Habitat III Conference

The Communitas Coalition is fully engaged in the preparations of the UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development - Habitat III, which will take place in Quito, Ecuador in October 2016. Communitas contributions towards Habitat III are structured around three key objectives: (i) Connecting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its SDGs and the Habitat III process by technically unpacking proposed targets into indicators relevant to the subnational and local levels and toolkits for implementation; (ii) Facilitating a Stakeholder Dialogue on Integrated Territorial Development for Urban Rural Linkages; and (iii) Supporting the World Urban Campaign (WUC) and the General Assembly of Partners (GAP) on stakeholder engagement towards Habitat III.

Communitas Comments on the Work of the Habitat III Policy Units

In formulating the New Urban Agenda, ten Policy Units, made up of a number of experts in urban policy and planning, have been established with the important task of crafting innovative policy ideas around the themes of the Habitat III process. As part of their ongoing work, the Policy Units have submitted draft papers around the specific themes upon which they are working. These papers are now open for comments from all parties interested in the process, including UN Member States, Local Authorities, civil society, and other stakeholders. In light of its commitment to the Habitat III process, the Communitas Coalition has commented on a number of Policy Unit papers.

Communitas Comments on Habitat III Policy Unit Paper Frameworks

Communitas Engagement at Critical Habitat III Meetings in Jakarta

The Habitat III Secretariat is convening regional meetings as to mobilize Member States to come together to share ideas and brainstorm inputs into the upcoming zero draft of the New Urban Agenda. The first regional meeting took place in Jakarta, Indonesia from 21-22 October 2015. This meeting was organized as to coincide with the 6th Asia-Pacific Urban Forum (APUF). The Communitas Coalition participated in both these meetings, as well as the in the Asia-Pacific Urban Youth Assembly (APUFY), and played a central role in mobilizing members of the General Assembly of Partners (GAP) constituencies as to maximize the voices of stakeholder from Asia-Pacific in the overall Habitat III process. Below is the report of Communitas activities at these meetings.

Report from Jakarta Meetings

Communitas at the 7th World Urban Forum, Medellín, Colombia

Held in the City Changer Room at the 7th World Urban Forum in Medellín, Colombia, in April 2014, the Communitas Coalition held its consultation on first draft urban targets with a Networking Event, “Unpacking Targets for the Urban SDG.” The event aimed to create a bridge between the World Urban Forum and the SDGs Open Working Group (OWG) in New York, effectively connecting leading urban innovators to the OWG’s final formulation of Sustainable Development Goals. In the short-term, the Networking Event helped urban advocates to better understand the SDGs process and the role of “sustainable Cities and Human Settlements” therein. In the medium-term, it helped city changers to shape and anticipate SDG targets in the following months. In the long-term, it served to bolster local and subnational efforts to implement an Urban SDG on the ground. This important event helped pave the way for the Communitas second draft targets towards a standalone SDG on Cities and Human Settlements.

Communitas proud associate partner of the World Urban Campaign

Habitat III Orientation at the 1st Preparatory Committee

On the occasion of the first preparatory committee, Communitas in its capacity in the Habitat III Civil Society Working Group helped to facilitate an Orientation Session for Major Groups and stakeholders. The Working Group featured a diverse range of constituents, including: Communitas - Community Access - Consortium for Sustainable Urbanization Ford Foundation - Global Family - Habitat for Humanity - Habitat International Coalition - Huairou Commission - International Council of Women - International Real Estate Federation - Municipal Art Society of New York - New Jersey Institute of Technology The New School University - Penn Institute for Urban Research, University of Pennsylvania - The Sherwood Institute - Urban Design Lab, Earth Institute at Columbia University - United Cities & Local Governments - United Methodist Women University of Chicago - The Wilson Center - World Urban Campaign

From MDGs to SDGs: Towards a New Paradigm at Habitat III

On the occasion of the first preparatory committee, the Communitas Coalition and the World Urban Campaign hosted an official side event, “From MDGs to SDGs: Towards a New Paradigm at Habitat III.” The event, held 18th September 2014 at UN Headquarters, featured a thorough stocktaking of sustainable cities & human settlements across the entire Post-2015 development agenda.

Think tank session on Urban Rural Linkages

On 13th April in the UN Offices in Nairobi, Kenya, on the occasion of the second preparatory committee towards Habitat III, co-organized with UN-Habitat.

Communitas Activity at the second Habitat III Preparatory Committee and UN-Habitat’s 25th Governing Council

Decided by General Assembly resolution 67/216, by which the Assembly agreed that the second session of the Preparatory Committee would take place in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2015, and by resolution 69/226, by which the Assembly endorsed the recommendation of the Preparatory Committee at its first session to hold the second session from 14 to 16 April 2016, the second session of the Preparatory Committee for the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) was held on 14-16 April 2015, at the United Nations Office at Nairobi.

The Governing Council (GC) is an intergovernmental decision–making body for UN-Habitat. The GC meets biennially and reports to the UN General Assembly through the Economic and Social Council, particularly on programmatic issues. The 25th session of the Governing Council of UN-Habitat took place from 17-23 April 2015, at the United Nations Offices in Nairobi, Kenya.

During the two weeks, the Communitas Secretariat moderated and participated in several side events. The team also engaged directly with Member States and regional negotiation groups around the lengthy negotiations that resulted in the outcome resolution that “ invites the UN General Assembly to discuss the most appropriate way, including the possibility of convening an extraordinary session of the Preparatory Committee, to advance negotiations on the outstanding issues in the preparations for Habitat III, including the draft provisional rules of procedure, arrangements for the accreditation and participation of major groups and other relevant stakeholders in the preparatory process and in Habitat III, as well as other issues that might arise in the interim period, and the proposals of the Secretary-General of the Conference on improved participation of local authorities and other stakeholders in the preparatory process and the Conference itself, building on the positive experience enabled by the rules of procedure and inclusive modalities of (Habitat II), in order for the measures put in place to be effective at the third session of the Preparatory Committee.”

Click here to read the report of our activities in Nairobi!