Chengdu "BRIDGE for Cities" Roadshow

The Chengdu "BRIDGE for Cities" Roadshow was held in Chengdu, China on 29 August 2018. The Roadshow has been organized in close cooperation with the National Development and Reform Commission of China and with the Chengdu Municipal People's Government.

The Roadshow focused on the concept of "Park City" and on how the principles of Green Economy, like the support for waste recycling, sustainable industry and urban agriculture, will contribute to the liveability of modern cities. Chengdu was selected to be one of the cities for case studies, because of its experience and achievements in the field of ecological transformation. Chengdu can therefore help in identifying the steps necessary  to balance industrial development and environmental protection, and how to balance rapid urbanization and improvement of urban residents' living standards.

The debate was enriched by the presence of international economic and financial experts; representatives from Chengdu municipality; diplomatic envoys and UNIDO experts and was followed by a series of study tours in Chengdu Jinjjiang Green Park and in Guixu Ecological Park.

Business Plan Competition

In cooperation with UNIDO, Chengdu Municipal Development and Reform Commission working together with Chengdu New Valley Investment Group and Startupbootcamp (SBC) organized a business plan competition during the “BRIDGE for Cities” Chengdu Roadshow.

Under the theme of “Developing Green Economies - Building the Park City”, the roadshow and the business plan competition aim to promote the mutual understanding of countries and cities along the “Belt and Road”, to explore the potential of new industries for the development of inclusive and livable “Park Cities”, to provide opportunities for companies to showcase their innovative projects, and to provide a platform for constructive dialogues between development stakeholders. The Business Plan competition gathered a number of enterprises operating in the following areas, related to Chengdu's concept of "Park City":

•  Smart urban technologies ;
•  Urban cultural industries;
•  Circular economy; and
•  Urban agriculture.

After a pre-selection process, the top five business plans were selected and presented at the roadshow. SkyFarm presented an innovative project for urban agriculture, which envisages the creation of sustainable urban farms, making the most out of urban surfaces. SkyFarm will be invited to participate in the 3rd ”BRIDGE for Cities” event, to showcase their project to representatives from more than 100 cities around the world.