27 February 2023 – On February 22nd, GPM Chair Peter Kurz (Mannheim, Germany) presented the recent progress of the Urban7 at the Annual Meeting of the Global Taskforce in Barcelona. The Urban7, a strong alliance comprising the national city networks of the G7 members, and supported by ICLEI and the Global Parliament of Mayors (which make up the Urban7 Secretariat), brings mayors from across the G7 and around the world together with a common vision for the involvement of cities in the G7 process.
At the meeting, Mayor Kurz highlighted that recent successes of the Urban7 in 2022, including the recognition of the role of cities and the messages of the Urban7 in G7 communiqués and statements. Furthermore, he described how the U7 helped set the agenda for the G7 Ministers Meeting for Sustainable Urban Development, and how, at this meeting, cities had a seat at the table in the G7 process for the first time.
The Urban7 is continuing to build on this momentum as Japan takes on the G7 Presidency in 2023. Mayor Kurz will attend the U7 Mayors Summit 2023, which is taking place in Tokyo on March 2nd. The Urban7 has prepared the 2023 U7 Mayors Declaration, which will be published on March 2nd and presented to the Japanese Minister of Environment and the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. For more information on the U7, please click here.
The Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments is a coordination and consultation mechanism that brings together the major international networks of local governments to undertake joint advocacy work relating to global policy processes. The Global Parliament of Mayors is member of the Global Taskforce.
