Waterfront Alliance Conference

Join Terreform's Michael Sorkin and Maria Torres-Springer, President and CEO of NYC Economic Development Corporation aboard the Hornblower Infinity on May 12, 2016 as they lead the keynote conversation: "How do we define--and deliver--equity at the waterfront?" for Waterfront Alliance's 2016 Waterfront Conference. This year's conference will provide a platform to debate the future of New York's metropolitan waterfronts and the challenges of defining and delivering equitable access to jobs, education, transportation, and recreation at the water's edge.

For more details about the conference, check out Waterfront Alliance's events page.

American Academy in China Announces Inaugural Research Fellow

Michael Sorkin was selected as an inaugural research fellow with the American Academy in China (AAC), University of Southern California, School of Architecture. Upon the announcement, AAC's director, Clifford Pearson remarked: “As a writer and critic, Michael has often challenged established perspectives, offering a penetrating and often witty take on what is really happening in architecture and design. And as an architect, he is fully engaged with the realities of building in China.”

Sorkin's project titled "Made for China" begins this summer with an introspective look at his firm's work in China and a search for an "urbanism with Chinese characteristics." The research will also analyze the work of other architects from the west working in China and the interactions with local regulations and stakeholders.

For more about the fellowship and ACC, check out The Architects Newspaper article here.

Key Messages for the “New Urban Agenda”

"By 2050, 70 percent of the world’s population will live in urban areas. Rapid urbanization is producing new contexts through which violence and conflict operate and it is critical to understand these complex dynamics. Urban settings have characteristics, which require effective, context- specific approaches. Violence and conflict in urban areas can involve different kinds of violence and can be driven by diverse vectors such as political, socio-economic, institutional and environmental. The event aimed to enhance our understanding of the nexus between urbanization, violence, and conflict in fragile settings. The following key messages emanated from the event and should be given consideration in the discussion on the New Urban Agenda." 

Key messages here. Also, Hanne Kristoffersen, Local Governace Specialist of UNDP, wrote an article on Leaving No One and No City Behind, reflecting on one of the UN's sustainable development goal.

Transcript: Opening Remarks by Deen Sharp

The Nexus of Urbanization, Violence and Conflict: Linking SDG 11 and SDG 16 was organized by the Permanent Missions of Lebanon and Norway to the UN, City College of New York - CUNY, UNDP, UN-Habitat, and the International Rescue Committee (IRC), in coordination with the Global Alliance for Urban Crises.