Explore the Latest Technologies for Liveable and Sustainable Cities With World Cities Summit

The World Cities Summit — now on its third run — urges stakeholders to step up efforts in addressing mounting urbanization challenges. Co-organized by the Centre for Liveable Cities and the Urban Redevelopment Authority, the four-day event offers the sharing of best practices, new insights, perspectives and trends in resolving unique problems and pressing challenges facing cities today and in the future.

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Held July 1 to 4 in Singapore, this year theme is Liveable and Sustainable Cities – Integrated Urban Solutions.

Executive Director of the Centre for Liveable Cities Khoo Teng Chye says the focus is on an integrated approach, and that there is an “enormous pressure to ensure that infrastructure, housing, services and the environment are able to meet the needs of current and future generations.”

Chye adds that 70% of the world’s population will be living in cities by 2050, and that “it is increasingly insufficient to address fundamental challenges on water, environment, waste and other components separately.”

Featuring 40 mayors and governors, and 70 senior-level speakers from several countries, the event is expected to bring more than 3,500 top global leaders, practitioners, policy makers, industry expert together and plotted at the same location for the very first time with two other events: Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) and CleanEnviro Summit Singapore (CESS). This collocation aims to facilitate integration, more in-depth discussions on new solutions and ideas in the space.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) administrator Helen Clark, India’s Minister of Urban Development Kamal Nath and Siemens CEO of Infrastructure and Cities Dr. Roland Busch are the key speakers. Others include industry experts, leading academics and representatives of international organizations from KPMG, IBM, Keppel, Harvard Business School, World Bank and World Health Organization (WHO).

The main topics covered are all about cities: Intense, Eco, Biodiversity, Resilient and Smart, Mobile and Inclusive. Other interesting subjects to watch out are reinvestment and sustainability in cities driven by public-private partnerships and solutions for new smart cities. A special section on development opportunities in India will be there, too.

One new aspect of this year’s Summit is the stronger facilitation of business collaborations. New In-Focus sessions will be offered as a platform for government leaders and industry solution providers to share opportunities and solutions on urban infrastructure and services for the emerging economies of Asia.

Meanwhile, the expo will showcase best practices from model cities, innovative urban solutions and technologies for smarter cities of the future. Spaced over 2,000 square meters, Saudi Arabia, Denmark, Siemens, Keppel, IBM and Accenture are several parties that have already committed to exhibit.