Cities at the Frontline: Progress Despite Global Challenges. The 4th International Mayors Summit will be held in Kyiv

The fourth International Mayors Summit “Cities at the Frontline: Progress Despite Global Challenges” will take place on September 28, in Kyiv, Ukraine. The Summit is organized by Western NIS Enterprise Fund.

Since fall 2019, cities globally face a double challenge: fight against the pandemic while simultaneously feel the pressure of further development. Mayors are at the frontline of urgent and necessary decisions, trying to coordinate with the central government, create partnerships with businesses and engage and convince the community. Was it a successful process? What are the most effective solutions? How to plan further development and growth? This will be the theme of the IMS 2021.

Summit participants will be able to attend a private breakfast meeting on investing and financing urban projects with international organizations and businesses. At the event, they will have an opportunity to meet representatives of top businesses working on solutions for cities, including such companies as Visa, AJAX, Danfoss, Datagroup, as well as representatives of EBRD, the European Union, UNDP and the USUBC.

This Summit is more than just a conference. A special interactive art exhibit –“The City Path” in the form of a street running through the most important aspects of city life: waste recycling, climate change, “smart” human-oriented construction, and infrastructure will be presented to the participants this year.. Participants will experience two types of emotions: negative, caused by a possible negative development scenario; and positive – from perspectives of progress inbuilding policies in the right manner and joining efforts. The purpose of the installation is to show that our future is determined by today’s actions and strategies, and we are to choose what it will be.

The event will also feature a presentation of successful projects in the cities implemented during the pandemic, the so-called “pitches of Ukrainian mayors”. The program also includes the traditional Ask the Prime Minister Session as an important platform for dialogue between central and local authorities.

“Today, we clearly understand that cities will face a number of challenges in the years to come – from climate change to the overuse of natural resources, from migration processes to competition for talented persons. Residents’ expectations from the authorities are growing more and more, and they often must make urgent, but strategic decisions. Cities are in the vanguard, when there’s a necessity to address global challenges, but also ensure the development and quality of life for residents. The results can be achieved only with the participation of and in cooperation with communities”, said Iryna Ozymok, the Founder of the International Mayors Summit.

Registration for the event: https://internationalmayorssummit.com/

The International Mayors Summit is the event that brings together city and community leaders, experts and business representatives to foster cooperation, innovation and new solutions for cities, in order to improve the quality of life of their residents. This year, up to 130 mayors of Ukrainian and foreign cities, representatives of business, public organizations and the central government are expected to participate.

The organizers of the Summit invited international speakers and business representatives, who will share with participants their successful cases of change in cities during the pandemic and crisis challenges, experience in attracting funding for infrastructure projects and urban initiatives, examples of cooperation for quality transformations in cities.

The International Mayors Summit 2021 will take place on September 28, in Kyiv, Ukraine, at UNIT City, 3 Dorohozhytska st.

The Summit is organized by Western NIS Enterprise Fund. Summit Partners are AJAX, Association “Energy Efficient Cities of Ukraine”, US-Ukraine Business Council and others.