Category: News from Asia & Australasia

Biomass for energy, carbon offset in forests, a carbon positive future and electric cars were discussed in webinar by Turku and Nagano

The cities of Nagano in Japan and Turku in Finland held a webinar to compare climate policies and to discuss possible areas for cooperation. Both cities are in the process of reviewing and updating their climate plans. Kazuhiro Yoshihara, Senior Staff, Environmental Protection and Climate Change Policy Section, presented the Zero Carbon 2050 Strategy of Nagano City. Nagano experienced in...

IURC meets with Kanpur

As part of the IURC programme in India, the city of Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh will focus on Air Quality Management and will have the opportunity to cooperate with Indian and EU cities, create global networks and exchange best practices. On Tuesday, 15 March 2022, Mr Rahul Awasthi, Urban Infrastructure Specialist from Kanpur Municipal Corporation, and the India team of...

Malaysian SDG Cities: Opening Ceremony for SDG – The Nordic Way!

IURC Asia & Australasia experts were invited by the Nordic Embassies of Sweden, Finland and Norway to Malaysia and Datuk Seri Mahadi Che Ngah, Mayor of Kuala Lumpur, to attend a hybrid Opening Ceremony together with key national stakeholders collaborating in both the IURC Malaysia component and Global Covenant of Mayors (GCOM). Kuala Lumpur has been selected to participate in...

2nd Meeting between Sofia and Semarang

Representatives from Sofia City in Bulgaria and Semarang City in Indonesia met online on 10 March 2022 to continue their discussions on urban mobility, focusing on ways to limit the use of private vehicles and make public transport more attractive. Both sides proposed a possible pilot area, the expected output and potential stakeholders. They expressed the same interest in developing...

Official launch of IURC in India

The EU-funded International Urban and Regional Cooperation (IURC) Asia & Australasia programme in India was officially launched on 24 February 2022 in a virtual event with the presence of Mr. Sanjay Kumar, Additional Secretary (International Cooperation), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India; Dr. Ronald Hall, Senior Advisor, DG REGIO, EU Commission; and Ms. Kamilla Kristensen Rai, Counsellor,...

MUFPP & IURC team up to organize food policy training

The Milan Urban Food Policy Pact (MUFPP) and IURC teamed up to launch food policy training for Asia Pacific cities. The objective of the MUFPP & IURC Asia Pacific Food Policy Training is to offer participating cities the opportunity to showcase their best practices and learn from their peers in the region on food policy. This series of six webinars...

EU-Korean cities shared concrete actions and partnerships on smart cities, smart mobility, and sustainable cities at the IURC Quarterly Meeting

The IURC Quarterly Meeting brought together both EU and Korean cities. The event was also joined by the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Korea (EUD) while CityNet delegates shared the overall progress in IURC so far. The meeting started with a warm welcome from Mr. Patrick Polacsek of the EUD. Ms. Megan Chow, from the IURC...

Stakeholder brainstorming held in format inspired by IURC partner city in Japan

In Umeå, Sweden, the municipality hosted an on-line stakeholder brainstorming event based on a method they learned from an organization in their IURC partner city Kamakura in Japan. The event on February 23 was called Umecom, similar to the original Kamacon based in Kamakura city. Using the Kamacon model, Umeå city project leader Ida Hillebjörk guided some 25 stakeholders and...

EU and Vietnamese cities discuss waste management during 2nd technical meeting

Stuttgart, Colleferro/Latina, Da Lat City and Ha Tinh City met on 23 February to share their practices on waste management. The meeting was led by Mr. Pablo Gandara, Team Leader of IURC Asia & Australasia, with the participation of Dr. Rui Ludovino, First Counsellor, Climate Action, Environment, Employment and Social Policies, Delegation of the European Union to Vietnam; and Mr....

Seberang Perai-Maia: Circular Neighbourhoods – Circular Food Waste Community Hub Programme

Since November 2021, city coordinators from Seberang Perai in Malaysia and Maia in Portugal have conducted four bilateral meetings. These coordinators included Mr. Chew Eng Seng, Local Agenda 21 Officer from Seberang Perai City Council, Ms. Susana Pinho, Senior Technician of the Environment Division, Maia City Council, together with Mr. Carlos Mendes, Director-General from Maiambiente, The meetings were moderated by...