Habitat III
17 - 20 October 2016 | Quito, Ecuador
The United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development, or Habitat III, is a long-awaited conference that will bring together governments, local authorities, civil society, the private sector, and academic institutions to look at the future of cities - with the aim of creating a 'New Urban Agenda' to address these issues.
This plan comes as the world's urban population continues to grow. When the first Habitat conference was held in Vancouver in 1976, the world's urban population was only 37.9% of our global population, and in 1996, at Habitat II in Istanbul, it was 45.1%. Today, 54.5% of the world's people live in cities - and we need to find ways to make them work better. The conference will seek to address a broad range of issues affecting cities - from poverty, to climate change, to the sustainability of development - and will even look at new, emerging challenges that will need to be monitored.
As well as attending the conference, our delegation will attend the Habitat III parallel events on 15-16 October. They'll also have a couple of days to do their own sightseeing and explore Quito.
KEY INFO
DELEGATION FEE - $3850
DEPARTS AKL - 13 Oct
RETURNS TO AKL - 24 Oct
APPLICATIONS DUE - 2 Sept
$1500 DEPOSIT DUE - 16 Sept
Head Delegate
PIET UBELS | @pietubelsnz
We're thrilled to have our UNEA alum Piet leading our team to Habitat III. Not only is Piet an upstanding individual who is passionate about social change - he has a background in architecture, engineering and project management; all hugely relevant to the conference. Piet aspires to successfully facilitate the realisation of local communities' visions towards sustainability and wellbeing. Through his life he has stood strong in being proactive and creative to resolve any problems.
Delegates
CHARLOTTE CLOUSTON
Charlotte is currently working as a Law Clerk in the Resource Management team at Chapman Tripp. Before she goes to Quito she'll graduate with her Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and Bachelor of Science conjoint degree from the University of Auckland: Science majors in Geography and Environmental Science. Charlotte is Muriwai Beach born and bred – spending most weekends out there as a break from the hustle and bustle of the CBD working week. She's a washed up competitive mountainbiker, though still a wannabe Olympic athlete (sport TBC). She enjoys baking, learning Spanish, meeting new people, travelling, the outdoors and playing sport.
BRUCE TSAI
Bruce is 21 and has taken time off medical school to explore other options. Passionate about sustainability, he is involved with the Low Carbon Network and the NZ Climate and Health Council. He has presented a statement on Universal Health Coverage to the WHO, and co-authored public health manuals for medical students globally. He is also an active advocate on a number of topics, including LGBTQ and mental health, and is researching alcohol abuse and pancreatic cancer. Bruce enjoys sports and has previously been selected to the NZ team for Olympic Weightlifting. His other interests include violin, piano, chess and cognitive biases.
MEL TAYLOR
An Aucklander born and bred, Melanie is focused on transforming Auckland’s future. She works as an Urban Planner for Aurecon and is a member of the Auckland Young Planner’s Committee. The City Rail Link has been Melanie’s flagship major infrastructure project, where she co-authored the complex resource consent applications. With a strong interest in energy matters, she presented a conference paper on sustainability and hydraulic fracturing at the University of Alberta. Melanie was recently selected to participate in Aurecon’s Ascend Programme for high potential women.
HANNAH SHINGLER
Hannah is a second year urban planning student with a passion for sustainability. Being a bush-dweller in the foothills of the Waitakere Ranges and a student of the city makes Hannah a great appreciator of New Zealand's ability to give us the best of both worlds; natural and urban. Her vision for the future are liveable, healthy habitats for humans that don't take a toll on our natural environment, but rather, working as one system.
NATASHA EICHLER
Natasha is a Masters of Urban Planning and Design student at the University of Auckland. Prior to this, she worked as an intermediate teacher where she became aware of how the urban environment was influencing the physical, social and intellectual wellbeing of her students. She was attracted to the way urban planning was able to promote the development of equitable and sustainable cities. Natasha's love of travel inspires her as she sees the ways cities optimise urban growth and overcome injustices. She is particularly interested in protecting vulnerable communities as we prepare our cities for climate change.
LUKE CHRISTENSEN
Luke is a transport planner for a consultancy in Auckland, specialising in public transport planning. He initially graduated with a Bachelor of Surveying from the University of Otago and went to work in his hometown of Palmerston North. However his passion for transport, housing and urban issues led to his decision to move to study a Masters of Urban Planning at the University of Auckland. While studying Luke became involved in Generation Zero in Auckland, and became their Auckland Policy Director. Luke played a key roles in advising on Generation Zero's transport and housing campaigns.