A delegation dispatched by UCLG Community on Urban Innovation have joined other UCLG representatives from sections and regions, UCLG committees as well as international agencies, private sector partners and civil society organizations in Barcelona during a Retreat and Campus held during February 10-13. The event is part of the ongoing process of the construction of the Global Agenda of Local and Regional Governments, marking the start of a new and participatory working culture, which is designed to meet the evolving needs of the organization.

At a participatory session, the delegation leader, Secretary General of UCLG Community on Urban Innovation Mr. Liu Baochun, who also was on behalf of UCLG Co-President and Mayor of Guangzhou Mr. Chen Jianhua, presented an overview of the community’s working plan for the year 2015. He believed that 2015 is a crucial year for enhancing international exchanges and cooperation. “The Community intends to further promote peer learning and the agenda of UCLG, as well as to facilitate more study tours in the months to come”, he said.

Sponsored by Guangzhou Municipal Government along with UCLG and Metropolis, two cycles of Guangzhou International Award for Urban Innovation were held in Guangzhou during 2012-2014. The 2nd Guangzhou Award alone has attracted 259 entries from 177 cities in 57 countries and regions across six continents, covering a wide range of fields such as urban planning, innovative governance and smart city. Through a series of field studies, two publications have been compiled thanks to the joint efforts of the community, Organizing Committee of the Guangzhou Award and Guangzhou Institute for Urban Innovation. Within these publications a total of 27 case studies have been collected and thorough analysis provided. “The community,” Liu continued, “is willing to share these case studies and best practices with UCLG members and other cities around the globe”. The two publications can be viewed via UCLG and Metropolis websites.

The Retreat and Campus paid special attention to creating the bases for the development of UCLG as a learning network, and to integrating learning systems in all the areas of work of the organization. Liu shared his view with other participants in regard of devising new means of knowledge sharing and peer learning. Among many things, he proposed to conduct a new round of study tours collaborated with international collaborators to extract knowledge from Guangzhou Award shortlisted cities. In addition, the community is planning to hold a training program on Urban Innovation Leadership in November, inviting UCLG Asia Pacific members, applicants from the Guangzhou Award as well as representatives from Guangzhou’s sister cities to share their inputs on the subject.