ICLEI World Congress 2021: Call for bids

Every three years, ICLEI convenes the ICLEI World Congress for its Members in order to give them the opportunity to share and discover the latest strategies for sustainable development. Additionally, the ICLEI World Congress serves as the network’s key event for both recognizing the achievements of its Members and for laying out the organization’s strategy for guiding local action across the globe. From the founding congress in 1990 in New York, to the recent ICLEI World Congress 2018 in Montréal, this event has given leaders and experts the opportunity to build new relationships, acquire new knowledge, and discover all of the resources that the ICLEI network has to offer in the organization’s mission for sustainable urban development.

Now, ICLEI is preparing for ICLEI World Congress 2021, and is calling for bids from Members interested in hosting the event.

Prospective host cities should be prepared to host a core event of 3.5-4 days in length, augmented with additional pre- and post-event meetings and workshops, and receive well over a thousand attendees as they engage in both ICLEI’s governance and a wide range of thematic events. The selected host city will contribute to shaping the themes and details of these thematic events, and are invited to make suggestions on how to strengthen the connection between the ICLEI World Congress and the aspirations of the host local government.

Benefits for the ICLEI World Congress host city include:

• Positioning the city as a committed leader that supports the local government movement world-wide
• Integration of local initiatives and actions for global sustainability into the legacy of the ICLEI World Congress
• International exposure among the local government community and international organizations
• Opportunities to showcase its sustainable development activities to local, national and global audiences
• Opportunities to build local capacity by connecting city staff with experts and organizations from around the globe
• Opportunities to learn from the many other local governments in attendance
• Opportunities to engage with local stakeholders by integrating them into the organizing committee
• Generation of additional local, national and international media attention by featuring their initiatives on a global stage Benefits to local business from the tourism-related revenue of hosting 600+ non-local participants throughout the duration of the Congress

Bidding cities are also welcome to suggest and explore other benefits that can come from working directly with ICLEI in the preparation of the ICLEI World Congress.

If you represent an ICLEI Member and you are interested in hosting the ICLEI World Congress 2021, please write to events@iclei.org to receive the bidding package, which includes more details on the event and what is needed to submit a proposal. Please note that only ICLEI Members are eligible to host the ICLEI World Congress. If you are interested in exploring ICLEI Membership, please write to membership@iclei.org.