First IMAGINE labelled seminar takes place in Figueras
By
Miriam Eisermann on 17 June 2010
There it was again, this IMAGINE spirit: 50 people from the political, academic, private and public world discussing about their vision of the desirable city. This time, though, the creative meeting took place in, and was organized by our member city Figueras, in the North of Spain, in collaboration of Energy Cities and the DeMontfort University in Leicester.
It was the first local event to be labelled IMAGINE and to take place outside of Arc-et-Senans, France. But just like at the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, past, present and future were closey linked as the visionary debates and ideas around future cities emerged within the walls of the Figueras fortress, a place full of history.
During the meeting, a number of issues revealed crucial to build a city with low energy consumption and high quality of life. Here is a short list of what the participants would not want to miss in their city in 2060:
- Use of local resources
- Multi-activity/flexibility of the territory
- The need for participation/governance
- The independence of citizens (by respecting their rights and obligations)
- A close relationship between the different levels (territory/region, public/individual)
- Sustainable mobility between living place and work place
For Richard Elelman, Councillor of Figueras, this highly participative two-days event, has been a great opportunity for the city to start a local multi-stakeholder visionary process in order to address energy and territory issues.
The city of Figueras and DeMontfort University also expressed their will to enhance cooperation in the future on the basis of knowledge transfer and training for local authority representatives (elected bodies and staff).
Now, which private or public stakeholder is next to host an IMAGINE labelled event?
The IMAGINE platform
To be "IMAGINE" labelled, an event must meet several criteria, amongst which the coverage of three topics:
1 - Address energy issues (including their relation with climate issues)
2 - Integrate the territorial dimension of energy
3 - Link the concept of low-energy cities with a high quality of life for all
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