Adapting Cities for Climate Resilience
On October 31st, 2021 World Cities Day China Observance, themed as Adapting Cities for Climate Resilience, was held at the North Bund World Meeting Room in Shanghai, China. It was also the 1st SDG Global Conference. Li Qiang, Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee attended the conference and delivered a speech. António Guterres, the Secretary-General of the United Nations sent a congratulatory letter. Wang Menghui, Minister of Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, delivered an online speech, and Maimunah Mohd Sharif, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of UN-Habitat, delivered a video speech. Gong Zheng, Deputy Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee and Mayor of Shanghai, announced the release of Shanghai Index （a comprehensive indicator system framework） and Shanghai Manual （2021）。
Regarding people as the core of the city; taking the city as a living body and organism; striving to build a resilient city; accelerating the modernization of urban governance
Li Qiang pointed out that World Cities Day started at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, themed as Better City, Better Life, which not only reveals the purpose of urban development, but also expresses the wishes of people in the city. As China's largest economic center city, Shanghai is building an international economic, financial, trade, shipping, and technological innovation center in accordance with the positioning requirements of President Xi Jinping and the central government, and accelerating the modernization of urban governance. We earnestly implement the important concept of People's cities are built by the people, and people's cities are for the people, which is put forward by President Xi Jinping. People is regarded as the core of the city, and all is focused on the needs of the people. The best resources are used by the citizens to turn the best wishes into the following realistic pictures: everyone has the opportunity to make a difference in life, everyone can participate in governance in an orderly manner, everyone can enjoy a high-quality life, everyone can truly feel the warmth, and everyone can have a sense of belonging. Cities should be regarded as the living body and organism. It is critical to respect cities and treat them kindly, and establish an index system of urban vital signs. Hence, it is essential to make better use of the unified management system on one network in urban operations to make cities more orderly, healthier and safer. Furthermore, the theme of this year's World Cities Day meets the needs of current urban development. In other words, under the impact of climate change and various uncertainties, mega-cities especially need to accelerate the construction of resilient cities. We look forward to sharing various opinions and experience from different countries, cities, and fields around the world.
Working together to build a clean, beautiful, safe and livable urban home with solid actions
Wang Menghui pointed out that city, which accommodates more than half of the world's population, is charming home for mankind. It is an essential area for achieving carbon peaks and carbon neutrality, and a main battlefield in tackling climate change. Now it is a critical period to deal with climate change, and the process of sustainable urban development is becoming increasingly severe. It is urgent to transform consensus into concrete actions. Under the thoughts on ecological civilization, we will further strengthen our determination and make efforts to fulfill the ideal that "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets". Green and low-carbon development is the path to systematically enhance urban security and resilience. Furthermore, it is important to actively respond to the risks and challenges which are brought about by climate change, and promote the green, safe and sustainable development of cities. Under the global development initiative, which is put forward by President Xi Jinping, China is willing to give full play to the role of the United Nations to improve the ability to cope with climate change and achieve green development for cities in developing countries, including the Belt and Road countries, and to ultimately promote the sustainability of human settlements. China is willing to conduct in-depth discussions and exchanges with countries around the world on practical experiences and innovative measures in actively responding to climate change and promoting green and low-carbon development in cities. We will work together and take concrete actions to jointly build clean, beautiful, safe and livable urban homes.
Hoping the wide sharing of Shanghai Manual and Shanghai Index; making greater efforts on implementation of SDG
Maimunah Mohd Sharif believed that the challenges, posed by COVID-19 and the climate crisis, provide opportunities for cooperation and innovation. The event of World Cities Day is another milestone in the close cooperation between UN-Habitat and its Chinese partners. It is expected that Shanghai Manual and Shanghai Index could be widely shared to better promote implementation of SDG. It's anticipated that Shanghai will show more best practices of better city and better life.
Dimitri Kerkentzes, the Secretary General of the Bureau International des Expositions （BIE）， mayors of Liverpool（England）， Yekaterinburg（Russia）， Osaka（Japan）， Xiamen City, Fujian City, Guangzhou City, Guangdong City, Xvzhou City, Jiangsu City, Fuzhou City and Fujian City all sent videos for congratulations.
Assessing progress level of sustainable development of global cities and promoting the people-oriented concept of sustainable urban development.
Before the opening ceremony, Li Qiang, Gong Zheng and other participants watched China Urban Development Case Exhibition of the World Cities Day and listened the introduction of China observance on World Cities Day.
Jiang Wanrong, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, presided over the opening ceremony. Shanghai leaders, including Zhuge Yujie, Cai Wei, Xiao Guiyu, Li Yiping, and Bank of Communications President Liu Jun attended the opening ceremony.
World Cities Day is the 1st international day with the theme of cities of the United Nation, as well as 1st international day in the United Nations promoted by the Chinese government. This year, World Cities Day global home event was held in Luxor, Egypt. The China observance was co-sponsored by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, Shanghai Municipal Government and UN-Habitat, including opening and closing ceremonies, theme forums, special forums and series of activities. The comprehensive indicator system framework of Shanghai Index released this time, which is world's first urban sustainability index system based on five concepts: economy, society, culture, environment and governance, aims to assess the progress level and promote the people-oriented concept of sustainable urban development.
Source：<https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/kUrMsmbvUqMRsEgL4r2IWw>
Translated by Wang Yue
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