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Penang, Malaysia Mayor to be the next director of UN Habitat
Photo Credit: (Christopher Swope), Citiscope On December 20, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres informed the United Nations General Assembly of his intention to appoint Dato’ Maimunah Mohd Sharif as the next Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat). The decision came after a series of consultations with the Chairpersons of the regional groups of UN’s Member States. Ms. Sharif is the current Mayor of Penang City Council in Malaysia. Before becoming the local chief executive of Penang City, she was the first female president of the Municipal Council of Seberang Perai. She led Seberang Perai to attain its vision, “To make Seberang Perai cleaner, beautiful, comfortable place to stay, work, investment and tourist attraction by 2018”; having been able to produce its first Tourist Map, Heritage Trail, and Coffee Table Book. A staunch advocate of inclusive planning, development, and administration, she uses the Gender Responsive Participatory Budgeting process in preparation of the city’s annual budget. She has also formed a committee tasked to integrate gender perspectives into the local governance process. She is a prolific figure in international and local conferences and has been awarded recognition by the Penang State Government, Malaysian Government, and international organizations. The Malaysian Institute of Planners lauded her as Planner of the Year in 2014. In the same year, she was given the award, Darjah Setia Pangkuan Negeri, bestowing the title Dato. Dato’ Maimunah Mohd Sharif during ICLEI SEAS' session at the ASEAN Mayors Forum 2017 as she talked about lessons and experience in transforming Seberang Perai into a low carbon town. Her involvement with ICLEI sprawls many years; in 2014 she was elected as one of the members of the Regional Executive Committee of ICLEI Southeast Asia. On December of the same year, she was voted as the region’s representative to ICLEI’s Global Executive Committee. On October 18, 2016, citing her work on Seberang Perai’s sustainable planning, she received the Global Human Settlements Outstanding Contribution Award—presented by the Global Forum on Human Settlements on Quito, Ecuador during the UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III).
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Yogyakarta’s Enhanced Bus System as Seen through the Lens of its Beneficiaries
The Enhanced Bus System…
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Local governments take the spotlight in talks of NDC implementation and post COP 23 deliberations
(L-R) Associate Programme Officer,…
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Building urban resilience through inclusive and participatory city climate action planning
ICLEI Secretary General and…
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Cities share success stories on financing and planning for urban resilience
GIZ Urban NEXUS Project…
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City officials and representatives join the Building Efficiency Accelerator Mobile Workshop
ICLEI Southeast Asia, in cooperation with the Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All), World Resources Institute, and International Finance Corporation held the Building Efficiency Accelerator (BEA) mobile workshop on November 29, 2017 with city representatives from Mandaluyong, Pasig, Santa Rosa, Parañaque, and Science City of Muñoz. The workshop aimed to enhance the participants’ knowledge on the Philippine Green Building Code and energy surveys; familiarize BEA cities to various examples of green and energy efficient buildings, and identify how BEA, development partners, and national government agencies can assist cities in their energy efficiency programs. The day kicked off with a back-to-back lecture by Atty. Maria Teresita G. Lacerna of the International Finance Corporation and Architect Mel Punsalan of the Philippine Green Building Initiative. Atty. Lacerna gave a thorough discussion of the Philippine Green Building Code; walking the participants through the most important steps of starting their own green building initiative. Citing their pilot project with Mandaluyong, Atty. Lacerna urged the city representatives to adopt an open mindset when it comes to transitioning to green building. Atty. Lacerna of IFC reiterated that building capacities of cities on green building rely on relevant laws and policies, technical energy expertise, and concrete examples through field visits. “We have to destroy the myths that say green building is complex and costly. We just need to find the simple yet effective measures.” Meanwhile, Architect Punsalan shared the Building Energy Use Survey, a tool that cities can readily use as a basis in drafting their respective Green Building Codes. Tours at energy-efficient buildings After the lecture, the participants proceeded to the Philippine Artisan Building. The building relies on solar power installed by Buskowitz Group, group of companies concerned with “Sustainability and Solar Photovoltaic Renewable Energy industry." Ms. Macy Tayco of ERA Solar gave a walking tour of the facility while highlighting the many benefits of going solar including resource and cost efficiency. City delegates toured the Philippine Artisan Building where the Buskowitz Group, one of the partners for this workshop, has installed solar panels. The next stop for the group is a solarized community in Via Verde, Batangas. Imperial Homes Corporation is the developer of Via Verde; a two-hectare community primarily consisting of two-bedroom houses and row houses. Each of the homes has a 500-watt solar facility. The developers gave a product demonstration of their solar facility; showing the participants the amount of power it can generate at a given time period and how the backup battery ensures the continuous supply in the event of a blackout. According to Rappler, the community’s efforts translates to “$1.4 billion in fossil fuel consumption and 941,000 tons of carbon emission elimination annually.” Residential units at Via Verde comes with a solar energy facility which allows residents to save costs on electricity. The last stop was the Hyundai Logistics Center at Calamba, Laguna. The architecture of the facility focuses on the principles of the company’s history, sustainability, and economy. Following the standards of the PGBI, the facility also follows the GREEEN: Geared for Resiliency and Energy Efficiency for the Environment standards. HLC is noted for its energy-saving lighting and ventilation features. Light-emitting diodes (LED) lights are installed throughout the facility while warehouses employ light monitors to let natural light in especially during daytime. To reduce its consumption, HLC also has its own water facility which recycles water used by car preparation areas. The facility collects rainwater too which is then used for siphoning, irrigation, and other purposes. Hyundai Logistics Center has award-winning facilities that promote resource efficiency. To increase green spaces throughout the area, HLC has roof gardens. These gardens are designed to improve the building’s insulation and to make the interior temperature cooler by as much as 5°C. These energy-efficient features of the building earned them the Kamagong Plaque awarded by the PGBI to buildings which have met their standards. BEA is one of the platforms under SE4All's Global Energy Efficiency Accelerator Platform. It assists sub-national governments in adopting best practices policies and implementation of building efficiency projects with the goal of doubling the rate of energy efficient improvement in the building sector by 2030. ICLEI SEAS coordinated BEA-related activities in Southeast Asia. BEA Mobile Workshop
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