Vietnam/ ASEAN creative cities share sustainable development initiatives

The UNESCO ASEAN Creative Cities Network conference was held on Saturday November 18 at the Hanoi Museum, focusing on urban regeneration and sustainable development.

The event, organized by Hanoi's Department of Culture and Sports in coordination with the UNESCO Office in the city and UN-Habitat, brought together more thanUN-Habitat, brought together over 120 delegates, including 20 from ASEAN member cities and Asian cities cooperating with Hanoi.

The conference highlighted the importance of culture and creativity for urban development and quality of life in ASEAN countries. Participants also discussed solutions that member cities of the ASEAN Plus 3 network can adopt to capitalize on the resources of culture and creativity in the face of the many urban problems caused by rapid urbanization and climate change.

Hanoi shared its new development direction, as well as its potential and opportunities for cooperation in the field of design. She said that becoming a member of UNESCO's Creative Cities Network was a step for the city to establish its brand, popularize its image in all areas of creation and to join the group of global cities whose development is focused on innovation and which corresponds to the UN's Agenda 2030 for sustainable development.

Representatives from ASEAN and other Asian countries also shared initiatives to use national resources for urban creation and development when their cities became members of the network. They discussed opportunities for cooperation at city level to work towards sustainable development in the region.

Pham Thi Thanh Huong, Head of the Culture Division at the UNESCO Hanoi Office, said that UNESCO not only sets goals, but also promotes sharing between network members to transform cities into good living environments for residents.

UNESCO hopes that the contributions of network members will be further expanded and that cities will lead different initiatives, share with other members, mobilize public and private resources and connect experts and creators from the local to the international level, she added.

The conference aims to offer ASEAN countries the opportunity to learn from each other's experiences in cultural and creative resources. She also encouraged cities in the regional bloc to become members of the network.

The event is also part of Hanoi's actions since joining the network at the end of 2019.

The UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCN) was created in 2004 to promote cooperation with and between cities that have identified creativity as a strategic factor in sustainable urban development.

Nearly 300 cities worldwide currently form this network, working together towards a common goal: to place creativity and the cultural industries at the heart of their development plans at local level, and to cooperate actively at international level.

Source: lecourrier.vn/