News

05.09.2008
Paris, London and Barcelona are Europe’s top city brands
In a unique study, which ranks Europe’s largest cities based on a comparison of their assets and attractions against the strength of their brands, Paris emerges as Europe’s number one city brand, followed by London, Barcelona, Berlin and Amsterdam. T...read more

27.08.2008
French presidency of the European Union: "Cities forum" (Forum des villes) in Montpellier
On the occasion of its presidency of the European Union, France has decided to stress the importance of “sustainability and solidarity in our cities”. Following the meeting of the ministers responsible for housing, cohesion and urban development, whi...read more

26.08.2008
"Nightclubs are a crucial part of urban planning"
"Nightclubs are central to the nighttime economy and signifiers of the urban cool. They are also a crucial part of urban planning and manufacture a city's appeal." George S. Rigakos, associate professor of law, criminology and political economy at Ca...read more

22.08.2008
NYC mayor foresees wind turbines on city’s bridges and skyscrapers
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, speaking at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, announced his city’s first steps toward developing new sources of renewable energy, including off-shore wind farms. He called for innovative ideas to help New Yor...read more

19.08.2008
A green thumbs-up to urban farming
Founded by San Diego native Bill Tall in 1972, City Farmers Nursery is a family-owned, independently operated garden supply nursery located in the heart of San Diego. At City Farmers Nursery, Bill Tall tends to visitors, animals, plants – and his mis...read more

18.08.2008
Eco-clubbing: Dutch Club to Recycle Dancers' Energy
Wind power is great. But what about all that energy you expend on the dance floor on Saturday night? A next-generation nightclub wants to use that energy to keep the strobes lit and the bass bumping.read more

16.08.2008
New York mayor offers new poverty yardstick
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg called America’s system of measuring urban poverty as outdated and claimed it seriously under-estimated poverty in his city. In a speech prepared for the annual conference of the National Association for the Adva...read more

13.08.2008
21 US cities agree to report their green house gas emissions
ICLEI, the Toronto and Freiburg based International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives, announced that some of the largest US cities including New York City, Denver, Las Vegas and New Orleans, will for the first time report their green house...read more

11.08.2008
ESPON Info Day: second round for calls for proposals
The second round of calls for proposals of the ESPON 2013 Programme (European Spatial Planning Observation Network) will be presented during an information day to be held in Brussels on 9 September 2008. All potential beneficiaries who would be inter...read more

05.08.2008
"One of the fundamental ideas behind Paris Plage is social equity"
City beaches are nothing new. In many places around Europe, people can enjoy these attractive urban hide-outs over the summer and pretend they are on some tropical location instead of at home. However, no city beach resembles that of Paris: not in sc...read more

04.08.2008
Call for candidacies: Be the host of CEMR's 2012 General Assembly
The Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) has issued a "call for candidacies" open to European cities and regions interested in hosting its 2012 General Assembly.read more

04.08.2008
Italian mayors introduce street prostitution fines
Padua on Friday, August 1st, became the second big Italian city to boost fines for clients who use street prostitutes in a bid to clean up its image and strike at rackets that force women out on the streets. Both Padua and Verona have now brought in ...read more

01.08.2008
2012 London Olympics: Waste not, want not
On August 1st, 2008, the Olympic Delivery Authority announced that sustainability will remain at the heart of the construction of the London 2012 Olympic Park, venues and infrastructure with a commitment to recover and reuse or recycle 90 per cent of...read more

31.07.2008
European Commission proposes 'Twinning Convenant' during 3rd European Development Days
Under the French Presidency of the European Union, the European Commission, in cooperation with the European Parliament, is organising the third European Development Days (EDD) in Strasbourg from 15 to 17 November 2008. The central theme of this majo...read more

30.07.2008
UK green housing policy must be more radical
The UK government should seek to provide greater environmental benefits, says Rynd Smith, Head of Policy and Practice of the Royal Town and Planning Institute, in British newspaper The Guardian.read more

30.07.2008
Magazine research unveils the most liveable cities in the world
The liveability of cities is an important issue nowadays. Urban professionals around the world all break their heads over the question of how to make their city a nice place to be - preferably even the best place to be. Many rankings exist to show wh...read more

22.07.2008
European Commission gives Golden Stars to 12 citizenship projects
The European Commission has selected 12 civic participation projects that encourage action and debate on EU issues at the grass-roots level. Later this year, these projects will be awarded the "Golden Stars of active European citizenship" in a prize ...read more

21.07.2008
Beijing Scrambles to Host 'Green Games'
Smog, dust particles, algae blooms: the high levels of pollution at Olympic venues has the sporting world worried. The Chinese authorities are working feverishly to address the problem -- closing factories, banning cars from the roads, and renewing p...read more

08.07.2008
Cohesion policy priorities for the French Presidency
The French Presidency, at the helm of the EU since 1 July, has spelled out its priorities in terms of cohesion policy. Efforts will be focused on preparing the groundwork for the period after 2013, and for the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, w...read more

07.07.2008
“Art can be much more than just adding colour somewhere”
Transvaal is a well-known urban renewal area in The Hague. At the moment, the neighbourhood is literally in the middle of a transformation period which will take fifteen years in total. Many houses have already been demolished and replaced by new con...read more