Session
Leveraging Solutions: Smart Policies, Plans, and Actions
City Champions: Taking Theory and Practice to the Next Level
Although international consensus on the 2030 Agenda (e.g. SDGs) and Paris Agreement has been achieved, questions continue to arise about responsibility for implementation. This session discusses good practices observed in the city of Iskandar, Malaysia with regard to the promotion of sustainable regional development, examining the theory of change behind these efforts in view of collaboration with IGES/NIES, academia, Japanese cities, NGOs, JICA, private sector and other actors.
Iskandar set a target in 2007 to become an economically vibrant, sustainable metropolis by 2025. Following this announcement, and working in partnership with a local university and the city administration, a Japanese research group made up of NIES and other institutions conducted a JST/JICA-supported project (2011-2016), to develop a “Low Carbon Society Blueprint” comprised of 12 actions and 280 programmes. It was endorsed by Prime Minister Najib in December 2012 and a new administrative department was established to execute this plan. NIES and IGES have worked to facilitate knowledge transfer by engaging Japanese local governments and promoting stakeholder actions (such as environmental education led by Kyoto, energy auditing in the building sector supported by Tokyo, mini-hydro activities promoted by Toyama, and smart city development guided by Mitsui Corporation). The opportunities and challenges encountered in Iskandar have also been highlighted in JICA’s city training programmes targeting Asian cities.
This session will discuss how similar theories and practices can be applied towards sustainable development solutions in other cities, highlighting the added value of IGES and other partners in such efforts.
Keynote Speech
Mohamed Khaled Nordin
Chief Minister of Johor, State Government of Johor, Malaysia
SSS
Kenji Suzuki
Senior Director for Policy Coordination, Bureau of Environment, Tokyo Metropolitan Government
SSS
Itsu Adachi
Director, Infrastructure and Peacebuilding Department, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
SSS
Kazuyuki Tani
Mayor, Shimokawa Town
SSS
Stefanos Fotiou
Director, Environment and Development Division, United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)
Presentation
Yatsuka Kataoka
Joint-Programme Director, City Taskforce, IGES
Moderator
Junichi Fujino
Programme Director, City Taskforce, IGES
SSS
Itsu Adachi
Director, Infrastructure and Peacebuilding Department, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
Joined JICA in 1985, Itsu Adachi worked for General Affairs Department, Thailand Office, and Global Environment Department. He has experience to work as an expert on Aid Coordination and Management in Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) /Cambodian Rehabilitation and Development Board (CRDB) in Kingdom of Cambodia. Through his carrier, he has experienced various development works in water, disaster management and environmental management in developing countries. In 2015 he took position of the Chief Representative, JICA Cambodia Office and since March 2017 he has been current position being responsible for urban and regional development, transportation, peacebuilding sector.
SSS
Stefanos Fotiou
Director, Environment and Development Division, United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)
Stefanos Fotiou is an expert on sustainable development and currently serving in the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN-ESCAP) as the Director of the "Environment and Development" Division. Under his portfolio he is planning, coordinating and managing the work of UN-ESCAP on sustainable development, quality of growth, urbanization, natural resources management, climate change, and the post-2015 UN development agenda. Prior to this assignment Stefanos worked for 10 years in the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) under various roles and including substantive and managerial work in the areas of resource efficiency, cities’ resilience, sustainable consumption and production, green economy etc.
A Greek national he holds a PhD in Natural Resource Economics from Aristotle University in Greece, a Master of Science in Information Systems from the University of Macedonia, and a Master in Forestry and Natural Environment from Aristotle University.
SSS
Kazuyuki Tani
Mayor, Shimokawa Town
Mr. Kazuyuki Tani is the Mayor of Shimokawa Town. After graduated from Nihon University, College of Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering, he entered Tanigumi k.k. Before he was elected as Mayor of Shimokawa, he served as President and Representative Director of Tanigumi k.k.(1999), then promoted to be a Chairman and Executive Director of Tanigumi k.k. in 2014.
SSS
Kenji Suzuki
Senior Director for Policy Coordination, Bureau of Environment, Tokyo Metropolitan Government
Joined TMG in 1989, Kenji Suzuki worked for the Research Institute of TMG, Policy Division of Governor’s Head quarter Office, and other organizations mainly focusing on researches and international affair policies. After 1 year experience in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, he started his career in climate change policy in 2009 and was engaged in designing local-national 2 layer cap-and-trade system. In 2010, he took the position of the first director for International Environment Cooperation Section and promoted international environmental cooperation on climate change while advocating the importance of city’s role in climate actions, especially building energy efficiency in cities. He has been in current position since April 2015 being responsible for international affairs and environmental assessment.
Keynote Speech
Mohamed Khaled Nordin
Chief Minister of Johor, State Government of Johor, Malaysia
He received his early education at Sekolah Rendah Ledang, Tangkak and later he enrolled in Muar High School and Maktab Sultan Abu Bakar, Johor Bahru.
After graduated in Bachelor of Laws from University of Malaya in 1982, he joined the Legal Department of the National Petroleum (PETRONAS). Later, he was appointed as the Political Secretary to the Minister of Federal Territories (1983-1986) and Political Secretary to the Minister of Welfare (1986-1987), the Honourable Tan Sri Dato' Shahrir Abdul Samad, at that time.
His career as Member of Parliament started in 1990 when he won a parliamentary seat in Johor Bahru for three terms in a row (1999, 2004 and 2008) and later, he won to the Pasir Gudang parliamentary seat in the recent election.
His first appointment was as the Deputy Minister of Public Works began in December 1999. Immediately after the general election in 2004, he was promoted to be the Minister of Entrepreneur and Cooperative Development. Later on 1 April 2008, he was entrusted to lead the Ministry of Education (MOE).
His new role as the Chief Minister of Johor has begun in the midst of 2013 after the recent election. Apart from that, he is also the Co-Chairman of Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA).