Martin Dubbeling, President of ISOCARP

"Nationwide energy infrastructures on sustainable energy will change the way we use, build, plan and design our landscapes and cities. Wind parks, solar fields and electric and thermal storage facilities will have an impact on land use in and around cities. Regional planners, landscape architects and urban designers play a crucial role in leading the way towards revisioning and recreating our landscapes and cities."


"Post-Oil City, Planning for Urban Green Deals", the 56th ISOCARP Virtual World Planning Congress, invites urban and regional planners, landscape architects, developers, politicians and NGOs to meet and discuss the future of the resiliency of our cities and the Urban Green Deals that will help us make cities more resilient. We, as city planners, place makers, urban strategists have a profound responsibility to plan and to redevelop cities and metropolises to become more liveable, inclusive and sustainable places to live, to thrive and to prosper.

ISOCARP is a worldwide members-led network association of urban and regional planners. Every year our members of the extensive ISOCARP network meet at our annual congress. We arrange a wide array of activities for and with our members such as publications, workshops, awards, and training programmes. This learning network is the greatest asset of ISOCARP. Our members meet, connect, get to know each other, learn from each other and support each other with ideas and through the exchange of knowledge and experience.

I look forward to explore the challenges and opportunities our first fully Virtual World Planning Congress. The theme of the Congress – Post-Oil City: Planning for Urban Green Deals – is very timely, as the challenge of reducing dependency on fossil fuels and working for a sustainable future is inevitable. I am convinced that this virtual congress will be an excellent continuation of our two recent and very successful congresses "Beyond Metropolis" in Jakarta (2019) and "Cool Planning" in Bodø (2018). I have high hopes that our congress will become an upbeat towards Urban Green Deals and our next generation of cities. 

ISOCARP congresses are the meeting place of all planning professionals working for regions and cities, for local and international consultancies and institutions and in the academia and research institutes. Therefore, ISOCARP welcomes your interest, contributions and commitment to "Knowledge for Better Cities". I look forward meeting you in our events and congresses and I cordially recommend our excellent our annual publication, Review 16, on Post-Oil Cities.

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