De Lille named as champion in global resilience movement

Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille has been chosen to spearhead the global “resilience” movement with the mayors of nine other cities.

De Lille is a member of the city leaders advisory committee named by 100 Resilient Cities‚ which was created by the Rockefeller Foundation four years ago in response to urbanisation‚ climate change and globalisation.

The committee was unveiled at the organisation’s Urban Resilience Summit in New York‚ and also includes the mayors of Santiago‚ Panama City‚ Nashville‚ Sydney‚ Mandalay‚ Pune‚ Athens‚ Rotterdam and Addis Ababa.

Michael Berkowitz‚ president‚ 100 Resilient Cities‚ said the mayors would advise on policy and advocacy‚ act as global champions‚ and help 100 Resilient Cities identify and prioritise key issues essential to building urban resilience.

“We’re pivoting from the early stages of planning to the implementation of concrete projects aimed at improving the lives of people in our member cities‚” he said.

“The city leaders advisory committee formalises the role that these city executives have played as the global leaders of the urban resilience movement and will help shape the movement in years to come.”

De Lille said she was honoured by her selection. “Cities‚ as the drivers of change‚ have to lead the way to ensure that our residents‚ our environments and our economies can survive‚ adapt and grow by building resilience to the shocks and stresses of the 21st century‚” she said.

100 Resilient Cities funds a chief resilience officer in each member city; provides resources for drafting a resilience strategy; and facilitates access to private sector‚ public sector‚ academic‚ and non-governmental organisation resilience tools.