# WCS 2016: World Cities Summit Aligns Focus on Urban and Social Innovations, and Public-Private Partnerships to Build Resilient Cities - **Source:** Ministry of National Development - **Published:** 2016-07-15T04:00:00.000Z - **Author:** Ministry of National Development - **Original:** https://www.mnd.gov.sg/newsroom/press-releases/view/wcs-2016-world-cities-summit-aligns-focus-on-urban-and-social-innovations-and-public-private-partnerships-to-build-resilient-cities - **Topics:** Government & Policy, Sustainability & PropTech ## Featured rationale The emphasis on technology, community engagement and public-private partnerships signals broader support for integrated urban development, potentially encouraging more resilient and liveable projects. ## AI summary WCS 2016 attracted more than 21,000 participants and launched City Solutions Singapore, an urban-solutions marketplace featuring over 1,000 companies. ## Original article About 110 mayors and city leaders representing 103 cities from 63 countries and regions from around the world gathered at the World Cities Summit 2016 to discuss changes, challenges and innovations emerging in their cities. These cities included Seoul, Antwerp, Hamburg and Rotterdam. Their interactions at the Summit — a premier platform to develop real-world solutions that address urban sustainability challenges — highlighted the global need to focus on social, technology and governance innovations to build resilient, liveable and sustainable cities of the future. Held from 10 – 14 July, the fifth edition of the World Cities Summit (WCS), together with Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) and CleanEnviro Summit Singapore (CESS), was attended by more than 21,000 visitors and participants including ministers, mayors, government officials, industry leaders and experts, academics, as well as representatives from international organisations. This year, besides established tracks on urban governance and long-term planning and development, WCS also provided a platform for discussions on the softer aspects of a sustainable and liveable city – community and culture – in particular how heritage and culture can be integrated into the urban planning and design of cities. Integrated Approach to Innovating for Sustainable Development WCS 2016 also featured a full-day track on innovations for a smart city. As part of this expanded focus on innovation, the inaugural City Solutions Singapore was launched as a seamless global marketplace to drive end-to-end sustainable development and showcase solutions, as well as to provide a platform for new partnerships and business opportunities. The expo had over 1,000 participating companies, from industry leaders to innovative start-ups in urban development, water, waste and cleaning management. A key highlight of the expo was the “Towards a Smart and Sustainable Singapore” pavilion, showcasing collaborative efforts of more than 16 local government agencies. One of the showcases was the CityScope - a real-time interactive urban planning tool that uses augmented reality and Lego-like bricks to simulate urban environments for test-bedding purposes. Building Resilient Cities: Beyond Infrastructure Besides adopting innovation in technology to build greater resilience, cities are also looking to innovate the way in which they engage their people and involve them in co-creating solutions for a better living environment. The Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize 2016 Laureate, Medellín, Colombia, shared at the Prize Lecture on how leveraging on co-creation and the collective inputs of its citizens have helped tackled its most pressing issues, improved the economy, as well as its citizens’ employability and quality of life. The four cities accorded Special Mentions – Auckland, Sydney, Toronto and Vienna – further demonstrated how open community engagement and social integration have contributed to their successful urban transformations. Citizen engagement is therefore essential for creating not only liveable and sustainable cities, but also resilient ones. Beyond infrastructure, the softer aspects of a city also impact on the people’s quality of life. Culture is one key aspect. For the first time in 2016, there was a dedicated WCS track exploring how heritage and culture can be integrated into the urban planning and the design of cities. Collaborations that will spark innovation and create opportunities The key theme of innovation was further reinforced by the collaborations announced during WCS 2016, such as the Singapore Government’s plans to partner Microsoft to explore next-generation government services using chatbots for selected public services. ENGIE also launched its Singapore Lab to act as a regional hub for energy innovation and technology in Southeast Asia, while Surbana Jurong unveiled the world's first integrated smart city solutions offering. “We are seeing greater genesis of synergies and collaborative efforts between private companies, international organisations and government agencies at WCS,” said Mr Larry Ng, Managing Director of the World Cities Summit. “The combination of technology, social and governance innovation will form the foundation of the resilient, liveable and sustainable cities needed to address the challenge of rapid urbanisation in Asia and beyond.” Details on major announcements made and partnerships signed at the Summit are provided in Annex A. The next World Cities Summit will be held from 8 – 12 July 2018 at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre, Singapore. The World Cities Summit Mayors Forum 2017 will be held in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, China. ## Chinese translation > Translation model: grok_cli ### WCS 2016：世界城市峰会聚焦城市与社会创新及公私合作，共建韧性城市 约110位市长及城市领袖，代表来自全球63个国家和地区的103座城市，齐聚2016年世界城市峰会，讨论各自城市中出现的变化、挑战与创新。这些城市包括首尔、安特卫普、汉堡和鹿特丹。他们在峰会上的交流——这一旨在制定应对城市可持续发展挑战的现实解决方案的顶级平台——凸显了全球需聚焦社会、科技与治理创新，以建设未来韧性、宜居且可持续的城市。 于7月10日至14日举行的第五届世界城市峰会（WCS），与新加坡国际水周（SIWW）及新加坡清洁环境峰会（CESS）同期举办，吸引了超过21,000名访客与参与者，包括部长、市长、政府官员、行业领袖与专家、学者，以及国际组织代表。今年，除了城市治理与长期规划发展等既定议题外，WCS还为讨论可持续宜居城市的“软性”层面——社区与文化——提供了平台，尤其是如何将遗产与文化融入城市规划与设计。 以综合路径推动可持续发展创新 WCS 2016还设置了全天的智慧城市创新专题。作为这一扩大创新聚焦的一部分，首届City Solutions Singapore启动，作为无缝的全球市场平台，推动端到端可持续发展并展示解决方案，同时为新伙伴关系与商业机会提供平台。该博览会有超过1,000家参展企业，从行业发展领导者到城市发展、水务、废弃物与清洁管理领域的创新初创企业。 博览会的一大亮点是“迈向智慧与可持续新加坡”展馆，展示超过16个本地政府机构的协作成果。展项之一是CityScope——一款实时交互式城市规划工具，利用增强现实与乐高式积木模拟城市环境，用于试验验证。 建设韧性城市：超越基础设施 除了采用技术创新以增强韧性外，城市也在创新与民众互动、让民众共同创造更美好人居环境解决方案的方式。 2016年李光耀世界城市奖得主——哥伦比亚麦德林，在获奖讲座中分享了如何借助共创与市民集体意见，帮助应对最紧迫问题、改善经济，以及提升市民就业能力与生活质量。获特别表彰的四座城市——奥克兰、悉尼、多伦多和维也纳——进一步展示了开放的社区参与与社会融合如何促成其成功的城市转型。 因此，市民参与对建设不仅宜居、可持续、而且具韧性的城市至关重要。在基础设施之外，城市的软性层面也会影响人民的生活质量。文化是关键方面之一。2016年首次设立专门的WCS专题，探讨如何将遗产与文化融入城市规划与城市设计。 激发创新并创造机遇的合作 创新这一核心主题在WCS 2016期间公布的多项合作中得到进一步强化，例如新加坡政府计划与微软合作，探索利用聊天机器人提供部分公共服务的下一代政府服务。ENGIE也推出其新加坡实验室，作为东南亚能源创新与技术的区域枢纽，而盛裕集团（Surbana Jurong）则发布了全球首个一体化智慧城市解决方案产品。 “我们看到在WCS上，私营公司、国际组织与政府机构之间产生了更多协同与协作，”世界城市峰会董事总经理黄立成（Larry Ng）先生表示。“科技、社会与治理创新的结合，将构成建设韧性、宜居与可持续城市的基础，以应对亚洲及更广泛地区快速城市化带来的挑战。” 峰会期间的主要宣布事项及签署的伙伴关系详情见附件A。 下一届世界城市峰会将于2018年7月8日至12日在新加坡滨海湾金沙会展中心举行。2017年世界城市峰会市长论坛将在中国江苏省苏州市举行。