Download shanghai report - Caribbean Development Bank

SHANGHAI REPORT
Low-Carbon City Theme Forum
By Volville Forsythe
Assistant Bank Secretary
I and six other participants from the CARICOM Pavilion at Shanghai World
Expo 2010 attended one of the Theme Forums which are being held as part of
the Expo. It was entitled “Towards A Low Carbon City: Environmental
Protection and Urban Responsibilities”, and took place from July 3-6, in
Nanjing, one of the four ancient capitals in China.
The Expo Shanghai Theme Forums, along with other expositions and events,
are one of three major components of Expo 2010. Aiming to explore the Expo
theme “Better City, Better Life” through discourses, one Summit Forum and
six Theme Forums are being held during the Expo.
This Forum was designed against the background that the city is the root of most environmental
problems, such as unsustainable consumption and production patterns, resource depletion, environmental
degradation and climate change, as well as the key to the solution to those problems. The representative
from Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the
Grenadines, and the Caribbean Development Bank all found the Forum very interesting and informative.
It was noted that collective efforts of governments, municipalities, corporations and citizens are required
to address the major environmental issues such as pollution, climate change, energy conservation and
emission, and that this could be achieved through new alternative and innovative approaches to
environmental management, resource use and better mechanisms for regional and global cooperation.
Expo 2010 is therefore a global multi-stakeholder platform for over 200 nations and international
organisations to come together and share visions and solutions to evolve towards a green economy and to
improve environmental equality in cities and through cities.
The forum addressed the critical environmental through six sessions:
- Low-Carbon Economy: International Cooperation and Policies for Climate Change
- Towards a Green Industry and Innovative Production Models: Energy and Manufacturing
- Engaging Citizens in Building Green Cities
- Best Practices in the Environmental and Energy Management of Cities
- Towards a Green Industry and Innovative Production Models: Sustainable Buildings
- Sustainable Production and Lifestyle
The outcomes of the discussions which were summarised in the closing session of the Forum will be an
input to the Shanghai’s Declaration on Better City, Better Life, and will serve as a guide for future urban
environmental strategies.