agenda is a chance to operationalize those commitments. He emphasized a multisectoral approach to these issues, both within GAP and in the New Urban Agenda.

Un Techo para Mi Pais presented outcomes of a civil society meeting that took place in Brazil, saying the zero draft does not adequately address social and technical inequalities and calling for solidarity and cooperation among cities to achieve transformation of urban development. Noting its history, he called for inclusion of the right to the city.

The Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) praised the inclusion of sustainable transport in the draft document. He noted as important paradigm shifts: the development of transport systems hand in hand with effective land use planning; equitable transport and accessibility, including for vulnerable groups; and funding and financing addressing the problems of subsidies on fossil fuel use.

Habitat III Co-Chair Gautier then asked the participants to reflect on how to bridge the gap between different stakeholders’ voices and decision-makers. Highlighting knowledge management and knowledge sharing, she queried where this should be taking place, whether in objectives setting, decision-making, or planning, or somewhere else in the New Urban Agenda.

GAP Vice President Narang Suri responded that the institutionalization of participation needs to take place at different levels, platforms and stages of urban planning and decision-making. She noted that national governments need to stand up and take responsibility for creating and facilitating policies and enabling environment for local authorities to respond to local needs.

Saiz stressed the importance of developing legislation and frameworks for a new type of governance that allows sharing power and responsibilities at all levels of government, along with the commitment to try to improve consultation processes in cities, and build capacities at all levels.

Silva stressed the need to address precarious livelihoods and living conditions, infrastructure financing and local communities’ access to land. He emphasized knowledge and management sharing with local authorities, and the need for incentives, including from multilateral agencies such as UN agencies.

The Institute for Conscious Global Change noted the importance of both vertical and horizontal subsidiarity, underscoring the importance of co-design in environmental planning, including emerging technologies such as geographic information systems (GIS).

Molokoane lamented the current work in silos among government spheres, creating confusion for grassroots organizations, and stressed the need for interconnected and integrated work.

Katz said that looking ahead, a policy forum similar to the GAP would be necessary for the implementation phase of the New Urban Agenda.

Foundations and Philanthropies stressed the importance of a fluid decision process through constant involvement of stakeholders in decision-making and implementation, as well as follow-up and review.

After a few concluding remarks, GAP President Birch closed the panel.

VISION—QUITO DECLARATION: On Monday, Habitat III Co-Chair Gautier opened the session, which was moderated by Christopher Dekki, Pax Romana, US.

Nicholas You, Citiscope, on behalf of Sunil Dubey, for Metropolis, highlighted stories from Seoul, Republic of Korea, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Hamburg, Germany, which demonstrate that clear visions: provide the foundation for successful policy outcomes by breaking down silos; encourage collaboration between stakeholders; and must be driven by the common good and resonate with every citizen in the city. 

Betsy Campbell, European Foundation Center, noted a map of philanthropic giving demonstrated that US$10 billion has been invested in cities globally. She underscored that philanthropy contributes in five areas: innovation; accountability; development of networks; data research and evidence; and innovative finance.

Bachir Kanouté, Enda ECOPOP, Senegal, said the zero draft should be calibrated with Agenda 2063 under the African Union. He welcomed cooperation approaches to managing cities and inclusion of the right to the city. He called for at least 15% of national budgets to be remitted to the local level to allow them to provide for the needs of citizens.

Daniela Carrera-Marquis, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), said that the Declaration covers many of the components required by an integrated approach to achieve sustainable urban development. She noted a few places where integration is not seen, stressing the need to see humans as a part of larger ecosystems and calling for recognizing the catalytic role of cities in achieving all SDGs.

Victor Pineda, Disability Inclusive and Accessible Urban Development Network, US, emphasized that people with disabilities should be seen as powerful partners for sustainable development, noting that one in seven people globally are disabled in some manner. He noted that while he loves cities, he often feels that cities do not love him back. He stressed that ill planned places disable people when they do not conceptualize the full range of human experience, calling for embracing a new conceptualization of disability to eliminate barriers and enable full participation of those with disabilities. He stressed creation of a bold and uplifting agenda that enables all people. 

During discussions, Habitat International Coalition stressed the need to clearly define and address separately the city for all and the right to the city concepts in the New Urban Agenda. He called for a task force to further clarify the implementation of both concepts.

GAP PCG Youth and the Major Group on Children and Youth highlighted the need for a vision that articulates the three dimensions of sustainable development, the need to address environmental thresholds and planetary boundaries.

Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO) stressed that the current model of urbanism fails to address poverty and exclusion. Stressing the need for bold policy on disabled people in urban informal economies, she called on states to recognize that the draft outcome document is the result of a partnership approach and to refrain from changing it too much.

Responding to participants, Pineda said a city is a contract between people and society, when people are out of the equation, society fails to take care of them, so they are further marginalized and antagonism builds towards the society. He stressed that inclusive cities are the way forward.

The International Alliance of Women, welcomed the work to date, highlighting the need to take into account natural parameters and planetary boundaries in human settlements design. Noting self-help housing, she recommended emphasizing human capital in human settlements.

Chile stressed that all the people must be taken into account and included when referring to the city for all, noting that everyone has the right to participate and access to services.

Ecuador stressed the recognition of a supplementary level of vulnerability and precariousness when disabled persons live in informal settlements, noting it is time for an agreement on the right to the city and sustainable urbanization.

Responding to the comments from the floor, panelists: reiterated the importance of a strong vision statement; lauded genuine stakeholders and organization engagement; stressed for planning, financing and innovative solutions to advance in the New Urban Agenda; and highlighted disabled persons as partners that have solutions, capacities and ideas, and that joint efforts can allow removing barriers for everyone, not only disabled persons.

TRANSFORMATIVE COMMITMENTS FOR SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT: On Monday, Moderator Juan Carlos Franco Villegas, Mario Santo Domingo Foundation, Colombia introduced the panel session. He highlighted the importance of threats faced and the need for a transformative urban agenda including, inter alia, collaboration between all government levels and stakeholders, and commitments for the change needed to build sustainable communities.

Gabriela Suaréz Buitrón, Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales, Ecuador, highlighted the paradigm shift required, involving: considering a broader understanding of citizenship, including temporary inhabitants; undertaking a true participatory mechanism, stressing participation institutionalization in public policy, and monitoring and follow-up; and emphasizing the rural-urban connection. She noted the transformative vision should: address ways to combat social segregation to promote universal access to services; recognize different kinds of economies; be based on complementarity rather than competition; and address risks management and resilience in urban planning.

Kathryn Travers, Women in Cities International, noted that women need to be at the center of the New Urban Agenda, which should reflect the principle of power-sharing. She stressed the need for further commitments to support women’s asset building through tools and recognition of women as leaders in building resilience. She called for acknowledging there are gender differences across all aspects of sustainable urban development.

Gia Gaspard Taylor, Network of Rural Women Producers, Trinidad and Tobago, said addressing social and spatial vulnerabilities requires adequate planning, emphasizing that it is imperative to address the issues of farmers, their families and their entire communities that will be displaced in the event of urbanization. She identified three key points for inclusion in the draft text: repatriation; communication and public awareness; and urbanization of rural areas.

Patrick Brett, Citigroup International, US, stressed that financing conditions have changed since the financial crisis, in part due to a lack of resources and bank capital regulations that have made infrastructure development harder to finance. He identified the need to put enabling conditions in place, including: the rule of law and strong institutions; transparency; new funding structures, such as user-fee based systems; devolution of funding to the lowest possible level; cooperation across all levels of government; and development of long-term local currency investor bases.

Pilar Balbuena, WIEGO, Colombia, underscored the need to recognize informal settlements and economies as engines of economic growth. She, inter alia, called for: recognizing that sustainability rests in the people’s economy rather than a small and privileged segment of the city; ensuring the present day employment structures are recognized, including self-employment; referencing the wide range of actors in the grassroots PSG; and recognizing the two way linkages between informal settlements and informal economies.

 During discussions, the Major Group on Children and Youth stressed the need to address the impacts of the current unsustainable patterns of the neo-liberal economic model on the environment, to apply environmental thresholds, and the impact of urban development on health, noting lifestyle-related risks and non-communicable diseases.

Workers and Trade Unions called for replacing the informal sector with informal economy, recognizing the role of SMEs in generating formal employees and contributing to the New Urban Agenda.

The Moderator recalled the main recommendations and closed the panel session.

EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION: On Tuesday, Habitat III Co-Chair Gautier opened the session. Moderator Thomas Wright, Regional Plan Association, US, welcomed the participants, noting the session would address, among others, supportive national framework and enhancing financing.

Maria Luisa Alvarado, Habitat for Humanity International, Colombia, addressed the need for, among others: renewed political commitments and partnerships; consistency in the partnerships promoted; open dialogue and community participation; and trust, balanced decision-making, political will and legal frameworks. Highlighting land as underpinning the New Urban Agenda, she called for including non-discriminatory and gender responsive requirements in the draft text on compliance with legal requirements.

Marta Benavides, Agricultural Missions, Siglo XXIII, El Salvador, noted consultation and cooperation as key for effective implementation at all levels, and a new alliance on sustainable urbanization focusing, among others, on youth, workers, children, and disabled and aged people. She stressed the importance of implementing the New Urban Agenda ensuring human, cultural and environmental rights are fulfilled.

Daria Cibrario, Public Services International, Italy, welcomed the work of the GAP. She noted that international trade agreements currently under secret negotiations, such as Trade in Services Agreement, Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and Trans-Pacific Partnership, may contain clauses undermining the objectives and transformational commitments of the New Urban Agenda. On financing essential services, she noted viable public options, not only private ones, and ongoing processes of reprivatization.

Clinton Moloney, PricewaterhouseCoopers, outlined five key messages: measurement requires identification of a small number of key metrics and measures that move the needle; partnerships with stakeholders requires stretching widely and engaging broadly; finance, such as green bonds need to match means with the message of the New Urban Agenda; infrastructure must include broadband and digital technologies; and capacity and education are required to provide the skill sets to effectively collaborate with each other.

Ramón Cruz, ITDP, US, stressed the New Urban Agenda is the first opportunity after the adoption of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda to start delivering on the commitments made. He called for specific and meaningful targets to achieve implementation of transport objectives at the city level, and for referencing: transformation to zero carbon public transportation systems to address climate change; access for the disadvantaged; the issues of congestion and collisions; and the role of mobility in moving freight.

During discussions, Women called for consistent language on partnerships and to combat corruption. On finance, she called for establishing a watchdog to prevent illicit financial flows and viewing PPPs as complementary. On technology transfer, she called for addressing the gender gap in the sector and for ex ante and ex post assessments.

The Howard Center for Family, Religion, and Society emphasized that the family unit should be empowered to address global sustainability problems.

Honduras said youth and civil society will play a large role in ensuring that the New Urban Agenda serves as a targeted way to achieve the SDGs. Germany requested concrete suggestions on how to structure partnerships in the New Urban Agenda. The International Council on Monuments and Sites wondered whether there is a systematic way to revise the New Urban Agenda to connect it to key pieces of the SDGs and the 2030 Agenda.

Cardiff University and WIEGO called for reflecting issues facing cities in crisis in the New Urban Agenda. Disability Inclusive and Accessible Urban Development Network stressed the need for equitable provision of all basic services and examining how, through universal design, those services can reach all people and ensure barrier free cities.

HIC called for thinking about how other institutions, including the judiciary, can be engaged to address issues related to the New Urban Agenda.

Business and Industry said the New Urban Agenda must address quality standards, such as setting acceptable standards of flood risk.

Responding to comments, Cruz emphasized the need to create national guidelines and frameworks for implementation at the local level, in order to unlock international financial resources.

Alvarado said partnership frameworks should build on trust, open and transparent information and a common understanding of the issues involved.

Benavides stressed bottom up, people- and planet-centered approaches.

Cibrario said that services need to align along major objectives and build a culture of trust and anti-corruption to achieve coherence.

Moloney underscored that partnership is a mindset, and that not having all stakeholders in the room is a missed opportunity to identify innovative solutions.

IMPLEMENTATION AT THE LOCAL LEVEL: On Tuesday, Moderator Emilia Saiz, United Cities and Local Governments, and Global Task Force, Spain, introduced the session noting that “there is no effective implementation if you do not implement at the local level.” She invited panelists to address: changing the social contract among citizens; financing for implementation of the New Urban Agenda; creating governance and competencies for local authorities and citizens; and developing sustainable transportation.

Khady Dia Sarr, Dakar Municipal Finance Programme, Senegal, welcomed the work of the GAP and lauded the draft outcome document and its recognition of local authorities in implementing and follow-up and evaluation. On decentralization, she said it is not only about policies and transfer of attribution but also about reinforcing local authorities in terms of local taxation. Highlighting finance as necessary for implementation, she called for revising the governance of local taxation, emphasizing the need for cities to have access to financial markets.

Marcelo Montenegro, ActionAid, Brazil, welcomed the city as a common good in the draft outcome documents, underscoring the New Urban Agenda as a social contract that includes participation in planning. He stressed cities should be competitive and attractive, and that women should be included as a factor of change. He noted the need for disaggregated data, involvement of local communities in data collection, and equitable and gender responsive basic service delivery.

Rohit Aggarwala, Sidewalk Labs, US, stressed the potential of technology including in accessing information, increasing transparency and promoting citizen engagement. Highlighting smart cities, he noted the use of technology applications in various areas including: wages of undocumented workers; informal economy; crowd sourcing; police departments; and water system repair. He concluded that technology can help institutions that are otherwise functioning well, noting the need to reinforce local institutions and build capacity.

Andrew Bata, International Association of Public Transport, US, highlighted transportation as the ultimate meeting place, noting it: promotes sustainable and inclusive growth; improves health through reduction of obesity and coronary heart disease; reduces carbon footprints; and increases social integration, including of women. He underscored the need to secure funding for public transport including for both new and old infrastructures.

Alice Claeson, International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations, Sweden, stressed the need for a planet sensitive New Urban Agenda and for innovative financial mechanisms, suggesting ecological taxation to enable local cities to levy taxes on environmental externalities and fund sustainable urbanization. She highlighted empowering local authorities and expanding their revenue bases, through access to internal and national financial mechanisms.

During discussions, Civil Society said growing disparities between housing prices and income requires immediate action in cities such as Denver.

Disability Inclusive and Accessible Urban Development Network asked how to further engage people with disabilities in decisions on ways to implement public services. Foundations and Philanthropies queried how to use technologies in countries lacking strong local and national institutions. Professionals described the case of a city in Bangladesh that successfully used aspects of good governance, transparency and good planning to leverage finance.

Women’s Environment and Development Organization outlined the Cities for the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) initiative, which aims to achieve adoption at the municipal level of CEDAW principles. She called for ensuring the New Urban Agenda includes CEDAW and the associated Beijing Platform for Action in the text.

Aggarwala emphasized that where weaker institutions use the lack of information or their monopoly on information to advance their narrow objectives, the expansion of and access to information through technology can induce profound changes.

Dia Sarr noted the importance of central governments responding to local governments who serve as a translator for local communities needs.

Bata said investment in roads and highways are poisonous to cities as they simply attract more cars, underscoring that urban public transportation is more efficient. In the US, he highlighted the Americans with Disabilities Act as a powerful tool to promote accessible transport.

Montenegro noted the importance of designing inclusive transport systems that address the issues of people with disabilities and women, who frequently suffer harassment on public transport.

Claeson cautioned that the New Urban Agenda should not simply collect dust, underscoring the role of civil society and youth in encouraging inclusion of stakeholders in monitoring and implementation, and in generating a feeling of ownership of the Agenda.

FOLLOW-UP AND REVIEW: On Tuesday, Habitat III Co-Chair Gautier and Moderator Jessica Espey, Sustainable Development Solutions Network, US, introduced the panel session.

Inés Sánchez de Madariaga, Technical University of Madrid, Spain, highlighted, in follow-up and review, the role of academia in promoting gender-equal science, noting: the upcoming Engendering the Habitat III Conference and genderScience, Technology, Environment network; UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Chair and University Twinning and Networking Networks; National Scientific and Technical Research Council network of research centers in Latin America; and European Commission gender portal on science and technology. She concluded highlighting the need to increase finance for research, include local and indigenous knowledge and use new technology such as GIS.

Nicholas Ngatia, Kenya Model UN, highlighted the need for reference in the draft outcome document to modalities allowing it to feed into the High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, to use the WUF as annual global and regional Habitat III follow-up forums, and for an engagement mechanism for right holders and stakeholders that can be operationalized.

Ana Lucy Bengochea, Garifuna Emergency Committee, Honduras, highlighted problems faced by indigenous people in cities, such as discrimination. She noted the New Urban Agenda should recognize and promote their contribution to implementation and resilience and called for the inclusion of indigenous groups and recognition of their lifestyles. She also stressed the leadership of indigenous groups, equity, and urban-rural linkages.

Maruxa Cardama, Communitas Coalition, Spain, underscored the need for a continued follow-up and review process at all levels involving periodic reports by: national governments, in collaboration with sub-national governments and stakeholders’ consultation; UN-Habitat reports; and stakeholders’ reports. She also stressed the need to address complementarity and a comprehensive UN institutional framework for follow-up and review, an independent multidisciplinary panel, matrices and indicators and the role of UN coordination units and city prosperity index, and open and public data.

Justin Edwards, Social Progress Imperative, US, stressed a paradigm shift to more inclusive development and the need to measure social progress through an index. Moving away from traditional economic indicators, he described environmental performance indices used in various countries, regional networks for data collection feeding in follow-up and review processes and a focus on desegregated data according to, among others, age, race, sexual orientation and gender.

During discussions, UN-Habitat underscored that partnerships are anchored in the outcome of Habitat II, and other key outcomes, and described the “critical role” of partnerships in the implementation of UN-Habitat projects and programmes. She called for a holistic approach to partnerships in the New Urban Agenda.

Women noted that: the follow-up process can ensure synergies between all actors; the integrity of UN-Habitat should be maintained; and internal dialogue within the UN system is critical to ensure coordination of all activities. She called for prioritizing monitoring of the abolishment of structural inequalities.

Honduras said the next draft of the New Urban Agenda must be more inclusive and participatory to maximize sustainability. He underscored that Indigenous People are not vulnerable as they best understand the environment and areas where they live, and must be engaged as equal partners.

Responding to comments by participants, Sánchez de Madariaga highlighted that men and women move very differently around the city, and transport systems are currently designed for male mobility, as women’s movement is not accurately captured in data. She stressed the need to capture gender-disaggregated data.

Ngatia called for enhancing and improving the WUF, saying the New Urban Agenda should involve all stakeholders and sectors of society based on the vision of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit.

Cardama stressed that partnerships are crucial and that the WUF, World Urban Campaign and GAP provide spaces to bring partnerships to fruition.

Edwards noted that data disparities and data disaggregation pose challenges, while noting that the scaling of social media provides unique opportunities to examine the trends and patterns affecting peoples lives.

Disability Inclusive and Accessible Urban Development Network called for stand alone paragraphs in the vision section addressing people with disabilities, in part on adopting policies for barrier free cities, through modalities such as universal design.

Global Housing Foundation noted the support of UN-Habitat in encouraging and developing existing partnerships. She called for returning to “old fashioned performance standards.”

Edwards noted the diversity of views among stakeholders, calling for further commitment in the draft outcome document to inclusivity, and moving beyond networking and collaborating to building each other’s capacity.

Cardama called for a series of reports from UN-Habitat and UN system wide support for assessment and review, including development of a set of metrics and indicators to provide a granular local level picture.

PARTNERSHIPS FOR THE NEW URBAN AGENDA: On Tuesday, Moderator Katherine Kline, AARP, US, asked panelists to describe specific partnership experiences highlighting what works and what does not. She stressed the need for more clarity on partnerships in the draft document.

Sahar Attia, University of Cairo, Egypt, presented: the Egypt Urban Forum, a multi-stakeholder platform for debates on sustainable urban development at the country level; a joint government and universities project on a country-wide planning reform in Saudi Arabia; and a University initiative to create an inclusive and accessible city water front. She called for the use of academic expertise and know-how in Habitat III implementation and monitoring.

Oscar Fergutz, Avina Foundation, Brazil, highlighted partnerships as based on vision, which should be bolder in the draft outcome document, and on values, which help to strengthen the links between actors, providing the example of a recycling network of actors working in different sectors. Highlighting that partnerships and alliances are multidimensional and involve a variety of actors, he noted the draft document needs to further address equity and justice, and include the complexity of partnership processes. He called on all member states to become more involved in implementation of the New Urban Agenda through partnerships.

Mitchell Silver, Commissioner, New York City Department of Parks, US, said complex systems require collaboration, noting fragmented governments produce fragmented results and state authorities’ reluctance to see change. He presented PPPs such as Central Park Conservancy, and public-public partnerships, such as Parks Without Borders in New York.

Rose Molokoane, Slum/Shack Dwellers International (SDI), South Africa, said SDI has grown through partnerships and data collection, in order to identify priority projects within communities. She said that they have developed community-led programmes, which mobilize local governments to use community-driven data collection to involve people in changing their own lives. She asked to whom will the New Urban Agenda belong, questioning whether it will be “nice talk” or a real document that brings real, implementable partnerships with financial resources to foment actual change.

GAP Vice President Shipra Narang Suri, International Society of City and Regional Planners, noted that partnerships for urban areas are complex due to the density and diversity of urban stakeholders. She stressed they must serve everybody’s interests, but underscored that it can be done. She said effective partnerships must include capacity building to enable engagement. She outlined that challenges include a lack of trust. She highlighted that trust is not instinctive, noting different groups have different and conflicting interests, but underscored coming together is possible and works when groups are not circumscribed in their advocacy on issues that are important to them but where there is not broader agreement.

During discussions, Kenya described youth-to-youth partnerships that eased sewerage and overcrowding in Kibera slum and provided youth employment. He called for the Quito outcome to include a strong and powerful governance structure to achieve a transformative agenda.

Indigenous People noted the need to examine what types of partnerships have worked, saying they should be win-win and include indigenous knowledge.

Local Authorities said partnerships come down to governance, calling for commitments from national governments to partner with other levels of government to achieve progress. She called for establishing global governance architecture that gives all stakeholders a formal seat at the table, especially local authorities.

Disability Inclusive and Accessible Urban Development Network, noting the case of Armenia, said that partnerships can emerge with disabled advocates when planners realize they do not have to have all the answers, opening up space for others to contribute.

IDB noted there are often self-created barriers in the field of PPPs, highlighting a case from Brazil in which discussions related to PPPs have taken place in the absence of the private sector and noting IDB work to increase private sector and other stakeholders involvement in discussions on investment in urban development.

Germany asked panelists to identify their vision of partnerships in the post-Quito world. Molokoane emphasized grassroots would have an equal seat at the table and be involved from the beginning. Suri said the formal governance architecture should be mirrored by a multistakeholder platform to institutionalize participation in a complementary way. Attia stressed that the partnerships should involve capacity building. Fergutz underscored partnership as a right.

WIEGO described the national waste-pickers forum in Brazil as a successful partnership which strengthened local organizations, calling for an open platform where all have an equal voice in the process.

CLOSING SESSION: On Tuesday, Habitat III Co-Chair Gautier introduced the closing session.

GAP Vice President Shipra Narang Suri reiterated the need for a clear articulation of the aspiration, a bolder vision and stronger transformative commitments. She stressed the social contract involved the empowerment of all stakeholders as partners and drivers of sustainable urbanization. She summarized main elements, highlighting the need for, inter alia: institutions and frameworks; long-term predictable financing; housing and land planning; measurable outcomes; reduced precariousness; matrices for data collection; and partnerships on data collection.

GAP President Eugenie Birch thanked the Bureau and the Secretariat for their support, stressing that the GAP offers a space for all stakeholders and that evidence of contributions are already seen. She underscored “we are part of a living experiment, a sharing of passion and knowledge.”

Habitat III Secretary General Joan Clos described this meeting as a step forward in UN modalities, where partners sit at the same level with member states. He noted the emergence of collaborative and sharing economies, featuring new roles and modalities for partnerships, as well as new technology for effective participation, partnership and governance structures. Participation of stakeholders, he said, is not a decoration or a nice politically correct gesture, “it is a must.”

Habitat III Co-Chair Gautier stressed GAP as representing the diversity of the city, the importance of institutionalization of representation, and the importance of monitoring the implementation of a better city.

The Habitat III Informal Hearings with Stakeholders closed at 6:17pm.

UPCOMING MEETINGS

Informal Intergovernmental Negotiations: This is the second of three informal intergovernmental negotiations to deliberate on the zero draft of the Habitat III outcome document.  dates: 8-10 June 2016  location: New York, US  contact: Habitat III Secretariat  email: Habitat3Secretariat@un.org www: http://www.habitat3.org

Informal Intergovernmental Negotiations: This is the final informal intergovernmental negotiation session prior to the third meeting of the Habitat III Preparatory Committee (PrepCom3), where the zero draft of the Habitat III outcome document will be discussed.  dates: 29 June - 1 July 2016  location: New York, US  contact: Habitat III Secretariat  email: Habitat3Secretariat@un.org www: http://www.habitat3.org

Resilient Cities 2016: 7th Annual Global Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation: Resilient Cities 2016 will focus on driving forward implementation and financing of urban resilience toward the goal of a more sustainable, inclusive and resilient urban development. The forum will address a range of issues, including inclusive resilience strategies, financing resilient cities, measuring and monitoring progress, resilience and adaptation planning, governance and collaboration, resource management, and resilient infrastructure. It will also present an opportunity to review local progress on international framework agreements, including the Sendai Framework for DRR as well as the resilient targets of SDG 11.  dates: 6-8 July 2016  location: Bonn, Germany  contact: ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability World Secretariat  phone: 49–228/976 299-28  fax: +49-228/976 299-01  email: resilient.cities@iclei.org www: http://resilientcities2016.iclei.org

High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF 2016): The Fourth High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, convening under the auspices of the UN Economic and Social Council, will take place on 11-15 July 2016, followed by a three-day ministerial meeting of the Forum on 18-20 July 2016. The theme of the 2016 session will be “Ensuring that no one is left behind,” as decided in an ECOSOC plenary session on 14 March 2016.  dates: 11-20 July 2016  venue: UN Headquarters  location: New York City, US  contact: Marion Barthelemy  phone: +1 (212) 963-4005  email: barthelemy1@un.org www: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/hlpf

Habitat III PrepCom 3: The PrepCom will hold its third of three meetings in advance of the UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III), in Surabaya, Indonesia. Participants will discuss the zero draft of the New Urban Agenda that will focus on policies and strategies to harness urbanization.  dates: 25-27 July 2016  location: Surabaya, Indonesia  contact: Habitat III Secretariat  email: Habitat3Secretariat@un.org with copy to habitat3prepcom3@un.org www: https://www.habitat3.org/the-new-urban-agenda/preparatory-committee

Habitat III: The UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) aims to secure renewed political commitment for sustainable urban development, assess progress and accomplishments to date, address poverty and identify and address new and emerging challenges. The conference is expected to result in an action-oriented outcome document and the establishment of the “New Urban Agenda.”  dates: 17-20 October 2016  location: Quito, Ecuador  contact: Habitat III Secretariat  email: Habitat3Secretariat@un.org with copy to Habitat3Ecuador@un.org www: http:// www.habitat3.org