ICLEI
World Congress 2024
Transformando compromissos em ação
Transforming commitments into action
Transformemos compromisos en acción
18-21 June • São Paulo, Brasil
We'll see you in São Paulo!
Introducing the ICLEI World Congress 2024
The ICLEI World Congress 2024, hosted by the City of São Paulo, Brazil, is a pivotal gathering focused on advancing sustainable urban development and equitable adaptation to local and regional challenges. Running from 18 – 21 June, this year’s Congress is a journey of reflection and forward-looking vision, emphasizing the critical challenges and opportunities facing cities, towns, and regions due to rising global risks and changes.
We invite local and regional government representatives, urban practitioners, researchers and stakeholders to join us to exchange with and inspire one another on the best practices in sustainable urban development, brought to life by the City of São Paulo as our 2024 host.
Thanks to the generous support of São Paulo, there is no charge for participation. However, please note that space is limited, and securing your spot through pre-registration is required.
What you can expect
Central themes for 2024 include leveraging ICLEI’s strategic pathways for sustainability, understanding the unique role of regions like Amazonia in global biodiversity and sustainability, and exploring the impact of climate and sustainability at all levels of government. Through high-level plenaries led by international luminaries, site visits to special destinations throughout São Paulo, deep dive interactive workshops, memorable networking opportunities, and an expert-led Research & Innovation Symposium, the ICLEI World Congress 2024 is an action-oriented event that will ensure a space for local and regional government representatives to experience the power of reconnecting on sustainability goals.
Experience firsthand the stories of local and regional leaders who are trailblazers in sustainability within their communities.
ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability
ICLEI engages at the local to global levels, shaping policy and sparking action to transform urban environments worldwide. We build connections across levels of government, sectors and stakeholder groups, sparking city-to-city, city-to-region, local-to-global and local-to-national connections. By linking subnational, national and global actors, policies, commitments and initiatives, ICLEI strengthens action at all levels, in support of sustainable urban development.
At the subnational level, ICLEI drives change along five interconnected pathways that cut across sectors and jurisdictional boundaries. This design enables local and regional governments to develop solutions in a holistic and integrated way, creating change across entire urban systems.
ICLEI’s Five Pathways Towards Sustainable Development
As a compass to direct our actions in a rapidly changing world and to transform our cities, towns and regions, we will drive action through five critical, strategic and interlinked Pathways: Equitable and People-Centered Development; Low Emission Development; Nature-based Development; Circular Development and Resilient Development. These pathways are the basis for sustainable urban development.
The pathways provide a framework for designing integrated solutions that balance the patterns of human life and the built and natural environments. They encourage holistic thinking to ensure that ICLEI, as a network of local and regional governments and global experts, optimizes our impact. When these pathways guide local and regional development, urban systems become more sustainable.
Local and regional governments use these pathways as a guide for sustainable urban development through systemic change. Often, our activities are guided by a predominant pathway or set of pathways. In any given city or region, multiple activities may be implemented along each pathway. These activities help local and regional governments advance sustainable urban development.
For more information on ICLEI and our five sustainable development pathways please visit iclei.org.
Visiting the City of São Paulo
The City of São Paulo, Brazil, has been an ICLEI Member since 1991 and will serve as the host city for the ICLEI World Congress 2024. It is the largest city in Brazil and all of South America, and serves as Brazil’s main economic and financial center. The City of São Paulo is home to over 12M residents, with more than 20M living in the Greater São Paulo metropolitan area.