ICLEI Europe Members are demonstrating their commitment to fostering sustainable and just urban centres, in part through their relationships with UN-Habitat, the United Nations agency for human settlements.

Last week, ICLEI Member Katowice (Poland) was announced as the host city for UN-Habitat’s Eleventh Session of the World Urban Forum, which will be held in 2022. The Forum is among the most prominent international conferences for cities.

Katowice was chosen in a competitive bidding process. Maimunah Mohd Sharif, Executive Director of UN-Habitat, explained that Katowice’s “excellent and responsive bid was selected by a committee of UN-Habitat and the wider United Nations family, including UN Environment, UNICEF and UNESCO.”

Earlier this year, another ICLEI Europe Member, Mannheim (Germany), entered into a formal co-operation agreement with UN-Habitat. Mannheim is the first German city to enter such an agreement, which entails that the city review how it is implementing UN Agenda 2030 and localising the Sustainable Development Goals. In return, UN-Habitat will present these findings at major UN events, including the World Urban Forum.

For more information on the World Urban Forum bidding process and for additional comments from Maimunah Mohd Sharif, please click here and download the Press Release titled, “Locations announced for World Habitat Day, World Cities Day and the Eleventh World Urban Forum.”

To engage with Mannheim around this and other steps the city has taken towards sustainable urban development, be sure to save the date for the 9th European Conference on Sustainable Cities and Towns, which will take place in Mannheim from 30 September – 2 October 2020.