Book of abstracts for the 2023 International Conference on Evolving Cities

Abstract

The 4th International Conference on Evolving Cities and Towns (ICEC 2023) took place as a hybrid event with over 150 delegates joining in-person and online from the 12th – 14th September 2023 at the Centenary Building (B100) situated in the Highfield Campus at the University of Southampton, UK. It brought together leading academics, policymakers, and industry specialists to debate the role of cities in addressing climate change mitigation impacts and accelerating our transition to net-zero carbon. Over the course of the three days, there were 4 panels including 16 panelists 3 keynotes, 58 oral presentations and 8 posters by delegates from international and national organisations. Day 1 covered collaboration and co-creation with talks around co-design and civic engagement followed by a panel and a collaborative participatory budgeting game. Day 2 focused on frameworks for flourishing with parallel sessions on liveability, cityscapes of change, human-centric equitable infrastructure and energy systems alongisde 2 panels. The conference concluded with talks on inovations in flexibility and retrofitting accompanied by an interactive interview with a Southampton MP and a panle on inspiring change and urban transformation. Over the three days participants were able to discuss ways to develop multi-stakeholder partnerships and implement innovative solutions to propel cities and towns towards healthier and low carbon pathways.