The ICLEI World Congress emphasized that building sustainable cities will help realize the SDGs, particularly SDG 11 (sustainable cities and communities), which can be used as a “central lever” to advance all 17 SDGs.
The ICLEI Montreal Commitment and Strategic Vision 2018-2024 lays out five interconnected pathways towards low emission, nature-based, circular, resilient and equitable and people-centered development.
The document focuses on systems thinking, which highlights the complex relationship among urban systems and emphasizes an integrated approach to policy and planning.
21 June 2018: ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability has announced a new strategy to tackle urban development challenges and climate change that will help achieve the SDGs and meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement on climate change. Announced at the ICLEI triennial World Congress, the ‘ICLEI Montreal Commitment and Strategic Vision 2018-2024’ identifies pathways towards sustainable urban development.
Convening in Montreal, Canada, from 19-22 June 2018, the meeting, which aimed to support the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by strengthening action taken in urban areas worldwide, emphasized that building sustainable cities will help realize the SDGs, particularly SDG 11 (sustainable cities and communities), which, participants stressed, can be used as a “central lever” to advance all 17 SDGs.
The ICLEI Montreal Commitment and Strategic Vision 2018-2024, which was adopted by the ICLEI Council on 30 May 2018, in advance of the World Congress: provides guidance for action by ICLEI members and network cities; lays out a roadmap for advancing sustainable urban development through 2024, taking into account the Paris Agreement, the SDGs and the New Urban Agenda (NUA); and describes a new model of more inclusive sustainable development governance.
The strategic vision focuses on systems thinking, which highlights the complex relationship among urban systems, and emphasizes an integrated approach to policy and planning. It lays out five interconnected pathways towards 1) low emission, 2) nature-based, 3) circular, 4) resilient and 5) equitable and people-centered development, and supportive policy approaches related to sustainable governance and management, innovation and science, and innovative finance models.
The ICLEI Montreal Action Plan 2018-2021 outlines a roadmap for implementing the Montreal Commitment and Strategy, and explains how each of the five pathways advances the SDGs.
The five pathways aim to cut across sectors and jurisdictional boundaries and create connection points across urban systems to enable local and regional governments to take an integrated approach to sustainable urban development, for example, by determining where equity intersects with resilience or where nature-based solutions can contribute to resilience building. The ICLEI Montreal Action Plan 2018-2021 outlines a roadmap for implementing the Montreal Commitment and Strategy, and explains how each of the five pathways advances the SDGs.
In the ICLEI Montreal Commitment and Strategic Vision 2018-2024, ICLEI members pledge to: scale up and expand the model of sustainable cities and regions; make sustainability a fundamental and inextricable part of local and global development; tackle the most pressing issues with the long-term interests of citizens in mind; and undertake a collective effort for global change across all sectors and levels of government.
More specifically, the ICLEI Montreal Commitment and Strategic Vision 2018-2024 aims to, inter alia: promote 100% renewable energy; support industrial legacy in cities transitioning to sustainable economies; lead the transition to a green economy through sustainable public procurement networks; connect climate action to urban development and engage local and regional governments in making Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) fit for the Paris Agreement; and lead the implementation of global biodiversity targets at the city and regional levels.
More than 1,000 participants attended the congress, representing local, regional and national governments, international agencies, the private sector, academia, community groups and other partners.
The ICLEI World Congress, first held in 1990, takes place every three years to showcase the efforts of local and regional governments to advance sustainable urban development. ICLEI is a global network of more than 1,500 cities, towns and regions in over 100 countries committed to sustainable development, which acts as a bridge between local and regional governments worldwide. [ICLEI Montreal Commitment Landing Page] [ICLEI Montreal Commitment and Strategic Vision 2018-2024] [ICLEI Blog Post on Conclusion of ICLEI World Congress] [UNFCCC Press Release]