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The International Mayors Summit is an annual large-scale event bringing together local government leaders and local development experts at a global level for knowledge exchange and discussion of the latest trends and innovations in urban development.

On November 28-29, 2017, Kyiv hosted the PLEDDG Project-Supported International Mayors Summit.

The second year in a row, PLEDDG Project becomes a partner to International Mayors Summit organized by Western NIS Enterprise Fund (WNISEF). This year, the Summit’s agenda included innovations transforming cities into services to respond both to their citizens’ needs and to the global challenges such as environmental issues, cybersecurity, and inclusiveness. The Summit was held under the auspices of Volodymyr Groysman, the Prime Minister of Ukraine, and supported by Vitali Klitschko, the Mayor of Kyiv, with the Prince of the Netherlands, Constantijn van Oranje invited as a special guest.

Within the framework of the event, there were thematic panel discussions, TED-talks by the world-known mayors and experts, StartupCity Workshop, and a visit to Unit City Innovative Park. Also, Ukrainian mayors present at the Summit signed a Mayor-Innovator’s Manifesto.

At PLEDDG Project’s invitation, prominent Canadian political leaders – Debra Button, the former Mayor of Weyburn (Saskatchewan, Canada) and the President of Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association, and Bill Karsten, a member of Halifax Regional Council (Nova Scotia, Canada) and the First Vice President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), took part in the Summit.

Elected as a third-term Mayor of Weyburn, Debra Button shared her experience as a mayor. “Generally speaking, women enter politic leadership not out of a desire to have power, but because of a will to help communities by training, facilitating, and helping all people around them”, – said Ms. Button and called on Ukrainian women not to be afraid of undertaking an active role in political life of a community.

Within the framework of the Summit, Kadie Ward, Senior Governance Advisor to PLEDDG Project, moderated a panel discussion on “Creativity that Changes Lives in Cities” focused on the role of creative economy in city development, in particular, in raising investments and growth of the tourism potential of a city. Mr. Wiesław Bielawski, Deputy Mayor of Gdansk (Poland), Ms. Helen Pheby, Senior Curator at Yorkshire Sculpture Park (Great Britain), Mr. Karl Tlais, Senior Director, Innovation & Strategic Partnerships (UAE), and Mr. Shlomo Dolberg, CEO of ULAI (Israel) took part in the panel discussion.

Besides, the mayors of PLEDDG partner cities attended the Summit, among them Volodymyr Garazd (Dolyna), Serhii Solomakha (Myrhorod), and Serhii Minko (Melitopol). They also joined other Ukrainian mayors in signing the Mayor-Innovator’s Manifesto.

For more information, go to the official website of International Mayors Summit
http://internationalmayorssummit.com/uk/#about