More than 500 urban leaders, including dozens of mayors from around the world, convened in D.C. this week for the 10th annual Bloomberg CityLab, a three-day conference focused on sharing effective and innovative strategies for solving urban problems.
“Washington is known as our capital and a symbol of democracy, but it’s not so often that D.C. — the city we call home — gets its moment in the spotlight,” said Bunmi Akinnusotu, director of City Innovation at the Aspen Institute, which co-hosts CityLab along with Bloomberg Philanthropies. “As a thriving, diverse metropolis which faces challenges shared with many other cities, we were proud to showcase D.C. in all its rich complexity to mayors and urban leaders from all over the world.”
The D.C. region did receive the spotlight throughout the conference, with the first morning’s session on Wednesday featuring both Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, who used the occasion to announce a new initiative aiming to create a pipeline to D.C. government employment for seniors from Howard and the University of the District of Columbia.
Numerous “field trips” invited attendees on group explorations of the Martin Luther King Jr. Library, the neighborhood murals around Union Market, and the Frederick Douglass Bridge and Anacostia Riverwalk Trail, among other tours.
Brandon Hill, a Baltimore-born and D.C.-based artist, also spoke at the conference. Hill, whose design agency, No Kings Collective, is behind several renowned public art projects across the District, created the artwork used throughout the conference materials. A number of media figures based in D.C., including We Act Radio’s Kymone Freeman, participated as well.
Other major themes running through the conference sessions included the need for renewed focus on urbanization in Africa; the impact of climate change on cities; and opportunities for city governments to build
Multiple panel discussions addressed specific projects in the DMV region, including Baltimore’s efforts to engage with and employ youth working as “Squeegee Boys” and D.C.’s current and future investments in community-centered public spaces along the Anacostia River.
“It’s been energizing to hear from everyone else participating in these panels because you recognize that although our cities are very unique, the legacy of disinvestment, especially in urban BIPOC communities across our cities, is all too familiar,” said Richard Trent, executive director of Friends of Anacostia Park, in a panel Friday morning.
He went on to discuss how his organization, and partners like the 11th Street Bridge Project, have invested in job creation and community activation in the park.
“What’s become abundantly clear, especially as it pertains to urban parks, is that the health of the conservationists matters, just as much of the work of conservation itself,” Trent said. “The work that we’re doing through green workforce development, and these creative placemaking strategies that are lifting up the folks who are actually going to be the stewards of these urban parks, and it expands our vision, the vision of environmentalism.”
