News

28.01.2008
MEPs call for sharper focus on jobs and growth potential of cultural industries
Cultural industries account for 2,6 % of the EU GDP (2003) and over five million Europeans worked in the sector in 2004. The cultural sector is growing faster than others, and thus has an important role in attaining the Lisbon strategy growth and job...read more

24.01.2008
Abu Dhabi to develop world's most environment friendly city
The government of Abu Dhabi, in collaboration with WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature), has announced its plans for developing the world's most environment friendly city. According to a report in ENN (Environmental News Network), the scheme for the "Mas...read more

24.01.2008
European Prize for Urban Public Space calls for submissions
The European Prize for Urban Public Space is a biennial competition that aims to highlight the importance of public space as a catalyst of urban life, and to recognise and foster investment by public administrations in its creation, conservation and ...read more

24.01.2008
Mayors from 50 cities compete for the 2008 World Mayor Award
A great mayor must possess good administrative abilities, be able to provide safety and security and protect the environment. Having the ability to foster good relations between communities from different cultural, racial and social backgrounds is al...read more

16.01.2008
"Cleanliness and order are a show-off of local governments' good will to solve urban problems"
“Cleanliness and order are a show-off of local governments’ good will to solve urban problems”, Volker Eick, one of the authors of the book ´Kontrollierte Urbanität´ states. He argues that as the gap between the urban rich and the local poor is growi...read more

15.01.2008
URBAN-NET issues First Call on Sustainable Urban Development
URBAN-NET issues a first call for research proposals on sustainable urban development from 15 January to 15 April 2008. URBAN-NET is a network of fifteen research funding and coordinating European organisations and UN Habitat. The goal of the consort...read more

14.01.2008
Liverpool (UK) & Stavanger (NO) launch European Capital of Culture 2008 years
Last week, the cities of Liverpool and Stavenger proudly launched their European Capital of Culture 2008 years. The ECOC initiative was launched in 1985 following a proposal put forward by the Greek Minister of Culture Melina Mercouris. Its goal was ...read more

10.01.2008
China and Germany launch city-to-city rail freight service
The railways of Germany and China are planning to launch direct freight rail links between the two countries major cities. The first such link will be between Beijing and Hamburg. On 8 January, the first train left the Chinese capital for the German ...read more

07.01.2008
German cities ban ‘dirty’ cars from entering downtown areas
On 1 January 2008 three German cities introduced a ban on polluting cars entering their downtown areas. Cars without catalytic converters or diesel dust filters are no longer allowed into the centres of Berlin, Cologne and Hannover.read more

07.01.2008
European Commission to promote clean and energy efficient vehicles
On December 19th 2007, the European Commission adopted a proposal that aims to reduce fuel consumption as well as CO2 and pollutant emissions from road vehicles. A substantial reduction may be achieved by public authorities procuring clean and energy...read more

07.01.2008
Call for papers EURA 2008 conference - Milan, 9-11 October 2008
Between 9-11 October 2008 EURA (European Urban Research Association) will organise its annual conference. The title of the upcoming conference is 'Learning Cities in a Knowledge Based Society'. It will focus on the exploration of several of today's m...read more

18.12.2007
"Urban problems are not the fault of rapid urban growth"
"Urban problems are not the fault of rapid urban growth", David Satterthwaite, senior fellow at the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) states. In his recent paper ‘the transition to a predominantly urban world and its unde...read more

13.12.2007
European Commission concludes City of Amsterdam investment in fibre network is not state aid
The European Commission has approved the investment by the municipality of Amsterdam and other shareholders in a glass fibre telecommunications network in the Dutch city. After an in-depth investigation, launched in December 2006, the Commission conc...read more

03.12.2007
LIFE website introduces special section on the urban environment
LIFE is the EU’s financial instrument supporting environmental and nature conservation projects throughout Europe. However, LIFE does not only focus on 'nature' but also supports projects related to the urban environment. The LIFE website now include...read more

03.12.2007
European award for Water In Historic City Centres
The project Water In Historic City Centres (WIHCC) has won the European Regional Cultural Champion Award. The prize was awarded to the WIHCC-project because, according to the European jury, the six partnercities succeeded best in promoting their regi...read more

23.11.2007
European Network Against Racism 2006 Shadow Report
Manifestations of racism in Europe continue. Some forms of racism are on the increase, notably Islamophobia. There has also been a significant upsurge of racist violence and crime. These are the conclusions of ENAR’s (European Network Against Racism)...read more

23.11.2007
LIFE brochure: Innovative waste management options in Europe
Waste management is an important issue that is central to EU environmental policy. The objectives of EU waste policy are to reduce the negative impact of waste on the environment and public health and to ensure the most efficient use of resources, pa...read more

21.11.2007
“The most important factor underlying the level of vulnerability of people to urban threats is poverty”
“The most important factor underlying the level of vulnerability of people to urban threats is poverty,” says Mr. Mutizwa-Mangiza, Chief of Policy Analysis at the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT). The United Nations agency rece...read more

16.11.2007
Pathways to Success for the Second Generation in Europe
There is an ongoing debate over the children born to Europe's guest workers of the 1960s and 1970s: Can they move up the educational ladder, or will they form a new underclass in Europe's largest cities? Maurice Crul of the University of Amsterdam co...read more

16.11.2007
Biofuel Cities European Partnership launched in Sweden
The Biofuel Cities European Partnership was officially launched on 8 November 2007, in Stockholm, Sweden. This new partnership, supported by the European Commission, is open to local governments and other stakeholders in the area of biofuels and ener...read more