Workshop for City Changemakers in India

In December 2019, the WRR team convened city changemakers from across India for a two-day workshop in New Delhi at the India Habitat Centre. This workshop was designed to disseminate and socialize findings from the WRR research, to gather input and real-world case studies for this report, and to identify upcoming decision-making opportunities to advance solutions discussed in the workshop. Each day consisted of facilitated discussions centered on urban sectors featured in the WRR research: transport and urban expansion on day one and housing, water, and energy on day two.

Participants included representatives from the government, private sector, NGOs, academia and activist organizations. Key speakers included Indian Secretary of Housing and Urban Affairs, D.S. Mishra, and Brazilian Ambassador to India, André Aranha Corrêa do Lago. Some common themes that emerged from discussions over the two days included the importance of strategic urban planning that is cross-sectoral and involves actors from different agencies like transportation, water, health, and the environment; the importance of geospatial and disaggregated socioeconomic data used to inform decision-making; and the need to integrate the formal and the informal sectors to improve access to services for all in cities.

We had roughly 35 external participants attend the two-day workshop and roughly 15 WRI staff from both the global and India offices. Some of the takeaways from this workshop will be incorporated into the WRR Synthesis Report. Notes from the workshop can be provided upon request.

Cities For All