Cities and the Public Realm: Reinvesting in Community Assets
Day / Time Monday, June 19th / 16:30 - 18:30
Event Description
The quality of urban life is rooted deeply in the strength of the public realm. Education, health care, social services, transit, the arts, water and sanitation, safety, justice, libraries, natural and built heritage, parks, recreation facilities, streets, markets and public places are connecting tissues linking our individual private worlds and fusing one generation to another. The public realm is the glue holding a city together and the bedrock upon which it builds prosperity, communities and social peace. Join CUI and its southern partners in an international dialogue on new ways to use urban economies and civic engagement to restore our city regions and their community assets, ecological systems, cultural souls and rural hinterlands. This gathering will provide unique perspectives from Ethiopia, Philippines, Cuba, Jamaica, Brazil and Ukraine .
Session Language
English
French
Speakers
Hon. David Crombie, President & CEO, Canadian Urban Institute and former Mayor of Toronto
Hon. Jerry Treñas, Mayor, Iloilo City, and President, League of Cities of the Philippines
H.E. Ato Arkebe Oqubay, State Minister, Ministry of Works and Urban Development, Gov. of Ethiopia
Host Organization
Canadian Urban Institute (CUI)
Host Organization Description
Canadian Urban Institute (CUI) is a non-profit, membership organization dedicated to enhancing quality of life in urban areas across Canada and around the world. A Canadian leader in progressive thinking for cities, CUI brings together people, resources and ideas to build strong communities and equitable, sustainable and competitive urban regions. It does so by: (i) 'connecting' decision-makers at all levels of government and within the community and business sectors to enhance urban policy making, governance and management, (ii)'convening' leaders, decision-makers and stakeholders to foster information exchange, civic engagement and new partnerships for urban development, and (iii) 'communicating' ideas and know-how through education, applied research, conferences and leadership development to bring about more co-operative and integrated approaches to urban issues. With a network of international partners, CUI shares with the world Canada 's experiences of managing its urban regions.
Website
Report
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Title of Event: Name of Organisation: Date and time of the session: |
Cities and the Public Realm: Reinvesting in Community Assets Canadian Urban Institute Monday, June 19th - 16:30 - 18:30 |
Key Highlights
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2. What were the core issues identified in your event as they relate to the theme and sub-themes of WUFIII? Canadian Urban Institute President David Crombie introduced civic public realm as the connecting tissue most basic to the survival of human settlements, linking our individual private worlds and fusing one generation to another. Education, health care, social services, transit, the arts, water and sanitation, safety, justice, libraries, natural and built heritage, parks, recreation facilities, streets, markets and public places are essential 'community assets' within the public realm. They are the cradle of family and community, the glue that holds a city together and the bedrock upon which cities build their prosperity, communities and social peace. The strength of the public realm is its diversity in meaning across generations and cultures. This flexibility was exemplified by the participants' ability to use the public realm as a platform on which to passionately engage each other and find common ground. Over the course of discussions, numerous interpretations of a physical and spiritual public realm emerged, including: a) our shared environment, natural resources and heritage, b) public places and spaces where people interact and publicly express themselves, c) rights to the city including equity of access to the basic necessities of urban life, d) community assets including public facilities and infrastructure, e) civic engagement encompassing access to information, initiating and building space for public dialogue, negotiating difference, and mobilizing the social capital of communities, and f) creative spaces for the arts and artistic expression as well as intellectual discussion. |
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3. What were the main points raised by panellists and participants in relation to these different issues? What new ideas have been generated as a result of the discussion? Participants concluded that the public realm offers a valuable set of starting points for turning ideas into action, a cross-sectoral lens through which to: 1) convene citizens and their leaders to invest in community assets and refocus government and governance processes to fight poverty and foster partnership for action; 2) re-assert a sense of co-ownership among citizens for their city, drawing upon a partnership of public resources, private resources, and community strengths to rejuvenate community trust and sense of pride and build the public realm from the ground up; 3) renew an emphasis on producing concrete results - products of good governance - which include actions that lead to improved services, physical infrastructure, public spaces, social inclusion and quality of life; and 4) engage in a common discussion across cultures and regions on ways and means to bring about good urban governance and sustainable cities. |
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4. What process steps have been identified in your event that could help turn ideas into operational reality? The session successfully planted the seed for an international partnership to lead thinking and discussion on the renewal of the public realm. To learn more or to get involved in our global network, visit www.canurb.com, read our latest newsletter www.canurb.com/newsletter or email us at publicrealm@canurb.com . |
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