This publication looks back on all that has been accomplished during the IUC programme, with a focus on presenting best practices from across IUC regions that showcase how city-to-city and region-to-region cooperation can be used to foster and support sustainable urban development and the localisation of global goals.

Throughout its long history of taking climate action, the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) has continually cooperated with global community of experts and likeminded local governments for support, knowledge, and to learn about new solutions that can be successfully adapted to their local context.

This case study has been prepared to reflect the collaborative work that Kochi (India) has been doing with Vilnius (Lithuania) as part of their IUC programme pairing. Kochi and Vilnius have chosen to focus on solid waste management as a topic of mutual interest. They have been diligently working on addressing this topic for the overall improvement in the level of service deliveries in each city.

The report summarizes the key activities during the five-day visit to Vilnius, Lithuania by a delegation from the Indian city of Kochi. The report provides a useful overview of the processes, best practices, and lessons learned in relation to solid waste management, urban mobility, water supply and wastewater, and urban development. Roles and responsibilities, technologies, partnership options and future plans were also elaborated. The visit provided the opportunity to select the topic of cooperation between the two cities (i.e., solid waste management).

This case study focuses upon the challenges and opportunities in front of Gwalior with regards to the conservation of privately-owned heritage buildings in the city. There are a number of policies concerning public and government buildings, but privately-owned heritage buildings have been neglected for a considerable time. This case study attempts to address some of the challenges by way of exchange of best practices between Gwalior and the Belgian City of Leuven in the area of heritage conservation.

With an intent to strengthen resilience building in urban India, the National Institute of Urban Affairs in partnership with a number of organizations and projects, such as IUC-India, organized the Urban Thinkers Campus – ‘The Resilient City We Need’ in New Delhi on the 25th and 26th September 2019. The Campus was part of the series of events being organized across the globe as part of the World Urban Campaign by UN Habitat in the run-up to the World Urban Forum in 2020 in Abu Dhabi. The 2-day campus was conducted as a mix of urban labs and policy discussions on various thematic areas related to building urban resilience, including:  Mainstreaming urban resilience strategies.  Strengthening capacities  Data-driven governance  Fostering engagements and partnerships

This case study summarises the journey of Nagpur and Karlsruhe as part of their participation in the IUC program. The case study examines the baseline scenario with regards to urban mobility in cities as well as Public Bike Sharing (PBS) as a potential solution. The feasibility, implementation and direct/indirect benefits of PBS are being elaborated.

A series of three Policy Dialogues on ‘Making Liveable Cities: Challenges and Way Forward for India’ was organized by TERI in Panaji, Vijayawada and Gangtok with support from the Royal Embassy of Denmark and the International Urban Cooperation (IUC) programme of the European Union, for identifying ways and means to shape a ‘people-centric’ sustainable urbanization process in India. This was in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and India’s Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), in the 4000+ Mission cities and beyond. Through a review of the urban policy and institutional frameworks in different states and focused group discussions and activities, the Policy Dialogues invited inputs from various stakeholders working in the ‘urban’ domain, including Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) and Smart City Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs). With more than 150 policymakers, planners, practitioners, and academicians participating and contributing, the Dialogues identified key challenges and enablers for enhancing liveability of Indian cities. A National Workshop in October, 2018, in New Delhi was the concluding and culmination event of the Regional Policy Dialogues series. The Policy Brief and the Proceedings are the outcomes of the Policy Dialogues. They provide information about key recommendations on urban planning frameworks, strengthening local urban governance, financing and implementation mechanisms, urban innovation, and strengthening partnerships; with a view to contribute to the National Urbanization Policy.

The three presentations were made by JRC experts as part of the one-week technical visit on climate change and sustainable urbanization by the Indian delegation from the State of Gujarat, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and a number of cities. The presentations are relevant to cities across the world and focus on:  Sustainable Energy & Climate Action Plan (SECAP) Principles and Guidelines  Climate Change Mitigation  Energy access

Rotterdam and Surat were officially paired as part of the IUC programme in 2017, but have been collaborating since 2015 within the 100 Resilient Cities network. Both cities have a resilience strategy in which resilient water management and climate resilience are a priority. The cities are focusing their IUC partnership on tackling issues related to water management, such as improving the quality of drinking water, mitigating water pollution from industrial and agricultural run-off, protecting against flooding, and effectively treating sewage.