Belgian EU Presidency 2024 
17th European Week of Regions and Cities
From 7 until 10 October 2019, the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO) and the European Committee of the Regions organised the 17th European Week of Regions and Cities, or #EURegionsWeek, in Brussels. The key slogan for this event was the development of a strong cohesion policy for the future. As the host region for this event, the Brussels-Capital Region (BCR) participated in several conferences and events.
Sustainable urban development, a global challenge
Pascal Smet, the State Secretary of the Brussels-Capital Region, responsible for European and International Relations, was invited to give a presentation during a conference on “Sustainable Urban Development in a global perspective: what can the EU offer?”. Starting from the premise that sustainability has become a Europe-wide priority, the conference discussed how the EU cities’ stakeholders may foster more sustainable urbanisation in the EU’s partner countries.
Mobility and public transport
Martin Lefrancq, the coordinator of Brussels Smart Mobility within Brussels Mobility, participated in a session on “The integration of the new mobility services in public transport” and the challenges this creates in terms of regulation, urban space management and their smooth integration with other transport modes.
Citizens, the key players in Brussels Smart City
Céline Vanderorght, who is responsible for Brussels Smart City at the Brussels Regional Informatics Centre (BRIC), took part in a seminar on “Societal challenges in smart cities: towards a more ethical smart city”. She paid special attention to the implication of citizens in Brussels smart city projects.
Towards shorter and more sustainable food chains
Journalists from all over Europe visited several ERDF projects that were developed to forge a greener Europe. The organisation BoerenBruxselPaysans wants to facilitate the transition of the Brussels-Capital Region to shorter and more sustainable food chains. This vast pilot project, which is based in Anderlecht, oversees the production, processing and sale of locally-grown fruits, aromatic plants and vegetables. The Graines de Paysans pilot site makes available land, where small-scale production is currently being tested. The Maison verte et bleue organises events on biodiversity and sustainable food, while the Ferme du Chaudron is developing a centre for sustainable food. The entire initiative is part of the Brussels Good Food strategy, which consists of a set of measures to ensure that 30% of all fruit and vegetables for the Brussels population are grown locally by 2035.
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