Participants

Habitat III invited all member countries[6]​ of UN-HABITAT and relevant urban actors, parliamentarians, municipal representatives, professionals, researchers, academics, civil society, representatives of women and youth, unions and the private sector, as well as other UN agencies and international organizations.[7]​.

Some 30,000 people attended the conference, which was held at the House of Ecuadorian Culture in Quito.[8]​.

Roadmap

The first session of the Habitat III preparatory committee was held at UN Headquarters in New York from September 17 to 18, 2014.[9]​ The second, in Nairobi, Kenya, from April 14 to 16, 2015.[10]​ And the third and last, in Surabaya, Indonesia, from July 25 to 27, 2016.[11]​.

Policy briefs

The process towards Habitat III includes the development of national and regional reports – which will converge into a global report – to provide evidence-based knowledge on the implementation of the Habitat Agenda and a comprehensive analysis of the state of urbanization in the world, as well as good practices and tools, both for policy formulation and intervention on the ground.

22 situation assessment articles in relevant areas (the Habitat III thematic articles[12]​) were written through a UN system collaborative exercise coordinated by the Habitat III secretariat.

Numerous high-level official meetings with a wide range of participants discussed New Urban Agenda priorities and policy recommendations. What was decided was reflected in a final declaration by the participants that is considered an official entry in the Habitat III process.[13]​.

The policy units, each composed of 20 experts from different geographical areas, prepared 10 policy documents for relevant aspects.[12]​.

Commitment

The debate that led to Habitat III included past sessions of the global urban forums, especially the last one, held in 2014 in Medellín, Colombia, and also the national urban forums,[14]​ to deliberate on national priority issues, such as the preparation of national reports for Habitat III.

Beyond the participation of governments in the process through the general assembly, the commitment to Habitat III is articulated through another assembly, the assembly of partners (GAP), which serves as a broad deliberative platform for non-governmental participants to reach a consensus document and other related matters for Habitat III.[15]​.

The Together towards Habitat III campaign also promotes a global citizen survey (2015-2016) to gather all contributions with the final result of the conference. These contributions are collected through activities and initiatives to increase awareness of the New Urban Agenda.[16]​.

At Habitat III, the World Infrastructure Foundation in Basel publicly presented SuRe®, the global, voluntary standard for sustainable and resilient infrastructure, which integrates the key criteria of sustainability and resilience in the development and modernization of infrastructure.[17]​.

General Secretary

Joan Clos, mayor of Barcelona from 1997 to 2006 and executive director of UN-HABITAT since 2010, was also the secretary general of the Habitat III conference.[5]​.

Participants

Habitat III invited all member countries[6]​ of UN-HABITAT and relevant urban actors, parliamentarians, municipal representatives, professionals, researchers, academics, civil society, representatives of women and youth, unions and the private sector, as well as other UN agencies and international organizations.[7]​.

Some 30,000 people attended the conference, which was held at the House of Ecuadorian Culture in Quito.[8]​.

Roadmap

The first session of the Habitat III preparatory committee was held at UN Headquarters in New York from September 17 to 18, 2014.[9]​ The second, in Nairobi, Kenya, from April 14 to 16, 2015.[10]​ And the third and last, in Surabaya, Indonesia, from July 25 to 27, 2016.[11]​.

Policy briefs

The process towards Habitat III includes the development of national and regional reports – which will converge into a global report – to provide evidence-based knowledge on the implementation of the Habitat Agenda and a comprehensive analysis of the state of urbanization in the world, as well as good practices and tools, both for policy formulation and intervention on the ground.

22 situation assessment articles in relevant areas (the Habitat III thematic articles[12]​) were written through a UN system collaborative exercise coordinated by the Habitat III secretariat.

Numerous high-level official meetings with a wide range of participants discussed New Urban Agenda priorities and policy recommendations. What was decided was reflected in a final declaration by the participants that is considered an official entry in the Habitat III process.[13]​.

The policy units, each composed of 20 experts from different geographical areas, prepared 10 policy documents for relevant aspects.[12]​.

Commitment

The debate that led to Habitat III included past sessions of the global urban forums, especially the last one, held in 2014 in Medellín, Colombia, and also the national urban forums,[14]​ to deliberate on national priority issues, such as the preparation of national reports for Habitat III.

Beyond the participation of governments in the process through the general assembly, the commitment to Habitat III is articulated through another assembly, the assembly of partners (GAP), which serves as a broad deliberative platform for non-governmental participants to reach a consensus document and other related matters for Habitat III.[15]​.

The Together towards Habitat III campaign also promotes a global citizen survey (2015-2016) to gather all contributions with the final result of the conference. These contributions are collected through activities and initiatives to increase awareness of the New Urban Agenda.[16]​.

At Habitat III, the World Infrastructure Foundation in Basel publicly presented SuRe®, the global, voluntary standard for sustainable and resilient infrastructure, which integrates the key criteria of sustainability and resilience in the development and modernization of infrastructure.[17]​.