Meeting in Brussels on 14-15 September 2011, the agenda+ cities explored the future of urban sustainability, both at a local and global level. The discussions revolved around the opportunities and difficulties related to introducing innovation, as well as the positive role of crisis, both economic and environmental, in opening people’s minds to new, radical solutions.

To kick-start the exchange, Derk Loorbach from the Dutch Research Institute for Transitions, explained how transitions occur and the tools cities have to accelerate or influence these processes. Domenico Rossetti di Valdalbero from the DG Research and Innovation introduced the history and methodology of European Forward Looking Activities, pointing to long-term urbanisation trends and the changing position of Europe in relation to other countries, including India and China.

Also up for discussion was the response of cities to these global trends. Silvia Hesse from Hannover (Germany) presented the city’s Transition Town movement, focusing on its bottom-up approach and holistic take on sustainability. Risto Veivo representing Turku (Finland) introduced the city’s municipal budget that integrates sustainability objectives into the daily work of all city departments. Emanuela Gastaldi (Cittalia), representing Bologna (Italy) presented the city’s climate adaptation initiative, based on an innovative model of public-private partnership. Information on agenda+ membership is available here.

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