On September 12, the workshop on Urban Innovation for the Local Implementation of Global Agendas was held in Surabaya, Indonesia, within the framework of the 7^th UCLG ASPAC Congress. The workshop heard the announcement of the finalists for the 4^th Guangzhou International Award for Urban Innovation (Guangzhou Award) and a discussion by representatives from international organizations, local governments, and the academia on urban innovation.

Ms. Tri Rismaharini, Mayor of Surabaya and host of the Congress; Mr. Jingwu Song, Vice President of CPAFFC; Dr. Bernadia Irawati, Secretary General of UCLG ASPAC, and Ms. Agnes Bickart, special representative of METROPOLIS praised Guangzhou for its contributions to facilitating inonvation-driven development around the globe in their respective addresses. In her remakrs, Ms. Yini Chen, Vice Chair of Guangzhou Municipal CPPCC thanked all participating cities and local governments for their participation and the Technical Committee for their hard work. Gratitude was also extended to all those who have been supporting the Guangzhou Award. 

Following the appointment ceremony of the Technical Committee (TC), the TC presented the 15 shortlisted cities/local governments of this year’s Guangzhou Award and explained the reasons for their selection. The shortlisted cities and initiatives are:

1. Santa Fe, Argentina

   Santa Fe's Western Urban Natural Reserve: embracing the hydroclimatic risks
   

2. Sydney, Australia

   Green Square: From a rich industrial past to a vibrant, sustainable and connected community

3. Salvador, Brazil

   - Environmental Recovery Program of the Canabrava Park
   - Caravana da Mata Atlântica

4. Repentigny, Canada

   A city for all

5. Wuhan, China

   The "rebirth" of urban waste dump - ecological treatment and return of plurality

6. Yiwu, China

   Innovating foreign service initiatives to build a harmonious and integrated Yiwu

7. Santa Ana, Costa Rica

   "Santa Ana en Cleta": Active mobility and empowerment of women: Workshops to learn how to ride a bicycle, urban cycling, pacification of roads and re appropriation of public space.
   

8. Surabaya, Indonesia

   Public Participatory in 3R Waste management for Better Surabaya

9. Milan, Italy

   Milan Food Policy: an innovative framework for making urban food system more sustainable, inclusive
   

10. Guadalajara, Mexico

    Citizen-led Metropolitan Coordination of Guadalajara

11. Utrecht, Netherlands

    Localizing the SDGs through multi-stakeholder partnerships

12. Kazan, Russia

    Innovative social and economic development of the city of Kazan
    

13. eThekwini, South Africa

    - Incremental, Participatory, Programmatic Informal Settlement Upgrading Programme

    - Partnerships with the Private Sector to Achieve Sustainable Sanitation Service Provision
    

14. Mezitli, Turkey

    Mezitli Women Producers Market

15. New York, United States

    Global Vision I Urban Action: New York City’s Voluntary Local Review (VLR) of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) shows local progress for global action
    

After the release, Mr. Zhijian Li, President of Asia-Pacific Innovation Ecnominc Research Institute and Secretary General of Guangzhou Institute for Urban Innovation as well as Dr. Retno Hastijanti, Chair of Resiliene Institute of University of 17 Augustus 1945 Surabaya introduced how they promote urban innovation. The dialogue was advanced by a panel discussion on lessons learned from the shortlisted initiatives between Mr. Greg Budworth,‍‍ Group Managing Director of Compass Housing Services; Ms. Wandia Seaforth, former Chief of Best Practices Program at UN-Habitat; Ms. Elisa Silva, Director of Enlace Arquitectura and Urban Development Advisor to Latin America Development Bank; and Mr. Pandu Zanuar, Spatial Planning Analyst from Malang.

100 Congress delegates, experts as well as leaders of international organizations and local governments joined the session.

The 2018 Guangzhou Award received 313 registrations from an unprecedented number of 213 cities/local governments of 70 countries/regions, among them 273 applications submitted by 193 cities/local governments from 66 countries/regions were eligible. All the entries were assessed by the independent TC, which convened in Surabaya during September 8 and 12 for 4.5 days of closed-door meeting and selected 15 shortlisted cities/local governments. The TC also recognized 30 deserving cities/local governments for their achievements in urban innovation. The complete list include

1. Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium

   Canal Plan: an innovative planning approach for the Brussels-Capital Region 

2. Dangbo, Benin
   Valorization of water hyacinth in Compost

3. Federal District, Brazil
   Acting to transform: social control and transparency

4. Vaudreuil-Dorion, Canada
   I AM…/Citizen involvement, culture and sustainable development

5. Vancouver, Canada
   Northeast False Creek Plan

6. Guangzhou, China
   Guangzhou 12345 Government Service Hotline

7. Nanning, China
   Developing Beautiful South Pastoral Complex and narrowing urban-rural gap

8. Bogota, Colombia
   - Urban Transformations for Inclusion
   - www.sexperto.co Digital platform for information on reproductive health and access to health service
   - Coexistence and respect for difference: a social Inclusion of the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgender

9. Curridabat, Colombia

   Date Tu Casa (Give Yourself a House)

10. Senftenberg, Germany
    The Lusatian Lakeland - Transformation with structure, from a mining region to a lake landscape

11. Hong Kong, China
    T PARK

12. Isfahan, Iran
    Specialized Hospital of Sick Buildings (Sustainable Doctor of Sick Buildings)

13. Eliat, Israel
    Eilat Solar

14. Kfar Saba, Israel
    Meeting a Common Challenge: Optimizing Energy Practices and Behaviors

15. Bologna, Italy
    Civic Imagination: Engaging Communities for a More Inclusive and Sustainable City

16. Bucheon, Korea (Republic of)
    Climate-Resilient City, Bucheon

17. Busan, Korea (Republic of)
    Gamcheon Culture Village’s City Rejuvenation Project

18. Seoul, Korea (Republic of)
    Seoul’s people-centric urban regeneration project as a model of sustainable urban growth

19. Alor Gajah, Malaysia
    Melaka World Solar Valley (MWSV)

20. Seberang Perai, Malaysia
    Seberang Perai Upcycle Park

21. Cuautla, Mexico
    La Perseverancia: Solid waste to generate electricity with a social benefit in Cuautla

22. Ramallah, Palestine
    weRamallah: Smart City Initiative

23. Krasnoyarsk, Russia
    Mayor's Labor Unit

24. Ufa, Russia
    - Interdepartmental System of Preventing Adolescent Suicides in Ufa City
    - Information and Control Center of Ufa City
    - Center of Temporary Accommodation (Emergency Fund) of Ufa Сity

25. Singapore, Singapore 
    Master Planning of Punggol Eco-Town

26. Catalonia, Spain
    smartCATALONIA, scaling the smart city concept to a regional initiative

27. Zaragoza, Spain
    100 ideas Zaragoza

28. Umeå, Sweden
    The gendered city tour - challening power in cities

29. Eskişehir, Turkey
    Eskisehir Urban Development Project

30. Denver, United States
    Solving Climate Change and Creating Green Spaces in Denver, Colorado, USA

In December this year, the shortlisted cities/local governments will be invited to the 2018 Guangzhou International Urban Innovation Conference to present their initiatives. The independent Jury will choose from them 5 winners.