- Key 1,000 high-level participants from 40 countries invited to gather in Dallas, Texas to discuss the global urban future Mayor
- Mike Rawlings of Dallas: “It is time to re-imagine our cities and tell a new story about the places that define and shape who we are. We’re proud that Dallas will be the epicenter of these crucial, transformative discussions on our urban future.”
Dallas, Texas – December 9, 2013. The New Cities Foundation today announced the theme for the New Cities Summit 2014: Re-imagining Cities: Transforming the 21st Century Metropolis.
The New Cities Summit will gather 1,000 of the world’s most forward-thinking urban leaders, mayors, CEOs, architects, entrepreneurs, academics, thinkers, urban planners, scientists and artists for pragmatic, action-oriented discussions on the future of the urban world. The invitation-only event will take place on June 17 -19, 2014 in the Dallas Arts District, the cultural hub of one of North America’s fastest growing metro regions.
By 2050, cities will be home to 70% of the world’s population. Cities and metropolitan regions are increasingly becoming powerful economic and political actors in their own right. The New Cities Summit responds to this major phenomenon by calling upon city leaders and thinkers to shape ambitious and effective strategies that foster tangible change.
The Summit speaker program will address “Re-imagining Cities” from multiple perspectives, offering practical examples, learning and solutions from the many sectors that determine the future of cities, including governance, transport, education, healthcare, technology, finance, architecture, design and culture.
An exciting mix of prizes, initiatives and special projects will be showcased at the event. These include the AppMyCity! Prize for the worlds’ best mobile application, and WhatWorks, a series of inspirational short-talks by urban innovators from a spectrum of sectors and global locations. Summit participants will also benefit from expert-led tours of the city of Dallas, gaining insight into key urban development projects.
The New Cities Summit 2014 also provides a platform for the Global Cultural Districts Network (GCDN), a strategic network of leaders from the world’s most important cultural districts, from Hong Kong to Qatar. The GCDN was launched at the 2013 New Cities Summit and is headquartered in the Dallas Arts District.
The Summit kicks off a week of discussions that will place Dallas at the very heart of global thought-leadership on the future of cities. Following the Summit, Dallas will be host the Annual Meeting of the US Conference of Mayors on June 20-23.
The venue of the 2014 New Cities Summit in Dallas will be the Winspear Opera House in the Dallas Arts District.
John Rossant, Founder and Chairman of the New Cities Foundation, said: “As cities develop, and as they increasingly compete and cooperate across borders, they need to deftly and strategically position and re-position themselves on local, national and global playing fields. For most, this means a difficult but necessary process of re-imagination and transformation. This calls for creativity, and it also calls for decisive action and common purpose. Dallas, with its can-do spirit and dynamic economy, is a fantastic backdrop for launching a new agenda for all cities globally. It’s time to re-imagine the cities we live in today, for the citizens of tomorrow.”
Mayor Mike Rawlings of Dallas said: “It is time to re-imagine our cities and tell a new story about the places that define and shape who we are. Change is in the fiber of our dynamic city, making Dallas a great place to start this conversation. We’re proud that Dallas will be the epicenter of these crucial, transformative discussions on our urban future.”
Maxwell L. Anderson, Eugene McDermott Director of the Dallas Museum of Art, Chairman of the Dallas Arts District, and Co-Chairman of the GCDN, said: “The re-imagining of cities demands insight into the distinctive character of a place through its cultural heritage, creative industries, and built environment, and the 2014 Summit will stimulate fresh thinking about these facets of urban planning for cities around the globe.”
The previous editions of the New Cities Summit took place in São Paulo, Brazil in 2013 and in Paris in 2012. The host city for the 2015 Summit will be announced in Dallas in June 2014.
More information coming soon at www.newcitiessummit2014.org
Contact
Marina Bradbury
Communications & Media Relations Manager
New Cities Foundation
mbradbury@newcitiesfoundation.org
+33 6 17 79 17 72
About the New Cities Foundation
The New Cities Foundation is a leading global non-profit organization, with a vision to build more inclusive, dynamic and creative cities benefiting people and society. Its mission is to incubate, promote and scale urban innovations through collaborative partnerships between government, business, academia and civil society.
The New Cities Foundation hosts a number of leadership events on the most pressing urban issues, including its flagship event, the New Cities Summit (www.newcitiessummit2014.org). It also hosts smaller, more focused leadership events worldwide.
The Foundation’s applied research wing, the Urban (co)LAB, manages a number of projects including Task Forces, thought leadership activities and competitions. The Urban (co) LAB recently completed two Task Forces on Urban E-health in Rio de Janeiro and on Connected Commuting in San Jose, California. The Urban (co)LAB also manages the annual AppMyCity! Prize for the world’s best urban mobile app, and seeks out the most talented urban innovators for the WhatWorks series of talks hosted at the New Cities Summit.
An independent, non-profit organization, the New Cities Foundation was created in 2010 and is financed by its members and partners. Overall, its members include some of the most forward-thinking companies, universities, cities and city organizations from around the world. The New Cities Foundation’s Founding Members are Cisco and Ericsson. The Foundation is based in Geneva and its head office is in Paris.
For more information about the New Cities Foundation, please visit:
Facebook: /NewCitiesFoundation
Twitter: @newcitiesfound
About the New Cities Summit
Launched in 2012 as the New Cities Foundation’s annual flagship event, the New Cities Summit has fast established itself as the leading international gathering on the urban world. The invitation-only Summit unites about 1,000 high-level participants from across the globe and from across a spectrum of sectors. These include local and national government, business, finance, philanthropy, architecture, design, urban planning, civil society, startups and creative communities. With its focus on practical examples over theory, cross-sector discussions and a plurality of international voices, the Summit aims to showcase creative solutions to urban challenges, build lasting networks between city leaders and thinkers, and incite bold, tangible changes.
Previous editions of the New Cities Summit:
New Cities Summit 2013: The Human City – June 4 -6, 2013
São Paulo – Auditorio Ibirapuera & Oca Pavilion
The latest New Cities Summit focused on The Human City, placing the individual at the heart of discussions on our urban future. Taking place in São Paulo, the event gathered a total of 789 people from 29 countries, including 103 members of the media.
Read the New Cities Summit 2013 E-book: http://bit.ly/12vydoP
Watch the 2013 highlights video: http://bit.ly/19hi0XN
New Cities Summit 2012: Thinking Ahead, Building Together – May 14-16, 2012
Paris – La Defense
The inaugural Summit was held at La Defense in Paris, in partnership with the City of Paris and Mayor Bertrand Delanoë. The event gathered a total of 622 people from 42 countries, including 67 members of the media.
Read the New Cities Summit 2012 E-book: http://bit.ly/LZVXfC
Watch the New Cities Summit 2012 highlights video: http://bit.ly/Ki7Ago
Past New Cities Summit speakers have included:
Greg Clark, UK Minister for Cities; Bertrand Delanoë, Mayor of Paris; Jose Fortunati, Mayor of Porto Alegre; Fernando Haddad, Mayor of São Paulo; Ron Huldai, Mayor of Tel Aviv; Kasim Reed, Mayor of Atlanta; Gregor Robertson, Mayor of Vancouver; Khalifa Sall, Mayor of Dakar; Abel Ang, CEO, Economic Development Innovations Singapore; Fahd Al Rasheed, CEO, Emaar Economic City; Lady Barbara Judge, Chairman, UK Pension Protection Fund; John Rice, Vice-Chairman, GE; Hans Vestberg, CEO, Ericsson; Wim Elfrink, Chief Globalization Officer, Cisco; Ajit Gulabchand, Chairman and MD, Hindustan Construction Company; Daniel Libeskind, Architect; Richard Quest, CNN; Aromar Revi, Director, Indian Institute for Human Settlements; Saskia Sassen, Robert S. Lynd; Professor of Sociology and Co-Chair, The Committee on Global Thought, Columbia University and Ye Yumin, Director of the Department of Urban Planning and Management, Renmin University.
Twitter: @newcitiesfound #ncs2014
About the City of Dallas
The City of Dallas employs approximately 13,000 people and has an annual budget of nearly $US 3 billion. As the ninth-largest city and part of the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the nation, Dallas covers approximately 343 square miles and has a population of 1,223,229. The ultra-modern and sophisticated city attracts worldwide travelers, making the area the number one visitor and leisure destination in Texas. Dallas boasts the largest urban arts district in the USA and has more than 13 entertainment districts. It is the ideal place to discover the latest, greatest, and most innovative partnerships and attractions.
About the Dallas Arts District
The Dallas Arts District is a nonprofit organization stimulating the cultural and economic life of North Texas by advocating for the largest urban cultural district in the United States — comprising 20 square blocks of museums, performance halls, parks, restaurants, offices and residences. The Dallas Arts District also serves as world headquarters for the Global Cultural Districts Network in partnership with the New Cities Foundation and AEA Consulting. For more information, please visit www.dallasartsdistrict.org.
About the Global Cultural Districts Network (GCDN)
The GCDN serves to foster cooperation and knowledge-sharing between those responsible for conceiving, funding, building, and operating cultural districts; and to help to ensure that these projects are vital assets for their communities, contributing to the vitality of 21st century cities. Over the next decade, some $US 250 billion will be invested in the creation of new cultural districts around the globe. A successful cultural district is not just one that is built, but one that, once built, thrives and, in thriving, animates the city or region that it serves. This holistic definition of success is central to the Network: success is not just getting an arts building or series of buildings out of the ground, it is about ensuring that they are viable and play a central role in their communities.
The GCDN provides the following services for its members:
- Regular convening to share emerging best practices, hear expert panels, and discuss the place of cultural districts in urban policy, economic development and related areas of public policy such as travel and tourism;
- Original research on topics of common interest such as programming, audience development, cultural tourism, professional development, relevant trends in technology and creative industries strategies;
- Regular summaries and circulation of secondary research and news of common interest;
- Virtual forums for detailed sharing of information and discussion of opportunities and challenges;
- Opportunities for establishing strategic partnerships for content, programming, skills training, and knowledge transfer.
www.gcdn.net
Twitter: @gcdnet
Facebook: /GCDNetwork
