Sustainable urban development forum held in Chengdu

The Fourth International High-Level Forum on Sustainable Urban Development, organized by the China Center for Urban Development (CCUD), the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) and Chengdu Municipal Government in Sichuan province, was held in Chengdu from Nov 16 to 18.

Themed "Promoting High-Quality Sustainable Development, Building an Open and Shared Future City", the forum convened leaders from departments of the central government, representatives of Chinese and foreign cities, international institutions and corporations highlighting new needs for future city development under the emerging trends.

Participants explored new models and routes cities could follow to realize sustainable development in fields like economic growth, social development, resource utilization and environment protection and shared cutting-edge theories and best practices on sustainable city development worldwide.

Su Wei, deputy secretary-general of National Development and Reform Commission, delivered the opening speech for the forum. Maimunah Mohd Sharif, the UN-Habitat executive director, sent a video speech of congratulations. Yang Weimin, member of the standing committee of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and deputy director of the Economic Committee, made a keynote speech. Edward Glaeser, professor of economics at Harvard University and author of Triumph of the City, gave a keynote speech and shared his opinions with the media through the internet.

Su said the forum had been held in Chengdu for three successive sessions, making it an important platform to showcase best practices for sustainable urban development.

He revealed Chengdu would be the permanent location for the forum. Making significant achievements and being the first to experiment on the theory of "park city", Chengdu was able to provide the world with Chinese wisdom and the "Chengdu model" on the realization of high-quality sustainable city development, he said.

Glaeser, a globally renowned urban economist, said face-to-face interaction was "ultimately a great source of urban strength" and attracting talent pays through, for example, improving the quality of life, playing a crucial role in creating urban success.

During the forum, dialogues were also conducted on four different themes: innovation and intelligence, cultivating new urban driving forces; coordination and cooperation, strengthening urban carrying capacity; greenery and health, enhancing urban development tenacity; and sharing and participation, increasing urban inhabitants' sense of gain. These dialogues drew city policymakers, urban administrators, renowned experts and scholars, and entrepreneurs from home and abroad to conduct thorough discussions and share their experiences.