From Los Angeles to Denver: Global Challenges, Local Solutions
This event will be held in Spanish, English, and Portuguese with simultaneous interpretation.
The Inter-American Dialogue and CAF- Development Bank of Latin America are pleased to host “From Los Angeles to Denver: Global Challenges, Local Solutions,” an official side event of the inaugural Cities Summit of the Americas in Denver, Colorado. The series will build upon the successful Mayors Summit at the IX Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles. Participants will discuss successful subnational approaches to critical issues in two unique sessions.
Session #1: Latin American and Caribbean Network of BiodiverCities
Eighty-one percent of the Latin American and Caribbean population lives in cities, and the region accounts for 60 percent of the planet’s biodiversity. This combination presents an important opportunity for sustainable urban development based on natural capital, but also entails significant responsibility in the management and protection of these resources. The process of increased urbanization in the Americas has been one of the main drivers of biodiversity loss – it is estimated that up to 44 percent of the regional GDP is at risk due to this reality. Understanding this challenge, Latin America and the Caribbean have been leading many initiatives that seek to reverse this loss. BiodiverCities are cities that seek to restore the balance between urban planning and nature by increasing green infrastructure, improving governance schemes to promote nature-based solutions, generating positive links between the rural and the urban for improved biodiversity conservation, prioritizing circular economy models, and promoting these values among citizens.
Session #2: Women’s Economic Empowerment & the Digital Transformation
Over the next decade, productivity gains from adopting digital technologies are projected to generate 70 percent of new value creation in the global economy. Despite calls for an inclusive economic recovery, women across the hemisphere are being left behind, in large part due to limited access to the digital economy. Mayors and other local leaders have demonstrated that they are uniquely positioned to transform a structure of discrimination and exclusion into one that empowers women. As key players in the digital transformation, local decision-makers across the hemisphere are moving key city and social services online, combatting predatory online practices, and implementing creative online programs for financial inclusion. Subnational actors are leading on digital capacity building programs to increase women’s workforce marketability and create a foundation for online entrepreneurship. Cities are also directly providing equipment and broadband services to their citizens, increasing internet access for the most marginalized.
TENTATIVE AGENDA
8:00 AM – 8:15 AM |
Opening Remarks |
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8:15 AM – 9:45 AM |
Latin American and Caribbean Network of BiodiverCities |
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10:00 AM – 11:30 AM |
Women’s Economic Empowerment & the Digital Transformation |
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