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30TH SESSION
EXCOM 6
4 November 2013
Seoul, SOUTH KOREA
REPORT ON INSTITUTIONAL AND
PROGRAM ACTIVITIES
(JANUARY – SEPTEMBER 2013)
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LIST OF ACRONYMS
ARISU
Seoul Metropolitan Government Office of Waterworks
CBARAD
Community-based Adaptation and Resilience Against Disasters
C2C
CDIA
CDRI
CIFAL
City-to-City Cooperation
Cities Development Initiative for Asia
Climate and Disaster Resilient Initiative
Centre International de Formation des Autorités/Acteurs Locaux /
International Training Centre for Local Authorities
Council of Local Authorities for International Relations
CITYNET Youth Japan
CITYNET Youth Program
Disaster Risk Reduction
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit – Sustainable Urban
Transport Improvement Project
Global Network for Safer Cities
Green Purchasing Network of Malaysia
Innovation and Development Network
4th International Public Transportation Forum
Kuala Lumpur Regional Training Centre
Korea Transport Institute
Millennium Development Goal
Public-Private Partnership
Seoul Metropolitan Government
Sustainable Transportation System
Solid Waste Management
Tokyo Development Learning Center
International Association of Public Transport
United Nations Human Settlements Program
United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction
United Nations Institute for Training and Research
Yokohama Waterworks
CLAIR
CYJ
CYP
DRR
GIZ-SUTIP
GNSC
GPNM
IDN
IPTF
KLRTC
KOTI
MDG
PPP
SMG
STS
SWM
TDLC
UITP
UN-HABITAT
UNISDR
UNITAR
YWW
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1. Introduction
This Report describes the major institutional and program activities for 2013 carried out from January
to September 2013. The activities are in line with the institutional and program activities planned for
2013 within the framework of the Biennial Plan for 2012-2013, which was approved at the 29th
session of the Executive Committee held in Surabaya, Indonesia on 10 July 2012.
2013 is significant as the CITYNET Secretariat moved to Seoul, South Korea and begins a new era
for the organization. Following the move, the Secretariat focused on re-establishing the organization
by hiring staff, building networks within Seoul, maintaining member and partner relationships, and
even implementing new programs and workshops. The transfer, while exciting and revitalizing for the
Secretariat, also brought with it numerous challenges. The focus on a smooth transition while
maintaining the solid foundation meant that some efforts are redirected from traditional programming
and outlined yearly schedule.
2. Institutional Activities for 2013 (Draft)
2.1 Update on the Institutional Activities

Review and Redesign CITYNET: The Review and Redesign Committee was set up as an
outcome of the 28th Executive Committee meeting, and is comprised of Yokohama, Seoul,
SDS, Special Advisor and Secretary-General of CITYNET. It is chaired by Mr. Kirtee Natverlal
Shah, Honorable Director, ASAG (Ahmedabad Study Action Group). The Review and
Redesign is being carried out in the context of CITYNET’s 25 year completion and plans for
its relocation to Seoul. World Bank has provided its technical and financial support to this
exercise; a consultant was hired to interview members and partners. His report is attached for
the reference of the Executive Committee. A Roundtable Meeting will be organized on 9 July,
where the first findings of the exercise will be presented; a concrete action plan will be
formulated for decision of the Executive Committee.

Preparations for the relocation of the Secretariat: Communications between SMG,
Yokohama and Secretariat are carried out to prepare for the transfer of the Secretariat to
Seoul in the year 2013. In addition Mr. Choi Han Chul, Deputy Director for Tax Collection
Division of SMG, and Ms. Byun Kyung Hwa, Deputy Manager for Human Resource
Development Division of SMG were dispatched to CITYNET— the latter effective from 3
February, 2012. Ms. Byun has been assigned as the General Administrative Officer of
CITYNET, whose main responsibility consists of implementing relocation procedures.

Preparing for the 29th Executive Committee Meeting and 25th Anniversary Ceremony:
The 29th Session of the Executive Committee is planned for 10th July, 2012 in Surabaya,
Indonesia. Several events will be organized, including the International Seminar on Paving
the Way towards Environmentally Sustainable Cities (ESC). The Session will focus on the
Review and Redesign of CITYNET and the roadmap for 2013 onwards.

Improvement of Financial Outlook, Membership Fee Collection and Budgetary Control
System: The Secretariat has worked closely with the elected Auditor, Naga City on how to
improve the Network’s financial outlook. The Secretariat has carried out the Auditor’s
recommendations (see the Agenda Paper on Annual Audit of CITYNET Accounts). With
regards to the budgetary control, although the development of CITYNET’s new financial
system has been pending considering major changes in accounting after the relocation of the
Secretariat, the Secretariat also studied better accounting techniques for this organisation in
cooperation with SMG staff. The budget for 2013 is being prepared in consultation with SMG
and Yokohama City. Makati, the lead city of the Foundation, is also expected to establish a
fundraising team.

As for membership fee collection, the collection rate for the first quarter of 2012 is
approximately 41.91 percent as of June 18, 2012. Again, the Secretariat strongly requests
support from members, especially those belonging to the Executive Committee and those
comprising of focal points of the National Chapters, on this matter.
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
Enhancement of National Chapters and the Satellite Office: Please refer to the topic
below on the “Enhancement of Decentralization Efforts” for details.

Strengthening networking with Japanese local governments, institutions and
individuals: The Secretariat succeeded in receiving funds from CLAIR (the Council of Local
Authorities for International Relations) of Japan for the year 2012 through the City of
Yokohama for the Climate Change Workshop to be organized in Indonesia, and the project
fund on Disaster Risk Reduction in Iloilo, Philippines, for three consecutive years from 2012
through JICA.
2.2 Challenges Faced In Implementing Institutional Activities
From the year 2011, the Secretariat has been in the transitional stage of office relocation from
Yokohama to Seoul. Discussions with staffs who are expected to move to Seoul along with the office
relocation are carried out; there are, however, unclear issues that need to be clarified with Seoul,
including working conditions and the subsidy.
Due to the advancement in schedule of the Executive Committee Meeting in conjunction with the 25 th
Anniversary in July of this year, CITYNET Secretariat has to shift its focus to the preparation of the
Executive Committee and the Celebration for the time being.
A stronger yen currency has also caused CITYNET break into its reserve funds to meet expenses for
payments incurred in Japan (mainly salaries and other operational costs).
3. Program Activities
With the Seoul Secretariat slowly adjusting to the bustle of CITYNET programs and activities, it
remains to provide a rich array of capacity building programs and selected local government projects
to its members under the four cluster areas - Climate Change, Disaster, Infrastructure, and Millennium
Development Goal (MDG).
3.1 Capacity Building Program
In 2013, CITYNET continues to engage in several capacity development initiatives with major longterm partners and also established new relationships in South Korea with organizations known for
their core competence and expertise in their sectors. Two of these organizations are the Korea
Transport Institute (KOTI) and the Seoul Metropolitan Government Office of Waterworks (Arisu).
Outside of Korea, CITYNET continues to partner with the Kuala Lumpur Regional Training Center
(KLRTC) – International Training Center for Local Authorities (CIFAL) in harnessing the capacities of
its member cities and organizations.
1

KLRTC: The Kuala Lumpur Regional Training Centre (KLRTC) 1 or CIFAL Kuala Lumpur has
been the main platform for CITYNET’s capacity building programmes on basic urban
environmental services since 2003. In April 2013, on the eve of its tenth anniversary,
CITYNET held a brainstorming workshop with KLRTC and Cities Development Initiative for
Asia (CDIA) and identified the strategic direction that KLRTC could take in establishing itself
as an important learning and knowledge center for cities in the Asia-Pacific region. In the
workshop, the parties agreed on an action plan for 2013-2015 that would see a greater
number of workshops on expanded topic areas, including recycling and Public-Private
Partnership (PPP). CITYNET is strengthening KLRTC by coordinating with United Nations
Institute for Training and Research’s (UNITAR’s) CIFAL network and partners such as CDIA
and Green Purchasing Network of Malaysia (GPNM).

Yokohama Waterworks Training: Owing to CITYNET’s long-term partnership with
Yokohama Waterworks, members are able to receive quality training, exchange best
practices, and go on site study visits which greatly improve their own local waterworks
KLRTC was launched in 2003 as a joint initiative between UNITAR, CITYNET, Kuala Lumpur City Hall, Veolia
Environment, and UNDP.
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policies and practices. After the Secretariat’s move to Seoul, the Yokohama Project Office
has assumed responsibilities in managing this training program.
3.2 CITYNET Cluster System
The same challenges and constraints noted by the Yokohama Secretariat continue to be issues in
2013 whilst operationalizing the CITYNET’s Cluster System. These include lack of coordination and
communication between and among cluster committee members, other members, and the Secretariat
as well as high dependence of clusters on the Secretariat to initiate their activities. The Seoul
Secretariat will then carefully examine the Cluster System in the coming months to explore ways in
which to significantly enhance its effectiveness and relevance and see a more active interaction
among clusters. The Secretariat will aim for better and dynamic interfacing among cluster members,
inter-cluster dealings and secretariat involvement. Likewise, the initiatives and other developments
that will be introduced in the 2013 CITYNET Congress can provide the clusters with cutting edge
ideas in planning their future activities.
Table 1 below shows a brief overview of the 2013 Clusters’ activities and outcomes. Further details
are available in the annexes.
Table 1: Overview of Cluster Activities and Outcomes
(January – October 2013)
Objective
Climate Change
policies and
strategies on
mitigation and
adaptation
Activity
Smart Cities Project
(Yokohama)
January
Jakarta and
Bangkok
Community-based
Adaptation
and
Resilience Against
Disasters
(CBARAD)
April 2012
– March
2015
Iloilo
Green
Dreams
Conference
of
UNITAR/ CIFAL
August
12-14
CITYNET
Young
Professionals
September
18-20
CITYNET
Members,
local
government
leaders,
private sector
KLRTC 26: Fourth
International
Conference
on
Green Purchasing
Training and
best practice
exchange on
urban
infrastructure
Time Frame Beneficiary
Climate Change
Workshop on
Sustainable Urban
Transport in Asia
and the Pacific
Region
Seoul Training
Program for Water
Managers in
Southeast Asia
Infrastructure
CITYNET
Members,
transport
September
managers,
2-5
local
planning
officers, city
legislators
September
8-14
CITYNET
Members'
water
managers,
Output/Outcome
Yokohama officials visited
the two cities for a training
program follow though
An effective communitylevel adaptation and
resiliency schemes in Iloilo
City including increased
citizens’ awareness in
dealing with disaster
Students learned about
climate change and green
future including identifying
their roles and possible
activities in those
Follow-up
Conducted by
Yokohama Project
Office
Conducted by
Yokohama Project
Office
Presentation to
CITYNET and SMG
Staff
Shared best practices as
well as identified
challenges, and strategies
for developing green
policies
Evaluation and follow
up report
City exchanges on
transport challenges and
solutions; learned about
urban transport and
development of Seoul
Evaluation and follow
up report
Comprehensive overview
of Korean waterworks
systems, processes, and
technology
Evaluation and follow
up report
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city planning
officials
KLRTC 27:
Integrated Urban
Planning in the Asia
Pacific Region and
World Conference
on Sustainable
Cities
September
23-26
CITYNET
Members'
city planning
officials
Workshop on creative and
strategic ways of
addressing urban planning
in Asian cities
Evaluation and follow
up report
Designed to help city
officials increase their
awareness & expertise in
handling climate-related
risks
Canceled due to lack
of participants
As campaign support,
CITYNET assisted in
circulating the Disaster
Risk Reduction Survey
In progress
Disaster
Disaster Risk
Reduction, Best
Practices, Urban
Risk Profiling
Climate and
Disaster Resilience
Initiative
CITYNET
Members
City officials
Making Cities
Resilient World
Disaster Campaign
Cluster
Members
August
MDG's
Helping local
governments
achieve the
MDGs by 2015
Low-Cost E-learning
Project
September
-December
Two Schools
in Tansen,
Municipality,
Nepal
Nepal National
Chapter Project
MayNovember
Baglung,
Nepal
CITYNET Young
Professionals
Program
July November
Graduate
Students in
Korea
Supported the schools in
implementing an IT
solution in making access
to offline learning materials
possible ultimately
improving the quality of
education
Provided assistance in
constructing public toilets
in Baglung Municipality,
Nepal as part of their
Open Defecation Free
Zone Program through the
CITYNET - National
Chapter Nepal
Provides a platform for
students to network, learn
about international issues,
and engage green growth
and multiculturalism in
Korea as focus areas
In progress
In progress
CYP Congress and
Launch
Climate Change Cluster
Lead City: Dhaka / Co-Lead City: Jakarta
As the effects brought about by climate change become more severe, cities have to take serious
measures towards mitigation and adaptation in order to minimize the impacts in their localities. Asian
cities in particular need to actively develop climate change strategies, monitor greenhouse gas
emissions, and consider innovative economic solutions such as cap and trade or CDM projects to
address the challenges that they will face in the future.
Below are some Climate Change related activities in 2013.
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Capacity Building

Green Dreams Conference for Youth of UNITAR / CIFAL: Five CITYNET Young
Professionals (CYP) participated in the Green Dreams Conference for Youth organized by the
CIFAL Jeju International Training Centre from August 12-14. The three-day event gave the
participants the opportunity to learn from experts about issues like climate change,
sustainability, and ecology. They discussed related issues in small groups, particularly
focusing on the role that youths could play and their contribution to long-term change. On the
last day of the conference, each group presented their ideas on the conference focus where
they received feedback from experts. More information on the CYP program can be found in
Section 3.2.

KLRTC 26: 4th International Conference on Green Purchasing: The 4th International
Conference on Green Purchasing was held from September 18 - 20 in Subang Jaya. The
three-day conference was organized by Green Purchasing Network of Malaysia (GPNM) and
brought together about 400 participants from national and local governments, the private
sector, and academic and international organizations. Resource speakers, presenters and
panellists composed of high level officials and experts shared programs, strategies and
critical factors necessary for the successful development of a green environment and
sustainable green-oriented policies.

Yokohama Smart Cities Project: Officials from the Yokohama Climate Change Policy
Headquarters, Y-Port of Yokohama City and CITYNET visited Jakarta, Indonesia and
Bangkok, Thailand in January as a follow-up to the Yokohama Smart Cities Training Program
conducted in Yokohama, Japan in 2012. Part of the discussion in Jakarta is a potential
partnership between city and Yokohama on climate change adaptation and energy
management.
Since the Secretariat’s move to Seoul, all Yokohama Smart Cities activities is being
conducted by the Yokohama Project Office.

Other: KLRTC Workshops on recycling and green commercial complexes are being planned
for November and December.
Projects

Natural Farming: The CITYNET Secretariat, together with the Korean Natural Farming
Association, is planning to provide a training course in natural farming and urban agriculture
to Phnom Penh, Cambodia under the City-to-City Cooperation (C2C) Program. Organic waste
management is also being explored in Phnom Penh.

Project Proposal: The CITYNET Secretariat submitted a proposal on sanitation, “Towards
an Integrated and Sustainable Sanitation Solution for Barisal, Bangladesh: An Assessment of
the Current Sanitation Situation in the Informal Areas” with the Seoul Water Research
Institute, pursuant to a request for proposals by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Infrastructure Cluster
Lead City: Seoul / Co-Lead Organisation: AIILSG
City development should focus on sufficient, efficient and sustainable infrastructure through an
inclusive approach. Taking this approach, the Infrastructure Cluster can align their activities in the
coming months on how to build their capacities in establishing an infrastructure that is well-planned,
integrated, and practical.
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Capacity Building

Workshop on Sustainable Urban Transport in Asia and the Pacific Region: CITYNET,
together with the Korea Transport Institute (KOTI), hosted the second workshop on
“Sustainable Urban Transport in Asia and the Pacific Region” in Seoul from September 2-5.
The workshop was held in conjunction with KOTI’s 4th International Public Transportation
Forum (IPTF). The participants were from CITYNET member cities and organizations
composed of officials and technical officers from various local governments and national
agencies in Asia including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines
and Sri Lanka. The GIZ-Sustainable Urban Transport Improvement Project (SUTIP)
sponsored Indonesian participants from various agencies, cities and their project
management office in Jakarta. During the workshop, the participants learned about Seoul’s
public transport challenges and achievements and in turn, each city shared their
transportation best practices and challenges. They identified actions that they could consider
in their own country to address their pressing transport concerns. In the same event,
CITYNET signed an MOU with the International Association of Public Transport (UITP) to
collaborate in selected events, programs, and initiatives related to public transport.

Seoul Training Program for Water Managers in Southeast Asia: In partnership with the
Seoul Metropolitan Government Office of Waterworks (ARISU), CITYNET conducted the
“Seoul Training Program for Water Managers in Southeast Asia” from September 8-14. The
training showcased Seoul’s water management system with a combination of lectures /
discussions and diverse field visits including visits to the Office of Seoul Waterworks, Seoul
Waterworks Research Institute, Jungrang Sewage Treatment Center and Arisu Water
Purification Center of Seoul. The participants had the chance to directly observe Seoul’s
adopted process and technology for water purification and wastewater treatment. The
participants came from local governments in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, Nepal and
Philippines. They discussed water management practices and technology as well as their
country experiences.

KLRTC 27: Integrated Urban Planning in the Asia Pacific Region and World Conference
on Sustainable Cities: Integrated Urban Planning in the Asia Pacific Region took place from
September 23-26 at the KLRTC. The workshop gathered city mayors, senior city managers,
urban planners, environmental officers, engineers and other key urban leaders and decision
makers. UN-Habitat introduced the Urban Planning Guide for City Leaders during the
workshop. There were paper presentations and sessions on various topics in urban
development particularly urban infrastructure. The program culminated with the formulation of
an urban development action plan. The workshop was held in conjunction with the 5 th
International Conference on World Class Sustainable Cities with the theme “Liveable Cities
are Creative and Competitive Cities.”

KLRTC 28: External Urban Infrastructure Financing Options in the Asia-Pacific Region:
CITYNET, in partnership with CDIA, plans to hold the second course on External Urban
Infrastructure Financing Options in the Asia-Pacific Region in October. The course is an
‘introductory orientation’ to provide cities with additional knowledge on external financing
options for their infrastructure investment projects and discussed ways to analyze projects for
possible financing options. Prior to the event, a Training of Trainers (ToT) will be conducted to
train a core group of technical staff and trainers from KLRTC and CITYNET on how to
conduct / deliver the training course. The core group is expected to eventually become
trainers and facilitators of the course.
Advocacy

Global Network for Safer Cities: An analysis of policy responses to crime and violence
indicates that in many countries with high rate of crime and violence, the imperative has been
to focus on improving the criminal justice system. There is, however, a growing understanding
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that this needs to be complemented by crime prevention and enhancement of urban safety.
Still, resources such as financial and human are limited coupled with weak political support for
crime prevention agenda both at the country and city levels.
UN Habitat’s Global Network for Safer Cities (GNSC) puts the spotlight on urban safety and
making it a priority in urban development agenda. CITYNET, as a partner, will support the
launch of the GNSC in the Asia-Pacific region and actively participate in program activities
including development of a regional action plan, knowledge management and training
(through KLRTC), collection of good practices within the region and dissemination of the
regional guide / toolkit.
Disaster Cluster
Lead City: Makati / Co-Lead City: Banda Aceh
As the effects of Climate Change and the impacts of urban growth become more evident, Asian cities
should take a more proactive role in ensuring that they have the capacity to respond to such
occurrences. CITYNET hopes to see more activities from the Disaster Cluster in the coming months
and will continue to promote disaster-related programs, activities, and events.
Capacity Building

Climate and Disaster Resilient Initiative Program: An important disaster resilience
capacity building program offered by CITYNET in the first half of 2013 was the Climate and
Disaster Resilience Initiative (CDRI). The CDRI Program sponsored by CITYNET, Kyoto
University, and the Tokyo Development Learning Center (TLDC) of the World Bank and was
designed to help city officials increase their awareness and expertise in handling climaterelated risks faced by their cities through cost-efficient online self-learning tutorials and video
conferences. For 2013, the Program intended to continue the initial CDRI 2010 Program.
However, the minimum target number of participants was not met so that the organizers
decided to cancel holding the Program this year. Still, CITYNET, Kyoto University, and TDLC
reaffirmed their commitment to the principles of the CDRI program and will likely run it again
in the future.
Advocacy

Asian Disaster Preparedness Center Handbook: The CITYNET Secretariat provided
members with valuable literature on Disaster Risk Management by circulating the Disaster
Risk Management Handbook produced by Asia Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC).

Making Cities Resilient: The ‘Making Cities Resilient’ initiative headed by the United Nations
Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), one of CITYNET’s partners, is an ongoing
campaign until 2015 to promote urban resiliency. Through this campaign, local governments
learn from each other’s experiences by sharing best practices and participating in educational
opportunities. Handbooks and toolkits are available to help cities establish a resiliency
benchmark and develop a framework for cities to build on their disaster preparedness
campaigns.
In 2013, CITYNET actively supported UNISDR in the ‘Making Cities Resilient’ campaign and
assisted in circulating the Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Survey which promotes DRR needs
of local governments and have it reflected as part of national and global priorities. Former
CITYNET Program Director Bernadia Tjandradewi attended the partners’ meeting in
Barcelona last April where she gave a presentation on the post-2015 DRR Framework. The
Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) joined the initiative this year and there was a meeting
between CITYNET and UNISDR officials last July when the latter visited Seoul. The meeting
focused on how to continue the collaboration after the Secretariat had been moved to Seoul.
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Millennium Development Goals Cluster
Lead City: San Fernando / Co-Lead City: Vacant
As a commitment to the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), CITYNET extended significant albeit
small support to some of its member cities. Even as the MDG Cluster discusses potential activities for
the coming year, selected city projects were identified for implementation this year with the aim of
assisting cities in their poverty reduction efforts.
Projects

Low Cost E-learning Project: In September, CITYNET commenced a project in Tansen,
Nepal which will provide an opportunity to students of two public schools in the municipality to
make use of enhanced IT as an aid for learning. The “Making IT Infrastructure Available to
Peripheral Urban Areas as a Means of Enhancing Learning and Facilitating Development: A
Stand Alone, Low Cost and Low Power E-learning Solution for Tansen Municipality” aims to
upgrade the learning facilities in Shree Saraswoti Secondary School and Shree Laxmi Higher
Secondary School by providing them with an IT solution that will make access to offline
learning materials possible. Ultimately, the project hopes to improve the quality of education
in public schools with the future hope of scaling up the initiative so that it can be used in more
municipalities. A technical team from the Innovation and Development Network (IDN) of Seoul
National University is providing the expertise needed in the development and installation of
the learning technology. Aside from the public schools, the stakeholders include the local
government of Tansen, the Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development of Nepal, and
the Ministry of Education of Nepal. OLE Nepal is an NGO that will lend support to the project
by providing the needed e-learning content materials as well as inputs in the training of
teachers, students and school officials on the use and maintenance of the technology.

Technical Cooperation between Developing Cities (TCDC): The TCDC program is one of
the pillars of CITYNET support as a facilitator of city-to-city cooperation. With CITYNET’s
assistance, the Sub-metropolitan city of Pokhara in Nepal visited Makati City in the
Philippines to learn about its GIS-based Tax Information System from April 22-26 pursuant to
the TCDC program. The parties will explore the possibility of a post-TCDC follow-up project
for the application of GIS in the city hall and two wards in Pokhara.
Youth Program

CITYNET Young Professionals (CYP) Program: Recognizing the critical role that youth play
in nation building and their potential to contribute to local governance, the Seoul CITYNET
Secretariat officially welcomed its first group of young professionals in July. This year there
are 20 young professionals from more than 20 countries with diverse academic backgrounds
who joined the program. They researched on topics concerning green growth, waste
management, mobility, and multiculturalism in Korea which they presented during the
CITYNET Youth Congress held last October 12. A panel of experts were invited to the
Congress who provided feedback and facilitated discussion about the cluster presentations. A
paper received the Best Research Award as selected by the expert panel. The CYP will be
launched during the CITYNET 2013 Seoul Congress on November 4.

CITYNET Youth Japan: In January, CITYNET Youth Japan (CYJ) kicked off their year with
an Africa-Japan student summit in Yokohama, Japan which brought together students from
across the globe to build a collective voice that will advocate for African development.
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5. Communications, Promotions, Social Media, and Outreach
Introduction
As the CITYNET Secretariat negotiated the challenges of relocating to Seoul, South Korea in 2013,
communications and social media also underwent many changes. Communications was folded into
the brand-new Partner Development team, becoming part of a larger vision for public relations,
outreach, and branding.
The Partner Development team consists of Youngmin Chang, Partner Development Director, Brenna
Foster, the previous Communicaitons and Information Officer and now a Partner Development Officer,
and Jacki Dover, hired in late May, 2013.
This team worked together to create a new communications and outreach strategy focused on:
 Improving the clarity of content across all channels
 Reaching out to existing members and partners to strengthen relationships
 Connecting with new development agencies for mutually beneficial communications
strategies
 Raising the profile of CITYNET across the region and globally
With these goals in mind, the following projects and publications were produced.
Publications
As of October 2013, the following were published:






5 E-Newsletters (Digital)
2 CityVoices: Spring 2013 and Fall 2013 (Magazine)
Annual Report 2012 (Report)
CITYNET Korean Promotional Booklet
What is CITYNET (Informational Brochure)
20 CityNet Members Blog Posts (Digital)
Publications focused on clarity of design and content. Text was streamlined and highly edited to
produce both readable and informative copy across publications.
The CITYNET newsletter began a slow process of redesign in order to create a shorter, easier to read
newsletter that can be opened on even the slowest internet connection. The majority of newsletter
text is now hosted on the website (www.citynet-ap.org) with a brief and attractive summary that
includes all relevant facts. This enables readers to quickly skim and gather information, while still
being able to click through for further information and materials.
The CITYNET Korean Promotional Booklet was created to raise awareness of the CITYNET
Secretariat’s move to Seoul and reach out to Korean cities, organizations, and companies. The
booklet was distributed to more than 100 divisions of SMG and mailed out to over 20 Korean cities.
This was one part of a dedicated effort to raise CITYNET’s profile in Korea, and connect with key host
city and country entities.
Website
One main goal in 2013 was to improve the look and user experience of www.citynet-ap.org. After
analyzing the 2012 website design and architecture, it was obvious there were many barriers to
efficiently access information across the site. Most information was buried under several layers of
interface, and there was a lack of images attract users to stay on the site. Additionally, due to high
10F,Seoul Global Center 38 Jongno, Jongno-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea
TEL:(82-2)723-0634 FAX:(82-2)-723-0640 E-mail:info@citynet-ap.org http://citynetcongress.org
staff turnover, information on how to manage and update the 2012 website had been lost and had to
be recreated ad hoc.
With input from both the former secretariat in Yokohama and the Seoul secretariat, a new website
design was finalized in early May 2013. With a focus on ease of use, and space to display both
member-created and secretariat-produced content, the new design features an attractive rotating
banner and easy-to-access navigation bar. After extensive re-writing, editing, and reconstruction, the
information architecture was finalized in early July 2013. The goal was to reduce the time that a user
would have to spend searching for information and instead to have every bit of content available
within 3 clicks from the front page. In late July 2013, the new website went live.
The 2013 website has seen a 300% jump in users, from an average of 1135 per month to 3804 after
the new website has launched. Users also stay on the website for an average of 2 more minutes
when compared to the previous design. Content is easily accessible, and because the website is
based on a Wordpress platform, it is easy for any relatively web-savvy person to update and manage
design and architectural features.
Figure 1: www.citynet-ap.org homepage screenshot
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TEL:(82-2)723-0634 FAX:(82-2)-723-0640 E-mail:info@citynet-ap.org http://citynetcongress.org
Figure 2: Website Views 2013
Social Media
At the beginning of 2013, CITYNET had a presence across Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and the
CityNet Members Blog. As of September 4th, 2013, these channels have seen the following growth:
 Twitter Followers: 272 – 423
 Facebook Followers: 20 – 246
 YouTube Views: 545 – 946
 CITYNET Blog Views: 183 per month – 1078 per month
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TEL:(82-2)723-0634 FAX:(82-2)-723-0640 E-mail:info@citynet-ap.org http://citynetcongress.org
By investing some brief time and effort into social media outreach, there was a huge return in social
media growth. CITYNET redesigned its Twitter background, Facebook page, and blog to better reflect
the network’s values and aesthetic.
By implementing a regular Facebook quiz question, connecting with partners and like-minded
organizations across Twitter, and exploring new ideas in the CITYNET blog, CITYNET has raised the
profile of the organization with a new range of urban stakeholders. CITYNET is now reflecting a
modern and multi-faceted approach, with a range of sophisticated ways to communicate with
members and potential members alike.
Data Management
By the end of 2012, the CITYNET Secretariat and the Seoul Metropolitan Government support team
had agreed that in order to efficiently manage CITYNET member data it was necessary to purchase a
Customer Relations Managment (CRM) System. After testing several different programs, researching
best practices, and attending workshops, the Secretariat decided to purchase Salesforce, a leading
CRM system.
The Operations and Partner Development team have attended workshops, and tested Salesforce
throughout 2013. As part of the Pre-Congress preparations, the Operations and Partner Development
team have been collecting updated contact information from all members and partners, and
identifying primary contact points for each member city and organization.
Post-Congress, this new information will be uploaded into the Salesforce system which will then
become the Secretariat’s primary data hub. Prior to Congress, accurate and efficient communication
with CITYNET members is of the highest priority, thus the Secretariat will wait until after Congress to
switch over to daily use of the new Salesforce system.
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TEL:(82-2)723-0634 FAX:(82-2)-723-0640 E-mail:info@citynet-ap.org http://citynetcongress.org
Partnership Development
Developing partnerships and cultivating relationships with members are one of the most essential
works at CITYNET as it serves as a platform for members to network among themselves and with
partner organizations. With the support from International Relations Division at the Seoul Metropolitan
Government, the Secretariat has met delegations from Hanoi, Bangkok, Lyon, Ulaanbaatar, Sidoarjo
and Hue and city officials from Jakrta, Taipei, Phnom Penh, and many others for various training
workshops and a graduate program sponsored by the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Major two
institutions for such trainings are the Seoul’s Human Resource Development Center and the
University of Seoul. The Secretariat has developed partnerships with the two institutions so that new
trainees mostly from CITYNET member cities would come and meet with the Secretariat staff.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government is well known for its excellent transportation system among many
other best practices and various institutions in Korea invite foreign government officials to see Seoul’s
transportation system and meet with the Seoul Metropolitan Government. In such cases, the Seoul
Metropolitan Government invites the Secretariat to present what CITYNET is and how it can serve for
their benefits. In such collaboration with the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the Secretariat had an
opportunity of presenting to many groups including 100 Indian IAS officers. Collaboration with the
Seoul Metropolitan Government extends beyond member cities to partner organizations that visit the
Seoul Metropolitan Government. Among those are the World Bank, Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations, UNISDR, Metropolis, KOICA and ICLEI. With the Seoul
Metropolitan Government’s strong support, CITYNET is expected to further cultivate relationships with
members and develop and renew partnership with growing number of organizations.
One of the biggest challenges at the relocated Secretariat was potential discountinuance of
relationships with partner organizations as all the staff with senority left the Secretariat. Despite the
evident challenges, the Secretariat has turned it around to rekindle and develop new partnerships for
the 2013 CITYNET Seoul Congress. At the Opening Ceremony of the relocated Secretariat in March,
the Secretariat had a contact of one partner organization – UNESCAP – and as of September 11th
the Secretariat corresponds with sixteen partner organizations that will organize or participate in the
Congress. New partners that stand out among them are the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 resilient
cities program and Microsoft’s CityNext on resilient cities.
UNESCAP
UNISDR
UNDP Seoul Policy Centre
UNHABITAT
UNESCAP organizes Solid Waste
Management, Pro-poor Urban Climate
Resilience, and Sustainable Planning for
Low Carbon Eco-City Development.
UNISDR shares regional progress and
practices to connect cities to the new post2015
Hyogo
Framework
(HFA2).
Regarding this new framework UNISDR
Asia Pacific Office is Calling for
Expressions of Interest for Contributions
to document the achievements and
learning of the implementation of the
Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA1) in
Asia Pacific.
UNDP
supports women’s
economic
empowerment and
gender
equality.
Furthermore UNDP seeks to construct a
future development framework, built on
lessons learned from working toward
achieving the MDGs.
UN-HABITAT’s Safer Cities Programme
aims to equip local authorities and urban
stakeholders to deliver urban safety by
preventing urban crime and enhancing
urban safety strategies.
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TEL:(82-2)723-0634 FAX:(82-2)-723-0640 E-mail:info@citynet-ap.org http://citynetcongress.org
The Korea Transport Institute
The Seoul Institute
Clean Air Asia
GIZ
The Rockefeller Foundation
Mircrosoft CityNext
WBCSD
World Bank
CDIA
The Korea Transport Institute (KOTI), one
of the leading transport research
institutions, provides recommendations
and alternatives for the nation's transport
policy. Specializing in sustainable urban
transport KOTI shares its knowledge on
some of the best practices in public transit
in Korea.
The Seoul Institute organizes a parelle
session to share Seoul’s best practices on
transportation, waterworks, e-governance
and railway.
Clear Air Asia seeks to equip decisionmakers with knowledge and
information on Air Quality Management in
smaller cities, so as to make informed
decisions
when
planning
city
development
and
measuring
environmental impact of
policy decisions.
GIZ supports Clear Air Asia with the
implementation of the Clean Air
Action Plans.
The Rockefeller Foundation’s 100
Resilient Cities programme will provide a
select 100 cities with access to technical
expertice and resources to create and
implement resilience strategies on a citywide scale.
Microsoft’s CityNext is a global initiative
intended to build smart cities which
engages
citizens,
business
and
government leaders in new ways by
providing access to a broad portfolio of
products and technologies, a global
network of partners, and multiple
successful
education
and
social
programs.
The Urban Infrastructure Initiative by
WBCSD aims for a world where cities
provide a sustainable environment for
people. This CEO-led organization of
forward thinking companies aspires this
program to engage cities to implement
more effective and affordable solutions to
support urban and infrastructure planning.
The soon-to-be-opened World Bank
Group Office in Korea will function as
Korea’s World Bank representative and
focus on infrastructure and knowledge
sharing to provide a platform for members
to work together.
Cities Development Initiative for Asia
(CDIA) supports urban governments on
the Asia-Pacific region to promote more
sustainable
and
equitable
urban
development plans, and infrastructure
investment programs to implement in
existing city development strategies. The
goal is to improve environmental and
living conditions in Asian cities.
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TEL:(82-2)723-0634 FAX:(82-2)-723-0640 E-mail:info@citynet-ap.org http://citynetcongress.org
Center for Liveable Cities
The Centre for Livable Cities (CLC) aims
to distil, create and share knowledge from
Singapore’s experiences over the last
half-century on livable and sustainable
cities. By exchanging knowledge with
other cities and experts, CLC creates
learning points and knowledge to address
emerging challenges.
Conclusion
The CITYNET Secretariat underwent many changes in 2013, and Communications changed and grew
with the Secretariat. Building off the momentum of the Opening Ceremony in March, the CITYNET
Partner Development department has developed clear goals and strategies to help reach both members
and potential members more effectively. In the future, through listening to members needs, Secretariat
communications will continue to improve the methods and strategies used to deliver and collect
information among the network.
6. 2013 CITYNET Secretariat Decentralization Activities
6.1 Introduction
After the relocation of the CITYNET Secretariat in early 2013, the Secretariat has sought to connect
and work with the National Chapters, Satellite Officse, and Makati Foundation. By introducing new
team members, soliciting reports and information, and holding discussions, the new Secretariat has
worked to create strong connections with all other CITYNET entities.
6.2 2013 Major Activities
8th National Chapter Skype Meeting: February 7, 2013
This meeting was held with the Yokohama Secretariat as they prepared to relocate CITYNET. Key
topics discussed included funding for National Chapters, drafting business plans, and project
proposals.
9th National Chapter Skype Meeting: June 4, 2013
The new Secretariat staff introduced themselves to the National Chapter representatives and
discussed the current status and way forward for National Chapters. Key topics included increasing
communication between Secretariat and NC’s, submission of a general status report from NCs,
project proposals, and the budget.
6.2 Plans for the Future
The CITYNET Secretariat plans to build upon the strong foundation already established by the
Yokohama Secretariat to explore ways to further support National Chapters. The Secretariat will seek
to hold regular Skype meetings and email exchanges, to seek input from the National Chapter
representatives.
7. Conclusion
This report of the activities and programs for the first 10 months of 2013 was compiled by the Secretariat.
Major activities included relocating to Seoul, Republic of Korea, the Opening Ceremony of the
Secretariat, and preparations for Congress. Please refer to all Annexes and the related detailed agenda
papers for further details. The Secretariat highly appreciates members’ contributions and active
participation in the Network’s activities.