1st General Assembly of the Global Cities Dialogue
on 19 - 20 October 2000 in Sophia-Antipolis

Cities and their political executives world-wide have realised that the accelerating development of a Global Information Society calls for new ways of international collaboration and in particular for dialogue. As a result the Global Cities Dialogue [GCD] was launched as an open and collective framework - initiative of cities - , represented by their Mayors and high political representatives. The GCD provides a platform for policy debate and action based on the principles and commitments of the Helsinki Declaration “Mayors of the World for a Global Cities Dialogue on the Information Society”. It follows the premise that the development of the Information Society should be for the benefit of all the citizens, communities, and peoples of the world, regardless of race, social position, creed, gender or age.

The GCD was officially launched in Helsinki with the signing of the Helsinki Declaration. A second milestone for consolidating its steering structure was achieved on 2 June 2000 with the adoption of the GCD Constitution in Bremen. The last step in the process of institutionalisation has been finalised during the first General Assembly that took place on 20 October 2000 in Sophia-Antipolis: over 32 cities from 23 countries met together to nominate the first Steering Committee and to welcome new signatory cities: Agdal Ryad (Morocco), Bogota (Columbia), Carini (Italy), Marly-le-Roi and Valbonne (France), and Victoria (Australia).

The Steering Committee is composed of the Chair city, Issy-les-Moulineaux, the Vice-chair cities, Bremen and Stockholm, with the special role to assist the chair city in this new phase and a core group of cities having in one hand the responsibility of taking a leading role for disseminating the philosophy and activities of GCD in the major regions of the world and on the other hand of leading action on specific strategic issues of particular relevance for the GCD.

The following cities will take a leading role for their respective regions: Belo Horizonte and Buenos Aires for South America, Seattle for North America, Bamako for Sub-Saharan Africa, Kiev for the Confederation of Independent States (CIS), Hradec Kralove and Riga for Eastern Europe, Vadodara for Central Asia and Melbourne for South East Asia and Oceania.

The GCD-cities responsible for specific strategic issues are: Antwerp, Bologna, Helsinki, Cologne, London Lewisham, Newcastle, Rome, Ronneby and Siena.

The second General Assembly of the Global Cities Dialogue will be held in Melbourne, State of Victoria in Australia in Autumn 2001. All cities of the World are invited to participate in the GCD, and to disseminate its philosophy, described in the Helsinki Declaration and in its Constitution. Further information on the GCD, its objectives, commitments, agenda and specific events is available on the web at www.globalcitiesdialogue.org

Agenda