The Topline
Key data points
- In Lima, Peru, air sensor monitoring has helped improve air quality by 45% in locations that service 8,000 children.
- In Accra, Ghana an effort to formalize the sanitation workforce boosted waste collection from 75% to 90% and more than tripled recycling rates.
- In São Paolo, Brazil, a program to source school lunches with sustainably grown crops is serving 286,000 youth and is projected to cut carbon emissions by over 18% by 2025.
- The three solutions above are among the first 11 ideas posted on the Bloomberg Cities Ideas Exchange, where mayors and local leaders can find innovative, adaptable solutions to a range of challenges, and get support implementing them in their own cities.
- At Bloomberg CityLab in Mexico City, Mike announced the largest-ever Mayors Challenge to radically improve municipal services. 25 winners will be awarded $1 million and receive technical assistance to bring their ideas to life.
- Bloomberg Philanthropies is helping Kyiv and five Ukrainian cities expand digital infrastructure that supports local services, which are especially critical in times of crisis. Mike and Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote about empowering mayors to respond to emergencies.
- This year’s CityLab convened more than 700 mayors, leading policymakers, urban innovators, and creatives to connect and share solutions from the frontlines of today’s biggest challenges. You can explore the panels and watch discussions on climate change, migration, food policy, design, arts, and much more.
Announcements and Highlights from CityLab 2024
Sharing Proven Solutions to Improve Lives and Strengthen Cities
The Bloomberg Cities Idea Exchange is a first-of-its-kind platform for local leaders to share and refine their most effective and innovative ideas, and find solutions from other cities that might work in their own communities. At CityLab 2024, we unveiled the first slate of municipal programs and policies added to the Exchange: 11 proven solutions from around the world for fighting cleaning the air, reducing homelessness, and more. Mayors and local leaders can now use the Bloomberg Cities Idea Exchange to explore these promising ideas, and get technical assistance to implement them in their own cities.
| See the Ideas |
The Largest-Ever Mayors Challenge
Cities are home to more people now than at any time in history — which means that great urban innovations have a chance to improve more lives than ever before. In his remarks at CityLab in Mexico City, Mike announced our largest-ever Mayors Challenge, calling on cities to radically reimagine their most essential municipal services. Past Mayors Challenge winners have had a tremendous impact in cities around the world. This time around, 50 finalists will receive $50,000 and attend an Ideas Camp to hone and test their proposals, and 25 winners will receive $1 million and technical assistance to bring their ideas to life. Cities with more than 100,000 residents can apply through December 20, 2024.
Focusing on Latin American Urban Innovation
Mexico City is a hub of innovation, urban growth, and people-focused solutions — which made it the perfect choice for CityLab 2024. And Mexico City is not alone in Latin America when it comes to using creative ideas to make their cities stronger, healthier, and more efficient. Watch how cities across the region are revitalizing shared spaces, promoting health and economic independence with urban farming, helping young people fight climate change, and more.
Op-Ed: “One of the best ways to support a nation is to equip a mayor”
In a joint op-ed for the Kyiv Post, Mike and Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote about the critical role mayors play — not just in day-to-day operations, but in guiding cities in times of crisis. “Cities don’t wage war, but they often bear the brunt of it,” Mike and Mayor Klitschko wrote. “It is the mayor’s job not only to help rally spirits, but to adapt services — ensuring that schools and businesses can stay open, that local transportation still runs, and that people can access government benefits. In short, making sure that life goes on.” A key element of Kyiv’s emergency response, from sharing alerts to mapping sites for medical and food supplies, has been its digital infrastructure, which Bloomberg Philanthropies helped it strengthen. To build on that success, Bloomberg Philanthropies is supporting work to increase digital local services in Kyiv, particularly around mental health burdens related to the war, while also expanding digital infrastructure support to five other Ukrainian cities. Read the full op-ed to learn more.
Bringing Local Leaders Together to Accelerate Climate Action
Bloomberg Philanthropies is partnering with Urban20 (U20) to support this year’s Summit in Rio de Janeiro, November 14-17. Taking place immediately before global leaders gather for the G20 Summit, U20 will bring together hundreds of mayors, global delegates, and partners to accelerate multilevel partnerships, unleash urban financing, and drive ambitious climate action. Bloomberg Philanthropies is supporting the participation of a global delegation of mayors at the U20 Summit, and helping chart a bold path for cities and nations to meet the world’s climate goals.
Watch Panel Discussions and Presentations from CityLab 2024
SESSION 1: TUESDAY, OCTOBER 15
Welcome remarks from Bloomberg Philanthropies CEO Patti Harris | Remarks from Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada | The New Latin American Urbanism | The Housing-Transit Nexus | Renewing Civic Space Across Mexico | A Vision for Mexico’s National Digital Agenda | Lessons in Transformation
SESSION 2: TUESDAY, OCTOBER 15
Remarks from the Aspen Institute President and CEO Dan Porterfield | A New Theory of Public Space | Cities that Spark Love | How to Build a Moonshot — and Bring Residents Along with You | Before the Water Runs out | 5 Ways to Create More Housing in Your City | Smarter, Greener Funding for Cities | Governing on the Border | A Conversation with Mexico’s Foreign Secretary
SESSION 3: WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 16
Remarks from Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg | Championing Ideas | State of Urban Innovation | Migration: Finding a Balance | When Migration and Homelessness Meet | Feeding the City: Mexico’s Landmark Food Policy Legislation | Echoes of the Past | Visions of the Future
SESSION 4: WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 16
Elsa Carvajal Finds Her Voice | Designing in Context: One Architect’s Approach | The Future of City Networks | The Path to Safer Cities | Public Housing That Works | Nairobi and the Next Generation | The Wisdom of Youth | In Defense of Democracy