The World Urban Forum (WUF) was established in 2001 by the United Nations to address one of the most pressing issues facing the world today: rapid urbanization and its impact on communities, cities, economies, climate change and policies. Convened by UN-Habitat, the Forum is a high level, open and inclusive platform for addressing the challenges of sustainable urbanization.
The World Urban Forum has the following objectives:
- Raising awareness of sustainable urbanization among stakeholders and constituencies, including the general public;
- Improving collective knowledge on sustainable urban development through open and inclusive debate, exchange of best practices and policies, and sharing of lessons learnt.
- Promote collaboration and cooperation between different stakeholders and constituencies engaged in the advancement and implementation of sustainable urbanization.
THE THEME
The theme of the Tenth Session of the World Urban Forum, Cities of Opportunities: Connecting Culture and Innovation, will focus on harnessing culture and innovation as drivers of sustainable urban development.
There are six thematic dialogues exploring how culture and innovation can contribute to sustainable urbanization in different contexts while be at the heart of WUF10.
These are:
- Urbanization, Culture & Innovation
- Frontier Technologies and Sustainable Cities
- Driving Sustainable Urbanization through Innovation & Culture
- Tradition and Modernity: A Creative Convergence for Better Cities
- Urban Planning & Heritage Preservation/Regeneration
- Partnerships & Initiatives Supporting Culture & Innovation in Cities
More information on the theme is available in the WUF10 Concept Paper and Background Paper