By Kay Scrimger
May 23, 2005

On May 12, Conference President Akron Mayor Donald L. Plusquellic addressed the Opening Session of the Eighth World Congress of Metropolis, held in Berlin, Germany, May 11-15. Executive Director Tom Cochran accompanied Plusquellic on this mission, which continues to build on five years of cooperation between the Conference of Mayors and Metropolis, the international association of the world's major metropolises led by Barcelona Mayor Joan Clos.

About 150 cities and more than 700 participants from all over the world participated in the Metropolis Congress, which focused on the theme of "Tradition and Transformation: the Future of the City."

In his remarks at the Congress' Opening Session on May 12, Plusquellic congratulated Clos for the "ongoing vibrancy and strength of Metropolis" and emphasized the hope of the Conference of Mayors to "realize even closer ties between our two organizations."

He also outlined the Conference of Mayors' Metro Economies analysis, which quantify and illuminate the contribution of U.S. urban areas to the growth and stability of the nation.

"Our systematic body of research on Metropolitan Economies," he said, "1) helps us better understand the value of urban economies to our state and national governments; 2) galvanizes local political leaders to seek more innovative ways of managing conflict between cities and suburbs, and 3) gives us data to press our national government to support more economic investment in our economic areas."

Opening Session speakers also included Federal Republic of Germany President Dr. Horst Kohler, Metropolis President Barcelona Mayor Joan Clos, Berlin Mayor Klaus Wowereit, UN-HABITAT Executive Director Dr. Anna Tibaijuka, United Nations Environment Program Executive Director Klaus Toepfer, and Montreal Mayor Gerald Trembley.

On May 14, Plusquellic and Cochran joined Clos and Secretary General Josep Roig in signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the U.S. Conference of Mayors and Metropolis. The MOU establishes a framework of cooperation and partnership between the two organizations, designed to strengthen both organizations and enhance their international status.

Under the new agreement, Metropolis and the Conference of Mayors will have representation at each other's statutory meetings, share best practices among their members, and achieve these goals by working within the existing meeting structures and agendas. The Memorandum of Understanding creates a three-year partnership, which can be extended if both organizations agree.

Toronto Mayor David Miller will represent Metropolis at the Conference's 73rd Annual Conference in Chicago in June. Clos participated in the 71st Annual Meeting of the Conference of Mayors in Denver in June 2003.

Cochran emphasized, "I am pleased that we have signed this document. We must continue to work together to make our cities strong. In our cooperative effort, we look forward to sharing best practices that point the way to best serving the people of our cities and to working together with Metropolis for cities throughout the world."

The Metropolis program included reports of the work over a three-year period of its six standing commissions, which studied urban poverty and the environment, metropolitan governance, urban waste management, urban mobility management, metropolitan performance indicators, and water management. Conference Vice President Long Beach Mayor Beverly O'Neill contributed to the work of the commission on urban mobility by making a presentation at its Istanbul meeting in 2003.

Metropolis, based in Barcelona, organizes the Metropolitan Section of the United Cities and Local Governments Association, established in April 2004 in Paris by the unification of three organizations: the World Federation of United Cities (FMCU), the International Union of Local Authorities (IULA), and Metropolis.