
CityLab 2017
October 22 – 24, 2017
Paris
HOSTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
CityLab is a celebration of cities and city life. This one of a kind gathering brings together mayors from around the world, along with urban experts, business leaders, artists and activists.
This year we were in Paris, a global center for art, fashion, food and culture. The city offers an extraordinary backdrop for this change-making experience. For two and a half days, participants came together to explore solutions for the most pressing issues facing city leaders and city dwellers alike. Through panel discussions, one on one conversations, workshops and field trips, the event was a showcase for innovation and ingenuity. And while there are deep divisions in the world today, CityLab attendees are united by their ambition to make their cities more vibrant and livable.
Watch full event videos

We’re proud to announce that CityLab 2018 will be held in Detroit.
Watch the special announcement below:
Mayors in attendance at CityLab 2017:
Steve Adler
Mayor, City of Austin
Abdulla Al Shaibani
Secretary General, City of Dubai
Yousef Al Shawarbeh
Mayor, City of Amman
Megan Barry
Mayor, City of Nashville
Herbert Constantine M. Bautista
Mayor, City of Quezon City
William Bell
Mayor, City of Durham
Ethan Berkowitz
Mayor, City of Anchorage
Desmond Bikoko
Mayor, City of Lilongwe
Tim Bowles
Mayor, City of West of England
Andy Burnham
Mayor, City of Greater Manchester
G.T. Bynum
Mayor, City of Tulsa
Dagur Eggertsson
Mayor, City of Reykjavik
Karen Freeman-Wilson
Mayor, City of Gary
Eric Garcetti
Mayor, City of Los Angeles
Philip Bruce Goff
Mayor, City of Auckland
Zandile Gumede
Mayor, City of Durban
Anne Hidalgo
Mayor, City of Paris
Ben Houchen
Mayor, City of Tees Valley
Wilson Kalumba
Lusaka, Zambia
Wong Kam Sing
Secretary for the Environment, Hong Kong
Kenji Kitahashi
Mayor, City of Kitakyushu
Yuriko Koike
Governor, City of Tokyo
Justin Lester
Mayor, City of Wellington
Sam Liccardo
Mayor, City of San Jose
Michele Lutz
Mayor, City of Mulhouse
Enrique Peñalosa Londoño
Mayor, City of Bogotá
James Palmer
Mayor, City of Cambridgeshire & Peterborough
Mauricio Rodas
Mayor, City of Quito
Steve Rotheram
Mayor, City of Liverpool City Region
Giuseppe Sala
Mayor, City of Milan
Andy Street
Mayor, City of West Midlands
Leon Thomas
Mayor, City of Portmore
Michael Tubbs
Mayor, City of Stockton
Nils Ušakovs
Mayor, City of Riga
Jan Vapaavuori
Mayor, City of Helsinki
Patrice Vergriete
Mayor-President, City of Dunkerque
Speakers
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Mike Ableson* Vice President, Global Strategy General Motors -
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Author Dear Ijeawele, or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions and Americanah -
Majid Adin Animator and Filmmaker Good Chance Theatre -
Steve Adler* Mayor City of Austin @mayoradler -
Rohit T. Aggarwala Head of Urban Systems Sidewalk Labs @Rit_Aggarwala -
Laura Alcock-Ferguson Executive Director Campaign to End Loneliness @EndLonelinessUK -
Robert Barr CEO and Founder jobs4refugees @jobs4refugees1 -
Megan Barry Mayor City of Nashville @MayorMeganBarry -
Ethan Berkowitz Mayor City of Anchorage @mayorethananc -
Douglas Bettcher Director PND World Health Organization @DougBettcher -
Mohammad Bin Moammar* CEO National Housing Services Company, Saudi Arabia -
Michael R. Bloomberg Founder, Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies; 108th Mayor of New York City -
Tim Bowles Mayor West of England -
David Bradley Chairman Atlantic Media -
Jennifer Bradley Director, Center for Urban Innovation The Aspen Institute @jbradley_dc -
Ricky Burdett Director LSE Cities and Professor of Urban Studies, LSE -
Andy Burnham Mayor City of Greater Manchester @andyburnhamgm -
G.T. Bynum Mayor City of Tulsa @gtbynum -
Catherine Centlivre Director of Operations Paris Batignolles Amenagement -
Raj Chetty Professor of Economics Stanford University -
Cheryl Chung Deputy Director Strategic Planning, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy -
Steve Clemons Washington Editor at Large The Atlantic @SCClemons -
Ta-Nehisi Coates National Correspondent The Atlantic @tanehisicoates -
Eddie Copeland Director of Government Innovation Nesta @EddieACopeland -
Kyril Courboin* Senior Country Officer - France J.P. Morgan -
Dag Detter Managing Partner Detter & Co @dagdetter -
Sheila Dugan Director of Cities, Center for Government Excellence Johns Hopkins University @gov_ex -
Aik van Eemeren Chief Technology Officer Gemeente Amsterdam @aikvaneemeren -
Tor Fagerland Professor The Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NTNU -
James Fallows National Correspondent The Atlantic @jamesfallows -
Hany Fam* Executive Vice President President, Enterprise Partnerships Mastercard -
Nastaran Fekri Solution Consultant PayPal -
Adam Freed Principal, Sustainability Bloomberg Associates @AdamMFreed -
Karen Freeman-Wilson Mayor City of Gary @karenaboutgary -
Yona Friedman Architect, Urban Planner, Designer -
Eric Garcetti Mayor City of Los Angeles @ericgarcetti -
Téo Garcia Chargé d'opérations à la Direction de l'Aménagement Paris Batignolles Aménagement @tgkrcik -
Phil Goff* Mayor City of Auckland @phil_goff -
Jeffrey Goldberg Editor in Chief The Atlantic @jeffreygoldberg -
Alaina Harkness Fellow Brookings @harknessa -
Peter Harris* Director, Sustainability, EMEA Region UPS -
Kelly Henning Director Public Health, Bloomberg Philanthropies @drkellyhenning -
Anne Hidalgo Mayor City of Paris -
Barbara Ivanov* Director Urban Freight Lab -
Lamia Kamal-Chaoui Director O.E.C.D. -
Mary Louise Kelly Contributing Editor The Atlantic @nprkelly -
Caroline Kennedy Former U.S. Ambassador to Japan -
Gilles Kepel Author Terror in France: The Rise of Jihad in the West -
Diébédo Francis Kéré Principal & Founder Kéré Architecture @fuergando -
Parag Khanna* Leading Global Strategist and Best-Selling Author -
Yuriko Koike Governor of Tokyo Tokyo Metropolitan Government -
Tommi Laitio Executive Director Culture and Leisure, City of Helsinki @tommilaitio -
Matteo Lepore Deputy Mayor City of Bologna @matteolepore -
Suzanne LeVine Former US Ambassador to Switzerland @ambsuzi -
Sam Liccardo Mayor City of San Jose @sliccardo -
Eric Liu Founder, Citizen University, Executive Director, Citizenship and American Identity Program, The Aspen Institute; Author, You’re More Powerful than You Think @ericpliu -
Juan Felipe Lopez Executive Director Laboratorio de Gobierno, Chile @juanfelopez -
Ruth Mackenzie Artistic Director Theatre du Chatelet @ruthmackenzie -
Marius Macku* Senior Associate Public Policy & Government Relations, EU Uber -
Shiraz Maher Deputy Director International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation (ICSR) @ShirazMaher -
Peter Mangan Founder & CEO 1970 @TheFreebirdClub -
Mirik Milan Night Mayor Amsterdam @mirikmilan -
Jonathan Mintz President & CEO Cities for Financial Empoewrment Fund, Inc. @jmintzCFE -
Jan Mischke* Senior Fellow McKinsey Global Institute -
Joe Murphy Artistic Director Good Chance Theatre @goodchancecal -
Eleni Nicolaides Project Manager, Alliance For Digital Employability Alliance For Digital Employability -
Hans Ulrich Obrist Artistic Director Serpentine Galleries, London -
Philippe Oddou* Founder Sport dans la Ville -
Joe Robertson Artistic Director Good Chance Theatre @GoodChanceCal -
Mauricio Rodas Mayor City of Quito @MauricioRodasEC -
Steve Rotheram Metro Mayor LCR @Steve4LCRMayor -
Scott Schwaitzberg* Solution Lead, City Voices McKinsey & Company -
Esther Shalev-Gerz Contemporary Artist -
Holly Skillin* McKinsey & Company Global Reach & Relevance Manager, Capital Projects & Infrastructure -
Alison Stewart Contributing Editor AtlanticLIVE @alisonstewart -
Elizabeth Streb Performance Artist and Choreographer -
Andy Street Mayor City of West Midlands @andy4wm -
Laurent Thomas Business development Director Exsens -
Piret Tõnurist OECD Systems Change Expert -
Anthony Townsend Principal Consultant Bits and Atoms -
Michael Tubbs Mayor City of Stockton @michaeldtubbs -
Molly Turner Professor @mollysturner -
Stephane Vincent Director La 27e Région @La27eregion -
Thomas Vonier President American Institute of Architects @thomasvonier -
Stephanie Wade Innovation Teams - Senior Program Manager Bloomberg Philanthropies @stephawade -
Severine Wernert Member of Cabinet of Commissioner Julian King, Security Union European Commission -
Graeme Wood National Correspondent The Atlantic @gcaw -
Marilyn Wrenn Chief Operating Officer Coalfield Development Corporation @CoalfieldWV -
Amalia Zepou Vice Mayor Municipality of Athens @synathina
Agenda
Note: All times are Central European Time Zone and six hours ahead of ET
- Sunday, October 22
- 1:00 p.m.Field Trip: Paris Architecture Boat Tour on the SeineReservation required: Shuttles depart 1pm from the front entrance of the InterContinental Paris – Le Grand Hotel
- 3:30 p.m.Field Trip: Guided Tour of the Palais Garnier (Opera House)Reservation required: Meet 3:15pm outside from the front entrance of the InterContinental Paris – Le Grand Hotel
- 8:00 p.m.CityLab Opening ReceptionVerriere Lobby, Ground Floor
- 9:30 p.m.Nightcap with the Night CzarsVerriere Lobby
Amy Lamé, Night Czar, Greater London Authority
Mirik Milan, Night Mayor, City of Amsterdam
With Steve Clemons, Washington Editor at Large, The Atlantic - Monday, October 23
- 8:00 a.m.Breakfast ChatsVerriere Lobby
- 8:15 a.m.Getting Citizens Involved in the Energy TransitionSabine Romon, Chief Smart City Officer, City of Paris
- 8:15 a.m.The Future of Civic TechAndrew Rasiej, Founder & CEO, Civic Hall
- 8:15 a.m.Scaling Behavioral Science in CitiesTed Robertson, Managing Director, Ideas42
- 8:15 a.m.Cities and Social ChangeFeargus O’Sullivan, Contributing Writer, CityLab.com
- 8:15 a.m.The Future of Innovation in French CitiesStephane Vincent, Founder, La 27e Région
Caroline Porot, Chief of Staff, City of Mulhouse - 9:15 a.m.Morning PlenarySalon Opera, Ground Floor
- 9:15 a.m."Air"Streb Extreme Action
- 9:25 a.m.WelcomeDavid Bradley, Chairman, Atlantic Media
Michael R. Bloomberg, Founder, Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies; 108th Mayor of New York City
Elliot Gerson, EVP, Policy and Public Programs, International Partners, The Aspen Institute - 9:35 a.m.Creating a Sustainable City That Works for EveryoneAnne Hidalgo, Mayor, City of Paris and Chair, C40
With James Fallows, National Correspondent & Europe Editor, The Atlantic - 9:55 a.m.Talking TokyoYuriko Koike, Governor, City of Tokyo
With Caroline Kennedy, Former U.S. Ambassador to Japan - 10:15 a.m.Collaborating to Solve Critical Challenges in our Cities*Kyril Courboin, Senior Country Officer - France, J.P. Morgan
With Philippe Oddou, Founder, Sport dans la Ville
*A session produced by our underwriter JPMorgan Chase & Co. - 10:25 a.m.Improving Equality of OpportunityRaj Chetty, Professor of Economics, Stanford University
Dag Detter, Managing Partner, Detter & Co.
Lamia Kamal-Chaoui, Director, O.E.C.D. Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Local Development and Tourism
Jonathan Mintz, President & CEO, Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund
With Jennifer Bradley, Director, Center for Urban Innovation, The Aspen Institute - 11:10 a.m.Setting a More Inclusive StageRuth Mackenzie, Artistic Director, Theatre du Chatelet
Elizabeth Streb, Choreographer, Extreme Action
With Alison Stewart, Contributing Editor, The Atlantic - 11:30 a.m.The Metro Mayor ExperimentSteve Rotheram, Mayor, Liverpool City Region
Andy Street, Mayor, City of West Midlands
With Geraldine Amiel, Paris Bureau chief, Bloomberg News - 11:50 a.m.Closing ThoughtsJamie Miller, Vice President and Director of Public Programs, The Aspen Institute
- 12:30 p.m.Sandbox TourLower Verriere Lobby (meet across from the Hotel Bar)
Meet urban innovators and discover their city changing technology - 12:30 p.m.Field Trip: Refugee Center Visit in IvryReservation required: Shuttles depart 12:30pm, from the front entrance of the InterContinental Paris – Le Grand Hotel. Boxed lunch provided.
- 12:30 p.m.Field Trip: Reimagining Urban Settings: Clichy-Batignolles, The Eco DistrictReservation required: Shuttles depart 12:55pm, from the front entrance of the InterContinental Paris – Le Grand Hotel. Boxed lunch provided.
- 1:30 p.m.Afternoon Breakout SessionsFirst floor
- 1:30 p.m.Automation & the Future of Work: Helping Citizens Learn New SkillsRoom: Mozart
Rowan Conway, Director of Innovation, The RSA
Suzan LeVine, US Ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein (Ret.) and Seattle Region Partnership
Eleni Nicolaides, Project Manager, Alliance For Digital Employability
Marilyn Wrenn, Chief Operating Officer, Coalfield Development
With Robert Bole, General Manager, CityLab.com - 1:30 p.m.Game Changers: How to Embrace Disruption and Lead Without FearRoom: Lulli
Rohit T. Aggarwala, Head of Urban Systems, Sidewalk Labs
Steve Buckley, Northeast Regional Manager for Planning Environment and Traffic, WSP USA
Cheryl Chung, Deputy Director, Strategic Planning, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy
Sam Liccardo, Mayor, City of San Jose
With Ricky Burdett, Director, LSE Cities and Professor of Urban Studies, LSE - 1:30 p.m.From Seatbelts to Smoke Free Cities: How to Design a Healthier WorldRoom: Chopin
Mervat Al-Mherat, City Manager & Deputy for Health and Agriculture Affairs, Greater Amman Municipality
Douglas Bettcher, Director PND, World Health Organization
Adam Karpati, Senior Vice President of Public Health Programs, Vital Health Strategies
Solomon Kidane Zegeye, Head, Road & Transport Bureau, Addis Ababa
With Kelly Henning, Public Health Programs Lead, Bloomberg Philanthropies - 1:30 p.m.Innovative Approaches to Urban Housing Demand*Room: Messager
Phil Goff, Mayor, City of Auckland
Mohammad Bin Moammar, CEO, National Housing Services, Saudi Arabia
Michael Tubbs, Mayor, City of Stockton
Jan Mischke, Senior Fellow at McKinsey Global Institute
With Holly Skillin, Global Reach & Relevance Manager, Capital Projects & Infrastructure, McKinsey & Company
*A session produced by our underwriter McKinsey & Co. - 2:50 p.m.Afternoon PlenarySalon Opera, Ground Floor
- 2:50 p.m.Welcome Back-
- 2:52 p.m.Designing Communities of the FutureYona Friedman, Architect,
Diébédo Francis Kéré, Principal and Founder, Kéré Architecture
With Hans Ulrich Obrist, Artistic Director, Serpentine Galleries - 3:10 p.m.Transforming Transportation: Mobility Solutions for Tomorrow's Cities*Steve Adler, Mayor, City of Austin
Mike Ableson, Vice President, Global Strategy, General Motors
*A session producer by our underwriter General Motors - 3:20 p.m.Combatting Terror: In Three Parts-
- 3:20 p.m.I - Countering RadicalizationGilles Kepel, Author, Terror in France: The Rise of Jihad in the West
Shiraz Maher, Deputy Director, International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation, King’s College London
Graeme Wood, National Correspondent, The Atlantic
With Mary Louise Kelly, Contributing Editor, The Atlantic - 3:40 p.m.II - A Balancing Act: Open and SafeColombe Brossel, Deputy Mayor of Security, Prevention, Popular Areas, and Integration, Paris
Thomas Vonier, Architect and President, American Institute of Architects
Severine Wernert, Member of Cabinet of Commissioner Julian King, Security Union, European Commission
With Mary Louise Kelly, The Atlantic - 4:00 p.m.III - One Mayor ReflectsAndy Burnham, Mayor, City of Manchester
With Jeffrey Goldberg, Editor-in-Chief, The Atlantic - 4:20 p.m.Closing ThoughtsJamie Miller, Vice President and Director of Public Programs, The Aspen Institute
- 4:30 p.m.Sandbox TourLower Verriere Lobby (meet across from the Hotel Bar)
- 7:30 p.m.Musee D'Orsay: Evening Reception and Private ViewingShuttles will begin at 7:00 pm from the front entrance of the InterContinental Paris – Le Grand Hotel for this private viewing
- Tuesday, October 24
- 8:00 a.m.Breakfast ChatsVerriere Lobby
- 8:15 a.m.Micro-Mobility in Cities: Minor Trend or RevolutionAlma Tsur Revivo, Senior City Planner, City of Tel-Aviv
- 8:15 a.m.The Power of PartnershipPeter Harris, Director, Sustainability, EMEA Region, UPS
Barbara Ivanov, Director, Urban Freight Lab
Rob Bole, General Manager, CityLab.com - 8:15 a.m.Civic Intelligence: How will city leaders leverage public/private data to make more informed decisions?Marius Macku, Senior Associate Public Policy & Government Relations, EU - Uber
Scott Schwaitzberg, Solution Lead, City Voices, McKinsey & Company - 8:15 a.m.From Procurement Paralysis to Inspired Action: Tales from the Front LinesSascha Haselmayer, Chief Executive Officer, Citymart
- 8:15 a.m.The Next Big Investment Opportunity: Climate ProgressCarl Pope, Vice-Chair, America's Pledge, Bloomberg Philanthropy
- 8:15 a.m.Sandbox TourLower Verriere (meet across from the Hotel Bar)
- 9:00 a.m.Morning PlenarySalon Opera, Ground Floor
- 9:00 a.m.WelcomeMargaret Low, President, AtlanticLIVE, The Atlantic
- 9:05 a.m.Refugees: From Accommodation to IntegrationRobert Barr, CEO & Founder, Jobs4Refugees
Nastaran Fekri, Solution Consultant, PayPal
Sylvain Lemoine, Advisor to the Mayor for Social Issues, City of Paris
With Mary Louise Kelly, Contributing Editor, The Atlantic - 9:30 a.m.Cultivating Creative CitizenshipTommi Laitio, Executive Director, Culture and Leisure, City of Helsinki
Matteo Lepore, Deputy Mayor, City of Bologna
Amalia Zepou, Vice Mayor, Municipality of Athens
With Andrea Coleman, Government Innovation, Bloomberg Philanthropies - 10:00 a.m.Joining Forces: The Collective power of the Private Sector*Hany Fam, Executive Vice President, Enterprise Partnerships, Mastercard
Parag Khanna, Global Strategist and Author
*A session produced by our underwriter Mastercard - 10:10 a.m.Mapping the Way: A Vision for More Inclusive TransitEric Garcetti, Mayor, City of Los Angeles
With Steve Clemons, Washington Editor at Large, The Atlantic
Catherine Barbé, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Société du Grand Paris
Mauricio Rodas, Mayor, City of Quito
With Steve Clemons, The Atlantic - 10:40 a.m.Living History: Memorials, Public Art and Civic IdentityTor Einar Fagerland, Professor, The Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NTNU
Kate Levin, Arts Program Lead, Bloomberg Philanthropies and Principal, Cultural Assets Management, Bloomberg Associates
Esther Shalev-Gerz, Contemporary Artist
With James Fallows, National Correspondent & Europe Editor, The Atlantic
Karen Freeman-Wilson, Mayor, City of Gary
With James Fallows, The Atlantic - 11:20 a.m.Closing ThoughtsMargaret Low, The Atlantic
- 11:40 a.m.Afternoon Breakout SessionsFirst floor
- 11:40 a.m.Mayoral Powers in the Age of New Localism With the Brookings InstitutionRoom: Messager
G.T. Bynum, Mayor, City of Tulsa
Tim Bowles, Mayor, City of West of England
With Alaina Harkness, Fellow, Centennial Scholar Initiative, Project on 21st Century City Governance, Brookings Institution - 11:40 a.m.Cities of Big Brotherly Love: How to Make the Most of Citizen DataRoom: Chopin
Eddie Copeland, Director of Government Innovation, Nesta
Sheila Dugan, Director of Cities, Center for Government Excellence, Johns Hopkins University
Aik van Eemeren, Innovation Manager, City of Amsterdam - 11:40 a.m.Hidden Citizens and the Fight Against Urban LonelinessRoom: Mozart
Laura Alcock-Ferguson, Executive Director, Campaign to End Loneliness
Peter Mangan, Founder & CEO, Freebird Club
Julio Calvo, Director of Planning and Innovation, City of Barcelona
With Eric Liu, Founder, Citizen University and Executive Director of Citizenship and American Identity Program, The Aspen Institute - 11:40 a.m.Building A Culture of Innovation: An Interactive Debate About What Works and What Doesn’tRoom: Lulli
Ethan Berkowitz, Mayor, City of Anchorage
Sylvine Bois-Choussy, Coordinator, La Transfo Project
Piret Tõnurist, OECD Systems Change Expert
With Stephanie Wade, Innovation Teams, Senior Program Manager, Bloomberg Philanthropies - 12:40 p.m.LunchVerriere Lobby
- 1:10 p.m.Afternoon PlenarySalon Opera, Ground Floor
- 1:10 p.m.Waste Not: How Cities Can Help Keep Food on the TableMegan Barry, Mayor, Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County
With Adam Freed, Principal, Sustainability, Bloomberg Associates - 1:20 p.m.The Age of Citizen PowerEric Liu, Founder, Citizen University and Executive Director of Citizenship and American Identity Program, The Aspen Institute
- 1:35 p.m.A Home in the World: The Good Chance TheatreMajid Adin, Animator and Filmmaker
Joe Murphy, Co-Founder, Good Chance Theatre
Joe Robertson, Co-Founder, Good Chance Theatre
With Alison Stewart, Contributing Editor, The Atlantic - 2:00 p.m.Identity and Belonging: The Souls of a CityChimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Writer
Ta-Nehisi Coates, National Correspondent, The Atlantic
With Jeffrey Goldberg, Editor-in-chief, The Atlantic - 2:20 p.m.Closing Thoughts (and a Special Announcement!)Kathleen Carlson, Government Innovation, Bloomberg Philanthropies