Thursday, 31 March 2016

"Getting it right in cities depends on good city-level data." says McCarney

   
Having recently joined the Editorial Board of Cities Today - the go-to global publication on sustainable urban development - WCCD President and CEO Patricia McCarney sat down with US Editor Tom Teodorczuk to discuss why standardized city data is so important in developing the prosperous, sustainable, resilient, and smart cities of tomorrow. The full interview can be read here.

Thursday, 24 March 2016

U of T urban experts on federal budget: a key moment to reinvest in this next generation infrastructure

   
U of T’s Global Cities Institute  and its sister organization the World Council on City Data, both led by Professor Patricia McCarney, have been actively collecting data which can be used to compare Toronto to urban centres around the world. McCarney spoke to U of T News about how standardized data gathered and analyzed by her and other experts at WCCD can actually help city officials better plan what infrastructure projects deserve the most dollars. 

Tuesday, 19 January 2016

World Council on City Data welcomes City of Vaughan – city receives ISO 37120 platinum certification

   

Today, during a City of Vaughan Council meeting, World Council on City Data (WCCD) President and CEO Dr. Patricia McCarney officially welcomed Vaughan to the WCCD and presented Mayor Maurizio Bevilacqua with ISO 37120 platinum certification. 


Today Vaughan joins the World Council on City Data and an important global network of leading cities dedicated to sustainability and citizen quality of life supported by high caliber, standardized city data.  The WCCD network includes leading global cities such as, London, Los Angeles, Boston, Melbourne, Rotterdam, Barcelona and Dubai.



According to Mayor Maurizio Bevilacqua: “Vaughan is leading the way in Canada and abroad as it reaches new heights in international recognition. My vision for Vaughan has always been clear – to build a city where people can live happy, healthy and fulfilling lives. As a member of the Global Cities Indicators Facility International Advisory Board – the organization that built this first ISO Standard for cities – I championed the importance and value of being part of this global initiative because it provides Vaughan with the opportunity to collaborate with and learn from more than 250 cities worldwide. Achieving ISO platinum certification by the World Council on City Data demonstrates our commitment to building a world-class city as we are one of two cities representing Canada on a global scale. This is a great opportunity to have first-hand access to a global knowledge hub and be among the most innovative cities in the world as we take Vaughan to the next level.”



Established in 2014, the WCCD is operationalising ISO 37120 across cities globally – the first international standard for indicators on city services and quality of life. With 100 indicators, across 17 themes supporting city services and quality of life, ISO 37120 data drives data informed decision-making and comparative learning across cities. The data is accessible through the WCCD Open City Data Portal which allows for cutting-edge visualisations and comparisons.



“Through the leadership of Mayor Bevilacqua, the City of Vaughan has become a model global city, demonstrating the importance of city data in planning for sustainability and prosperity, and harnessing open data for innovation. Mayor Bevilacqua has been instrumental in the development of this first ISO Standard for cities and he remains a strong advocate for standardized data if cities are to be built to ensure more sustainable and prosperous futures.  The WCCD is extremely pleased to welcome Vaughan as a WCCD ISO 37120 Certified Platinum city,” stated Dr. McCarney.



In addition to the WCCD Cities, the WCCD has agreements in place with the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and UNISDR, the United Nations organization dedicated to disaster risk reduction, ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability and several national governments that will bring 100 new cities onto the WCCD Open City Data Platform in the coming months, see them certified as WCCD ISO 37120 cities, and discuss comparative knowledge and city innovations at the upcoming Global Cities Summit in Dubai in December 2016.



For further enquiries, please contact:

James Patava
+14169662368
“The World Council on City Data: Created by Cities, for Cities”
Twitter: @WCCityData 

Notes to editors: 

The certified WCCD Cities include: Amsterdam, Amman, Barcelona, Bogota, Boston, Buenos Aires, Dubai, Guadalajara, Haiphong, Helsinki, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Makati, Makkah, Minna, Melbourne, Rotterdam, Shanghai, and Toronto and Vaughan.

The World Council on City Data (WCCD) coordinates all efforts on open city data to ensure a consistent and comprehensive platform for standardized urban metrics. As a global leader on standardized indicators, the WCCD is also leading the efforts on global implementation of ISO 37120 – the first international standard on sustainable cities.

The WCCD has created the first certification system and Global Cities Registry™ for ISO 37120.  WCCD Certification and Registration for ISO 37120 enables cities to participate in the WCCD Open Data Portal for comparative data analytics and informed decision making.

The WCCD is a global hub for creative learning partnerships across cities, international organizations, corporate partners, and academia to further innovation, envision alternative futures, and build better and more livable cities. 

Thursday, 10 December 2015

World Council on City Data Statement on Climate Change Mitigation

   
The World Council on City Data (WCCD) has been closely following the events at the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP21) in Paris. Moreover, with a new pledge between major global cities to be delivered to the United Nations Secretary-General, the WCCD wholeheartedly supports this development and underlines the importance of standardized city data in setting goals and targets for the future and in monitoring and measuring progress towards those commitments. As a signatory to the Lima-Paris Action Agenda (LPAA) forthcoming “Paris Action Statement”, the WCCD fully supports city-led climate change mitigation targets.  

As cities represent about 55% of the global population and are responsible for around 75% of carbon emissions, they are strategically positioned to take effective climate action.  City mayors worldwide are setting ambitious objectives and plans for the reduction of emissions, and taking action on multiple fronts under their responsibility. Many seek to achieve 80% reductions in GHGs by 2050 or even achieve net zero emissions. 

To this end, the WCCD supports city-led initiatives that include:

High caliber city level data driving investment in the future of cities  – specifically the use of ISO   37120, the first international standard for sustainable cities

Targeted infrastructure investment to expand public transportation and create low-carbon mobility         solutions 

The scaling of local renewable energy production and improving energy efficiency in buildings

The expansion and innovation of sustainable waste management practices

Plans to encourage smart, compact growth and limit urban sprawl

Coordination and collaboration with the private sector to support innovative, data driven solutions

The WCCD supports the work of cities worldwide in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, by identifying and disseminating data-driven solutions for cities, and global city learning through the exchange of best practices. As a global leader on standardized urban metrics, the WCCD will continue to work with cities around the world – as well as its international network of partners – to promote a future for cities that is sustainable, resilient, efficient and prosperous. 

The ISO 37120 standard not only supports the reporting of comparable GHG emissions data, but also enables data-based bench-marking and best practice sharing between cities in key climate mitigation and adaptation solution areas. These areas include: energy, transportation, water, waste, urban planning and public health.

The WCCD calls upon all cities to begin taking action on climate change, and re-states its commitment to become the preeminent, global body for standardized city data. This data, will be essential in mitigating the effects of climate change and re-shaping the future of cities (and countries) worldwide. 

Wednesday, 9 December 2015

Beyond COP 21 -- Nations and Cities Aligning for Climate Action

   
This week, national leaders from around the world are in Paris for the COP 21 conference to demonstrate commitment to emissions reduction and a renewed, global commitment to sustainability.
However, there is another group that will have a significant impact on emissions targets, a group that should have a more robust voice in the discussions. That group is cities, says WCCD President and CEO Patricia McCarney.

Tuesday, 8 December 2015

World Council on City Data and Hatch forge global partnership

   
TORONTO, Ontario – December 8, 2015 – The World Council on City Data (WCCD), a world leader in standardized city data and metrics and Hatch, a global engineering and consulting firm with expertise in the infrastructure, mining and metals, and energy sectors, yesterday announced a strategic partnership. As urbanization around the world drives new and established cities to find ways to achieve their social and economic goals more productively, understanding how cities can improve is key.

Hatch and the WCCD will jointly promote the critical role that ISO 37120 -certified city data can play in developing new solutions for planning and infrastructure challenges faced by urban communities in the twenty-first century. The two organizations also will build innovative tools to map and analyze urban trends and associated city responses. 

“High quality standardized data is key to understanding the complex and interconnected challenges facing cities. Once understood, it is possible to identify practical and cost-effective solutions,” said Professor Patricia McCarney, President and CEO of the WCCD and Director of the Global Cities Institute at the University of Toronto. “Hatch, as one of the world’s most respected engineering and consulting firms, is a great partner to drive this data-driven solutions agenda for cities around the world.”

"Together, Hatch and WCCD will provide a combination of practical, useful data and expertise on how cities can use this to meet their goals," said Martin Doble, Hatch’s Global Managing Director of Infrastructure. "In an era of increasing urbanization, this partnership will focus on providing better solutions to some of the toughest challenges facing cities, in ways that allow cities and communities to plan for real improvements and economic prosperity.”

As a WCCD lead partner, Hatch will join the WCCD Global City Leaders Advisory Board, chaired by Senator Art Eggleton, former mayor of Toronto. The WCCD is an initiative originally established in Ontario, Canada, and Hatch is a leading Canadian firm with project experience in more than 150 countries. 

Hatch and the WCCD have already started working together on data analytics, opportunities to optimize infrastructure investment, and growing the network of WCCD ISO-certified cities. Cities in Asia, Europe, North America, South Africa, and Australia are initially targeted as locations where comparable data in such areas as transportation, energy, environment, water, waste and emergency response will contribute to improved city planning and decision-making.


About World Council on City Data (http://www.dataforcities.org)
Established in 2014, the WCCD is operationalizing ISO 37120 across cities globally – the first international standard for indicators on city services and quality of life. With 100 indicators, around 17 themes supporting city services and quality of life, ISO 37120 data is accessible through the WCCD Open City Data Portal which allows for cutting-edge visualizations and comparisons. The World Council on City Data Foundation Cities include: Boston, Toronto, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires, Bogota, Guadalajara, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Helsinki, London, Rotterdam, Barcelona, Minna, Johannesburg, Amman, Makkah, Dubai, Haiphong, Makati, Shanghai, and Melbourne.


About Hatch (www.hatch.ca)
Hatch is an employee-owned, multidisciplinary professional services firm that delivers a comprehensive array of technical and strategic services, including consulting, information technology, engineering, process development, and project and construction management to the mining, metallurgical, energy, and infrastructure sectors. Hatch has served clients for over six decades with corporate roots extending over 100 years. With over 10,000 people in over 65 offices, the firm has more than $35 billion in projects currently under management.


For more information, please contact:

James Patava
Director of Communications, WCCD
Tel: 416-966-2368
Email: james.patava@globalcities.ca

Nancy White
Director of Marketing, Hatch
Tel: 905-491-7585
Email: nwhite@hatch.ca


Tuesday, 3 November 2015