APEC Sustainable Energy Center (APSEC) successfully held its 4th Workshop on Sustainable Cities on 22 May 2019 in Manila, the Philippines. During the workshop, APSEC presented the APEC Sustainable Urban Development Report – From Models to Results, elaborated in the framework of APSEC’s pillar program on the Cooperative Network of Sustainable Cities (CNSC). The report underlines the benefits to scale up sustainable urbanization in APEC cities. This would help not only to reduce air pollution and make cities more circular, but also to diminish the risks of slum formation and, above all, to make cities more resilient against disaster risks. APEC is more than other regions hit by disasters of hydrometeorological origin such as typhoons, heat waves or forest fires, but also by geological disasters such as earthquakes and volcanos. 

The workshop also saw presentations by APSEC on Research on Forms of Low carbon Energy System and Best Practices for APEC Sustainable Cities, by the Climate Change Commission of the Philippines on Smart Cities and Climate Change, by Peru on Initiatives and Programs on Sustainable Urban Development in Peru, by the Da Nang Department of Trade and Industry on the Sustainable Energy Development of Da Nang city in Viet Nam, by Urbanice Malaysia on the Implementation of the New Urban Agenda – Accelerating Urban Sustainability in Malaysian Cities, by Tianjin University of China on Rural Spatial Network and Revitalization Path in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region, by the Electric Power Planning & Engineering Institute of China on Enhancing the Energy Infrastructure Connectivity in the APEC Region, and by the State Grid Customer Service Center of China on Promoting Distributed Renewable Energy, Microgrid and Demand Side Management.

The Workshop concluded with a roundtable discussion chaired by APSEC, with participation by the Asian Development Bank ADB, the Electric Power Research Institute EPRI of China, the Tianjin Innovative Finance Investment Company and the APEC CNSC Program Joint Operation Center.