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Eco City Builders: Rio+20 Summary Report
Eco City Builders: Rio+20 Summary Report
Summary
Report
July
2012
Several of the cities pledged to work with Ecocity Builders and ICLEI over the next two years to co- develop and pilot the IEFS. From top left, Montreal, Canada; Durban, South Africa; Melbourne, Australia; Tianjin Ecocity, China.
Background/ Overview This brief report summarizes some of the outcomes related to Ecocity Builders participation in the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), especially as it pertains to the organizations next-phase development of the International Ecocity Framework and Standards Initiative (IEFS), networking and partnership building, and bioregional/ecocity mapping the cornerstone of the ECB toolkit to implement the IEFS on the ground. Progress made over the past months could not have been possible without the dedicated support of the following Ecocity Builders key members and advisors, including Sven Eberlein, Rick Smith, Ashoka Finley, Stacey Meinzen, Naomi Grunditz, Max Heim, Kelley Lemon, Shivang Patwa, Warren Karlenzig, Jonn Bramen, Jennie Moore, Bill Rees, Isabel Wade, Ana Puhac, Marco Vangelisti and Paul Downton. We also could not have participated in this work without the financial support from the Helen and William Mazer Foundation, British Columbia Institute of Technology School of Construction and Environment, Columbia Foundation, HealthBridge Canada, Diana Divecha, Barbara Wilson and Joell Jones. Thank you everyone!
Overview Ecocity Builders has a long association and track record in defining and charting the direction of ecocities, from being the first to using the term ecocity, to convening successful international conferences, projects and publications on the subject. Ecocity Builders is rapidly evolving from primarily a think tank and originator of future-oriented sustainable city visions and theories to holding a prominent position as international standard setter and facilitator in the emerging global conversation around sustainable cities. This significant opportunityand responsibility is largely due to the ability of Ecocity Builders to channel collaboration around both tacit and explicit knowledge they have contributed and relationships built up over the past forty years of consistent high quality, dedicated work. In order to further guide the global conversation as an invited high-level participant working collectively with international bi-lateral stakeholders to define a shared path forward towards sustainable cities in balance with Earth systems, Ecocity Builders is establishing guidelines for ecocity branding through the IEFS initiative. In doing so it is solidifying and extending its association as the global thought leader and standard-bearer for sustainable cities.
4
Summary
of
Rio+20
related
key
objectives
and
outcomes
In
the
last
quarter
of
2011,
Ecocity
Builders
began
a
process
of
next-phase
IEFS
strategic
and
business
plan
development,
networking
and
partnership
building,
and
bioregional/ecocity
mapping
the
cornerstone
of
the
ECB
toolkit
to
implement
the
IEFS
on
the
ground.
Ecocity
Builders
President
Richard
Register
and
Executive
Director
Kirstin
Miller
announce
the
IEFS
initiative
at
the
9th
International
Ecocity
Conference
in
Montreal
Canada,
2011.
The International Ecocity Framework and Standards (IEFS) initiative seeks to provide an innovative vision for an ecologically- restorative human civilization as well as a practical methodology for assessing and guiding progress towards the goal. Cities and citizens maximize resilience through a whole systems approach that responds to critical risk factors for climate change and natural disasters while concurrently working with a network of cities around the world taking action to restore planetary boundaries to safe and stable conditions. Towards this goal, the International Ecocity Framework and Standards (IEFS) initiative is currently under development by Ecocity Builders and an international committee of expert advisors. This phase of the process was predicated on steady and consistent progress made on the IEFS initiative following its inaugural launch in early 2010 in Vancouver, Canada. According to schedule, the IEFS initiative met its milestone in August 2011 when Ecocity Builders presented it to delegates from over 70 countries and institutions, including ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability and the United Nations, at the 9th International Ecocity World Summit (IEFS) held Aug. 22-26 in Montreal, Canada. The initiative was enthusiastically received, with requests for further collaboration from a wide range of actors including business and private sector, research institutions and academics, government and major institutions, and nonprofits. A key request for participation came directly from the United Nations. Representatives from the Department on Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), the UN agency in charge of orchestrating the major world conference on sustainable development, Rio+20, recently concluded, asked Ecocity Builders to join the process in helping to shape the agenda around sustainable cities in the lead up to Rio+20. They specifically were interested in Ecocity Builders holistic, ecosystems approach
5 offered
through
the
IEFS.
We
agreed
to
join
the
process.
As
the
nations
of
the
world
geared
up
to
develop
a
draft
outcome
document
for
the
United
Nations
Conference
on
Sustainable
Development
held
in
June
2012
in
Rio
de
Janeiro,
Brazil,
the
potential
for
IEFS
scaling
was
significant,
with
key
potential
partners
including
private
sector,
research
and
development
sector,
and
government/NGO
sector
standing
by
to
engage
with
Ecocity
Builders
and
the
IEFS
around
emerging
issues,
frameworks
and
technologies
related
to
sustainable
city
planning,
development,
design,
implementation
and
citizen
participation
from
the
local
to
the
global
scale.
Left.
Rio+20
preparatory
meeting
at
UNEP
in
Nairobi,
Kenya.
Kirstin
Miller
representing
for
Ecocity
Builders
at
the
NGO
Major
Group
Right.
IEFS
BUILDEX
workshop
in
Vancouver,
Canada,
with
British
Columbia
Institute
of
Technology
and
the
City
of
Vancouver,
hosted
by
Ecocity
Builders
Left. Ecocity Builders intern Naomi Grunditz in NYC meeting with the Ambassador from Sweden at a Friends of Sustainable Cities working group
meeting
Right.
Ecocity
Builders
with
the
University
of
Rio
de
Janeiro
and
BCIT
at
our
Sentinels
of
Sustainability
event
during
Rio+20
6
Left.
In
Barcelona,
Spain,
speaking
at
a
summit
on
De-Growth
conference
(Richard
Register
and
Kirstin
Miller
participating).
Right. At a Bay Area Rio+20 Report Back (Kirstin Miller, center, and Sven Eberlein, right)
Left.
Ecocity
Builders
communications
associate
Sven
Eberlein
in
NYC
for
an
Intercessional
Meeting
in
the
lead
up
to
Rio+20,
helping
represent
Ecocity
Builders
in
the
NGO
Major
Group
A sample of articles, blogs, and media associated with our efforts associated with our Rio+20 agenda: Daily Kos: A Small Favor for a Big Cause http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/06/08/1098407/-A-small-favor-for- a-big-cause-PlanetEarth Rio Dialogues: Vote for the Future You Want http://vote.riodialogues.org/ Ecocity Media http://ecocity.wordpress.com/ YouTube EcoCitizen World Map Project http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wngbz2HUnhM WDET News The Rio+20 Sustainability Conference http://wdet.org/news/story/rio-20-sustainability-conference/#.T-xZcDBvd- o.facebook
7 Key
Outcomes/Next
Steps
Some
of
the
key
outcomes
from
Ecocity
Builders
participation
in
the
Rio+20
process
include
the
following
achievements
and
next
steps:
Through
our
high-level
involvement
with
the
UN
and
the
UNCSD
process,
Ecocity
Builders
was
nominated
to
represent
the
Cities
and
Urban
Issues
thematic
group
at
the
NGO
Major
Group
at
the
UN.
This
leadership
role
proved
to
be
pivotal
in
advancing
our
ideas
at
the
international
stakeholder
level.
One
direct
and
significant
achievement
was
a
major
Rio+20
Policy
Outcome
annexed
into
the
Rio+20
Outcome
document
facilitated
through
the
RioDialogues
civil
society
process:
"Each
head
of
state
should
identify
a
sustainable
city
to
develop
a
network
for
knowledge
sharing
and
innovation.
Governments
should
channel
resources
to
develop
people-centered
sustainable
cities
with
timed
and
measurable
goals,
in
such
way
that
empowers
local
communities,
promotes
equality
and
accountability."
The
wording
is
a
milestone
achievement
for
the
IEFS
at
the
highest
level,
as
the
wording,
in
a
nutshell,
describes
the
IEFS
itself
along
with
a
network
of
cities
working
to
achieve
the
goal.
o Next
Steps:
Continue
to
work
within
the
United
Nations,
the
Major
Groups,
the
new
"Friends
of
Sustainable
Cities"
nations
working
group
of
which
we
are
a
civil
society
member,
and
other
partners
and
associates,
to
help
guide
the
process
post
Rio+20
to
develop
specific
timed
and
measurable
sustainable
city
goals
and
measures
while
empowering
local
communities
through
providing
access
to
ecocitizen
tools,
strategies
and
technologies.
Ecocity
Builders
(Marco
Vangelisti,
Kirstin
Miller
and
Warren
Karlenzig)
at
the
United
Nations
headquarters
in
New
York
City
for
one
of
the
Intercessional
Meetings
in
the
lead
up
to
Rio+20
8 Ecocity
Builders,
in
partnership
with
ICLEI,
Local
Governments
for
Sustainability,
launched
the
Ecocity
Network
just
prior
to
Rio+20
at
their
World
Congress
meeting
in
Belo
Horizonte,
Brazil.
A
core
group
of
5
early
partner
cities
has
been
identified
to
take
the
lead
during
the
next
stage
of
indicator
development
and
testing
of
the
Ecocity
Framework
and
Standards.
The
lead
cities
in
the
ICLEI
Ecocity
Network
are:
Durban,
South
Africa;
Melbourne,
Australia;
Tianjin
Eco-city,
China;
Montreal,
Canada
and
Lote,
Norway.
To
facilitate
the
process,
Ecocity
Builders
and
ICLEI
have
signed
a
MoU
to
extend
for
a
period
of
two
years
with
an
option
to
revise/renew.
Tianjin,
China.
Explaining
IEFS
elements
to
Mr.
Lin,
Director
of
Tianjin
Eco-city,
China,
one
of
the
lead
pilot
cities
for
the
IEFS.
Next Steps: Coordinate with ICLEI to plan the program for development of the Ecocity Network, including the testing and implementation of ecocity indicators that are globally applicable and locally adaptable.
As
a
related
outcome
to
our
lead
as
cities
and
urban
issues
facilitator
at
the
UN
Major
Groups,
Ecocity
Builders
has
been
invited
to
become
an
associate
partner
with
UN-HABITAT,
the
lead
UN
agency
for
cities
and
urban
issues,
in
the
formative
process
of
the
upcoming
World
Urban
Campaign
(WUC).
Kirstin
Miller
visiting
Korogocho,
a
slum
in
Nairobi,
Kenya
near
the
Dandora
city
dump,
and
UN
HABITATS
urban
upgrading
operation
there
The World Urban Campaign is a global coalition of public, private and civil society partners united by the common desire to advocate on the positive role of cities around the World, and to promote sustainable urbanization policies, strategies and practices. Launched in Rio de Janeiro at the fifth Session of the World Urban Forum in March 2010, the Campaign is coordinated by UN-HABITAT and governed by a Steering Committee of partners. As a World Urban Campaign insider Ecocity Builders will have the opportunity to help bridge this process to the development of a new platform for the next
9 generation
of
sustainable
development
guidelines
and
measures
that
will
replace
the
current
Millennium
Development
Goals
(MDGs)
set
to
expire
in
2015.
Our
influence
within
this
process,
linking
to
the
Rio+20
sustainable
cities
mandate
coming
through
the
Rio
Dialogues
process
and
the
ICLEI
Ecocities
Network,
could
help
shape
how
millions
of
dollars
are
invested
in
cities
around
the
world
after
the
MDGs
expire.
o Next
Steps:
Work
with
UN
Habitat
and
partners
to
steer
the
World
Urban
Campaign
in
the
direction
of
a
holistic,
urban
system
approach
to
healthy
cities
and
citizens
with
clear
and
specific
goals
and
measures.
Bioregional/Ecocity
Mapping:
As
outlined
in
the
IEFS
Business
Plan,
Ecocity
Builders
advanced
the
development
of
ecocity
mapping
in
2012
through
strategic
partnerships.
With
crowdmapping
organization
Ushahidi,
we
launched
the
Ecocitizen
World
Map
Project
at
Rio+20
and
began
testing
it
in
several
favela
communities
and
neighborhoods
in
Rio
de
Janeiro.
Ecocity
Builders
meets
with
favela
captain
(in
blue
shirt)
in
Rio
de
Janeiro
as
we
tour
Asa
Branca,
one
of
the
favela
communities
piloting
ecocity
mapping.
The map offers a place and a pathway for ordinary citizens to add their voices and be counted as contributing members of the new green and equitable economy, to show conditions in their community based on the 15 elements of the IEFS, and track local projects and programs, and to be advocates with local government and the outside as they work to reshape their communities as more sustainable, livable, and equitable places to live and raise their families. Ecocity Builders is also partnering with Esri, a GIS (geographic information systems) mapping software company helping people understand and visualize data to make decisions based on the best information and data available. Esri has created an ArcGIS based application for the Ecocitizen Map that allows ArcGIS to connect to the Map, convert text between languages, and download the data into a geo database. This opens up the feed of data being captured by the EcoCitizen Map to the rich spatial and temporal analysis tools within ArcGIS, allowing users to empower action and inform decision makers using a sound scientific approach.
10
Sample report from the EcoCitizen World Map created with Ushahidis open source crowdmap software uploaded by members of one of the favela communities in Rio de Janeiro. This report is categorized through the Community Capacity element of the IEFS framework.
Another new partnership based on above collaboration is with the US State Department and the Association of American Geographers and Esri under the umbrella initiative called the Community Sustainability and Resilience Special Initiative. http://www.eyeonearthsummit.org/special-initiative-community- sustainability This is a brand new opportunity for Ecocity Builders that we can build upon immediately, given we have the capacity to stay engaged.
GIS add-in for the EcoCitizen map created with Esri this map shows the favela communities (in light purple) in relationship to areas with high potential for landslides (in red).
11 o Next Steps: Bioregional mapping represents a critical technical element of the IEFS and Ecocity Network. Using bioregional mapping, the IEFS assessment can be optimized using ecocity-specific tools to illustrate indicators and to update the assessment so it can track regional and city performance toward ecocity conditions over time along the 15 dimensions. Next Steps including further development and beta testing of these tools and processes. When ready and fully tested, the added functions will be built into Ecocity Builders IEFS support toolkit, which can be provided along with consulting services to the Ecocity Network and other cities wanting to advance towards greater health and sustainability using the IEFS, as outlined in Ecocity Builders MoU with ICLEI. Summary Conclusions As a result of our dedicated participation with the Rio+20 process, Ecocity Builders is now at the forefront of global discussions on sustainable cities development implementation with institutions like MIT, Brookings Institute, the World Bank, the United Nations; with organizations like ICLEI, United Cities and Local Governments, and with companies like Cisco, Siemens and Esri. At the same time, we have maintained our grassroots base with existing and new partnerships with our early partner cities, with nonprofits like Ushahidi, with our constituents in the San Francisco Bay Area, and with localized networks like Transition Town. In order to successfully roll out the IEFS in a transparent manner with a high level of participation at the international scale while ramping up visibility and influence through its next stage of development, testing and implementation, Ecocity Builders will seek to continue to develop organizational capacity, funding, programs and processes for collaboration with other stakeholders, including the public sector, foundations and the private sector.
Left Richard Register on a sustainable cities panel at Rio+20 convened by the Government of Brazil. Right Some of Ecocity Builders delegation in the Major Groups Pavilion in front of our poster display on the IEFS (Jonn Bramen, Jennie Moore, Kirstin Miller, Richard Register and Rick Smit)