The sustainable development of cities goes through cooperative work with interested parties

Pepa P. Veleva, co-founder and member of the team of the Foundation, has become part of a working group for a project which supports the cooperation and exchange of know-how between cities.

The municipality of Veliki Preslav is participating in an international project called “Global Goals for Cities – Cooperation for Sustainable Development of European Cities“. The city of Tallinn, Estonia, is going to lead the newly created network of 19 European cities whose goal is to meet the UN’s local sustainable development goals.

According to Tallinn’s mayor Michael Calvart, long-term plans must take into account UN’s sustainable development goals, which aim to keep a balance between human well-being and the protection of natural resources. “These goals provide a good basis for balanced urban development that can ensure the well-being of residents and the protection of natural resources. It is an honor for Tallinn to be chosen as the leading partner of this network. “

The strategic partnership project named “Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals in Cities – Global Goals for Cities” also contributes towards achieving the goals of the EU’s Green Deal by supporting sustainable urban development. Europe’s goal is to become a climate-neutral continent by 2050, which means that it will not produce more greenhouse gases than the ecosystem can release.

The partnership is funded through The European Territorial Cooperation Program URBACT III of the European Regional Development Fund which aims to support cooperation and exchange of know-how between cities.

The representatives of the 19 cities participating in the pilot network have already started working online. The project. which has already started being implemented (from March this year till the end of 2022), aims to establish local working groups in each partner city which would bring together experts from the municipal administrations and from elsewhere. When planning the implementation of the sustainable development goals, the working groups will analyze shared experiences and examples about good urban practices of the cities involved in the project. These cities will also participate in the development of an action plan to meet the sustainable development goals locally. The processes will make use of the principle about the participation of interest parties and the application of joint creative methods.

The project includes cities such as Braga (Portugal), Bratislava (Slovakia), Dzierżoniów (Poland), Glasgow (UK), Gävle (Sweden), Heraklion (Greece), Jihlava (Czech Republic), Klaipeda (Lithuania), La Rochelle (France), Manresa (Spain), Mouscron (Belgium), Ozalj (Croatia), Reggio Emilia (Italy), Schiedam (Netherlands), Solingen (Germany), Tallinn (Estonia), Veliki Preslav (Bulgaria), Veszprém (Hungary) and Trim (Ireland).

Speaking generally, the purpose of sustainable development includes eradicating global poverty, guaranteeing an honorable existence, ensuring a good quality of life, while also preserving natural resources and the environment for future generations.

The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 are divided into three main categories: humanity, environment and economy. The focus falls on poverty eradication, gender equality, clean waters, climate change, sustainable cities, energy sustainability, economic growth and work employment.