Guangzhou Award Submission Deadline Extension

2020 marks the beginning of the 5^th cycle of the Guangzhou International Award for Urban Innovation (Guangzhou Award). As always, we encourage cities and local governments around the world to share their innovative practices in supporting the local implementation of the SDGs and the New Urban Agenda.

Unfortunately, the beginning of the year saw the whole world affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Too many lives are being lost and public health is at risk. An unprecedented number of cities, regions and communities have been affected, economically, socially, culturally and psychologically as a result of prolonged physical distancing and lock-downs.

Many cities and regions have expressed their keen interest in joining the 5^th cycle. But the COVID-19 crisis has made their application difficult and the submission deadline easily missed. Further to their requests, the Guangzhou Award Organizing Committee has decided to adjust the deadlines as follows:

Early bird submission deadline extended to: 23:59:59 (UTC+08:00), 30^th September 2020;

Final submission deadline extended to: 23:59:59 (UTC+08:00), 31^st October 2020.

There is no doubt that the pandemic has also exposed and highlighted challenges in achieving the SDGs, especially Goal 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8 and 10. What COVID-19 has brought to the fore is that we neglect primary health care, basic infrastructure and services, decent housing and decent work at our own peril. Never before has a singular event revealed the weaknesses and failures of these systems and their governance.

Cities and regions are most welcome to share their initiatives in responding to the pandemic. We are all too aware of the delicate balance between containment and mitigation, and the transition from emergency response and mitigation to recovery.

Applications are also welcome with forward looking post COVID-19 initiatives regarding how cities and regions are rethinking of their local governance mechanisms, reconsideration of the urban morphology and typology, addressing of the problems exposed, and improving the resilience of urban economy.

We look forward to your receiving and sharing your initiatives for a more inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable living place for all.

About the Guangzhou Award

The Guangzhou Award is co-sponsored by United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), World Association of the Major Metropolises (Metropolis), and City of Guangzhou, and supported by ICLEI and C40. The award aims to recognize innovation in improving social, economic and environmental sustainability in cities and regions and, in so doing, to advance the prosperity and quality of life of their citizens.

Eligibility

The Guangzhou Award is open to all local governments worldwide, including members of UCLG, Metropolis, ICLEI and C40.

Assessment Criteria

The criteria that are applied to the Guangzhou Award assessment include: innovativeness, effectiveness, replicability/transferability, significance and relevance of the initiative to the SDGs and the NUA.

What to expect

● Up to 15 shortlisted cities and up to 30 deserving cities will be discerned and selected by the Technical Committee. All 45 cities will be featured in specialized publications and many will be invited to share their experiences in international events.

● 2 representatives of each of the 15 shortlisted cities will be invited to share lessons learned at the International Seminar on Learning from Urban Innovation. This seminar will be held under the framework of the ‘Global Mayors Forum 2020, XIII METROPOLIS World Congress 2020 & 2020 Guangzhou Award’.

● Up to 5 winners among the shortlisted cities will be selected by the Jury and each will be granted US$ 20,000, a trophy and a commemorative certificate; shortlisted cities other than the winners will be granted Medals of Honour.

● The shortlisted city that obtains the most votes in the ‘Online Vote: The City of Your Choice‘ will be recognized as the ‘Online Popular City‘.

Timetable of 2020 Guangzhou Award (Updated on 29th May 2020)