Featured Publications

"cities are emerging as influential actors in global governance, with the impacts of their internal transformation often extending beyond their territorial boundaries. Although this potential agency is increasingly recognized—leading to calls for stewardship and transformations in cities—the literature has predominantly focused on agents within cities, rather than the agency of cities themselves."

"In summary, although China’s urbanization is expected to continue over the coming decade, the era of rapid, visually striking transformation that characterized recent decades may be nearing its end. What lies ahead is the imperative for a deeper, more comprehensive shift—one that engages with the structural, social, and environmental complexities of urban development. "

“We expect that upscaled efforts regarding proactive influencing and collaboration among key cities and companies will motivate greater action across many others with positive cascading effects at the national and international levels globally."

"Achieving deeper and more meaningful intercity cooperation requires altruistic cities—cities that can act with genuine altruistic intent, willing to reach out and help others even in the absence of immediate reward, with the knowledge that once they take the lead, others are likely to follow suit. These cities need to be identified, encouraged, and supported."

"The galvanizing power of positive goal setting should never be underestimated. Political will is the key—once the UN organizations and country leaders land the targets, businesses and cities may respond strongly."