If there is a Mr. Ecocity anywhere on the planet, it is without question our keynote speaker and former mayor of Curitiba, Brazil. Lerner is the architect planner who led the work to transform his city, starting in 1972, into a world model of ecological and social policies, designs and built projects. The chief architect of the Curitiba Master Plan, he was appointed mayor during Brazil’s military dictatorship in 1971. When the nation returned to democracy, he was elected to two more terms. During his 12 years in office, Lerner devised many of Curitiba’s innovative, inexpensive solutions to city problems. For example, to combat Curitiba’s growing litter problem, he created more incentives for recycling, including exchanging bottles, cans and other recyclables for food. Lerner believed in implementing plans swiftly — in just 72 hours, he converted several blocks of the downtown into Brazil’s first pedestrian mall. Lerner’s track record in Curitiba helped him gain the trust and confidence he needed to attain the governorship of his State of Parana from 1994 to 2002. Today, Lerner consults with cities on their plans for addressing long-term growth and sustainability. At the Ecocity World Summit he will be describing his new ideas for strategic intervention and course-correction in city development he calls “urban acupuncture.”
In this conference, Mr. Jaime Lerner will approach what in his views are the main issues concerning cities nowadays and their future perspectives, portraying them as important solidarity refuges. Strongly supporte by concrete examples, it will focus on the role they plan in contemporary society, enhancing the meaning of design both in structuring urban growth and in the development project of a city, a state, a country. It will also target mobility – stressing the importance of public transportation – sustainability and identity as key areas for intervention. The concept of “Urban Acupuncture” as a strategy to achieve effective results in the qualification of the urban environment will also be explored.
Shanfeng Dong – Chief Planner, Shanghai International Investment Company, (SIIC), Shanghai, China
Shanfeng Dong started his career as a chief architect and developer, and has become a recognized project leader in Beijing. After initiating several sustainability projects in China in 2002, he began work on the first Eco-city, Dongtan, with SIIC just as the project was beginning. Shanfeng now manages 5 Eco-city projects for SIIC in China. He has established a multi-disciplinary team for both project management and research during the city development experience. He is greatly interest in delivering and incorporating culture and philosophy into the city environment and consequently set up a Cultural Planning team to research and implement those findings in Eco-cities.
Shanghai International Investment Company: www.siic.com
Carolyn Finney, Assistant Professor/Geographer at UC Berkeley
Carolyn Finney was born in New York and grew up on an estate where her father was the caretaker and her mother the housekeeper. She pursued an acting career for eleven years in New York and Los Angeles. But a backpacking trip around the world in 1987 changed her life. She spent the next five years traveling and living in Africa and Nepal. Carolyn returned to formal education in 1994 investigating women’s issues in Kenya and women’s participation in community forestry management in Nepal. Her current research and teaching is in environmental science, policy and management and continues at Berkeley.
Charlie Ricker, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Business Development, BrightSource Energy
Prior to joining BrightSource Energy, Mr. Ricker headed Texas operations for Growth Strategy Partners, a consultancy specializing in assisting companies develop and implement business strategies. His executive experience includes being co-founder of Orba Corporation, a successful developer, builder and operator of port facilities. Subsequently he was CEO of H.H. Robertson (UK) Ltd., Senior Vice President of Falcon Seaboard Power, a large independent power producer, and President of Millennium Power Group, which represented major power developers in South America. Charlie holds an MBA (Distinction) from the Columbia University Graduate School of Business, and a B.A. (Honors) from Millsaps College.
Peter Droege, World Council for Renewable Energy, Sydney, Australia
Peter Droege, is Senior Advisor, Beijing Municipal Institute for City Planning and Design, Steering Committee member, Urban Climate Change Research Network (UCCRN), Conjoint Professor, School of Architecture and Built Environment, University of Newcastle, Visiting Professor and Director, Centre for Sustainable Urbanism, School of Landscape Architecture and Planning, Beijing University and Chair, World Council for Renewable Energy (WCRE) Asia Pacific. He is also an author and public speaker on urban design, sustainable development and urban environment policies. He is the author of the recent book on transforming the urban energy system from fossil to renewable, The Renewable City.
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