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  • Why Cities Struggle to Implement – and How Urban Future Responds

    2026 Event Programme Revealed: From city centres and democracy to AI and circular construction
    JANUARY 19, 2026 | LJUBLJANA – Across Europe, cities know what needs to change. The harder question is how.
    This challenge sits at the core of the newly released programme for Urban Future 2026 (UF26), Europe’s Better-Cities Event, taking place in Ljubljana from March 24–27. The programme brings

    Urban Future official 2026 Programme out now

  • Urban Future 2026 Unveils First Speakers

    Urban Future 2026 will take place in Ljubljana from March 24–27, 2026, featuring over 2000 city innovators. Focused on sustainable urban transformation, it introduces diverse speakers and engaging formats, including field trips showcasing progressive city projects and strategies.

    The first speakers of UF26 have been announced within the "People Make Cities" Campaign.

  • Ljubljana Prepares To Host The Better-Cities Event

    Ljubljana will host Urban Future 2026, Europe’s largest urban changemakers event, from March 24-27, 2026. The conference aims to promote sustainable city development, attracting over 2,000 participants to engage in workshops and discussions on urban innovation and sustainability practices.

    Mathis Hampel and Rok Žnidaršič on stage at the Urban Future UF26 kick-off event

  • Comeback Cities and Green Revolutions: Urban Future 2025 Spotlights Transformation

    Urban Future 2025 in Łódź gathers 2,000 urban innovators from over 120 cities, driving discussions on city transformation. The event promotes green urbanism, equity, and collaboration, showcasing successful city changes while empowering local communities to create sustainable, people-centered environments.

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You bump into a neighbour on a narrow, noisy pavement. A quick hello and you both move on. Now imagine that same encounter beside a shady bench in a quiet square.🌳🛋️ 𝐖𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫?   𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐠𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐭, 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫. You’ve got to meet him! 🤝 @charlesincities   The author of 𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐲 and co-founder of 𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 helps turn research on wellbeing into practical changes. @happy.cities   In Ottawa, the city transformed sections of 3 streets with seating, greenery and activities. Using Happy Cities’ research tool, staff and volunteers observed 𝟑.𝟓 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠. People surveyed were also more likely to believe a stranger would return their lost wallet.   𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞? 🎤🦄 Charles is joining us at 𝐔𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟕, and we’re already wondering: where would you start to help neighbours feel less alone – and how would you know it was working?   Bring a place you care about into the conversation in Istanbul. 💛   📅 April 6–9, 2027 📍 Istanbul, Türkiye

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You’ve spent months on a project to make your neighbourhood better. Then you present it to residents – and realise you’re having two very different conversations.   𝐌𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐬 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐦. 🤝   She’s led communications for 200+ urban projects, including 𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐚’𝐬 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐬 and 𝐋𝐨𝐰 𝐄𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐙𝐨𝐧𝐞. Her work tackles a familiar challenge: 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞’𝐬 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬?     With the Barcelona Superblocks, she helped make the trade-offs part of the conversation. A wider pavement means less space for cars. How do you work through different, equally legitimate needs?   For the Low Emission Zone, her team started with the air people were breathing. They spent months working with health professionals and local media to explain its impact on health before getting into the new rules.   💬 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡. 𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭.   🎤🦄 Maite is joining us at 𝐔𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟕, and we’re already wondering: 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧, 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧?   Bring your own challenge to Istanbul. We suspect you’ll have plenty to talk about. 💛   📅 April 6–9, 2027 📍 Istanbul, Türkiye

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You know those empty buildings you pass and think: 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭? 𝐌𝐚𝐱𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐙𝐚ï𝐭 has spent the past 13 years doing exactly that. And we’re very excited to introduce Maxime as our 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐔𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟕! 🎤🦄 As co-founder of 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐚 𝐀𝐒𝐁𝐋 in Brussels, Maxime has helped turn vacant buildings into homes and spaces where community ideas can take root. @communa_asbl More than 500 people, including people experiencing homelessness and refugees, have found housing through this work. Hundreds of citizen-led initiatives have found the space and support to grow. Here’s where the story gets especially interesting... 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭? Through a close partnership with the cooperative 𝐅𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐁𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐬, Maxime is helping communities hold on to the places they have brought back to life. 🔑🏘️ @fairgroundbrussels He’s taking buildings out of the speculative market FOR GOOD, giving neighbourhoods a permanent role in their ownership and governance.  At Urban Future, he’ll take us inside real examples from Brussels, Paris, Riga and Rome. We’ll hear about the models that worked, the obstacles that nearly stopped them and the unexpected allies who helped move things forward. If you care about housing, vacant spaces, citizen power or simply finding new ways to solve old urban problems, this is someone you’ll want to meet in Istanbul.

 We already have a few questions for him & we suspect you will too! 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐌𝐚𝐱𝐢𝐦𝐞! 💛 📅 April 6–9, 2027 📍 Istanbul, Türkiye

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Plot twist: we moved UF27. 🙈   Not far. Just 7 days closer.   🩵💙🩷 NEW DATE: APRIL 6–9, 2027 🩷💙🩵 (Hit #linkinbio to save it to your calendar)   Right in the heart of Istanbul, near Taksim Square, we’ll be taking over @intercontinentalistanbul. And the space? Pretty perfect for what we have planned.    Get ready for the most interactive Urban Future yet: hands-on, lively, full of chances to jump in and with views that are very hard to beat. 🤸🏾‍♂️👀   🎟️ Tickets drop December 1 🦄 Newsletter unicorns get an extra 27% off Early Bird for 24 hours.   You know what to do! Become part of the newsletter fam 👉 #linkinbio

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𝐃𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐍𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐥. 𝐖𝐞’𝐥𝐥 𝐝𝐨𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐭. ❤️‍🩹💪 The devastating floods have caused enormous loss, and many communities are facing a long road to recovery. For us at Urban Future, this hits close to home. Caro, one of our teammates, has spent a lot of time volunteering in Nepal and is currently there again. People in her community have been directly affected. We want to help, and we’d love our community to join us. 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞, 𝐔𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐢𝐭, 𝐮𝐩 𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐭𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐟 €𝟏,𝟎𝟎𝟎. €5 becomes €10. €20 becomes €40. Together, our contributions can make a real difference. 🤜🤛 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩? 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚 𝐟𝐞𝐰 𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞: 🙌 #linkinbio Or donate through any trusted organisation of your choice and send us a DM with your donation confirmation afterwards. If you can give, please do. If not, sharing this appeal helps too. 𝐋𝐞𝐭’𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐮𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐍𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐥. ❤️

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Admit it, your inbox is painfully boring right now.   📅 Meeting moved to 14:30 🔐 Password reset request ↩️ RE: RE: RE: Quick question   We know. You thought we had your password for a second, didn’t you? 👀   Ok, hear us out. What if your inbox had more of THIS: 🦄 Where and when to meet your fellow unicorns again 💡 People and ideas that could change your city 🎟️ Special discounts, programme news & opportunities you don’t want to miss   Much better.   Fair warning, though! The Urban Future newsletter may cause: ⚠️ An uncontrollable urge to improve your city ⚠️ Excessive sharing of good ideas with colleagues ⚠️ Sudden knowledge of what other cities are doing   Willing to risk it? 💌 Subscribe. #linkinbio

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Apparently, Urban Future doesn’t do staycations. 🤠🌍   From Istanbul to the Alps, from train rides to thermal baths, our unicorns have been getting around lately. 🏞️🦄🏝️ Now we want to see where YOU are taking Urban Future.   Spotted one of our stickers somewhere unexpected? Rocking your CityChanger T-shirt at the top of a mountain? Taking your bottle to the beach?   Wherever you’re recharging this summer, we want to see it.📍👟   📸 Snap it, tag us and take us along for the ride. Bonus points for unexpected locations!

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Cities become better when people start asking better questions.    ✦  𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐲, 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐚 𝐟𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞?    The solutions will always be local. But the questions are remarkably similar. These are the conversations we’ll be having at The Better-Cities Event: Urban Future 2027 in Istanbul.   🆘 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 - 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞 𝟏 ✦ How do we prepare before disaster strikes and respond more effectively afterwards?   🌱 𝐏𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞-𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 - 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞 𝟐 ✦ How do we help great local ideas spread beyond one street or neighbourhood?   ✨ 𝐔𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐧 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 - 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞 𝟑 ✦ How do we build cities that people trust, believe in and want to be part of?     Now we need your help. We’re looking for the speakers, projects and organisations already showing what’s possible. If someone should be on our stage, tell us. 👉 #linkinbio

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A few days in Istanbul. About a thousand ideas later. 🇹🇷💭 We explored venues, worked on session topics, met potential partners and discovered hidden corners of the city. Inspiration was waiting everywhere. Urban Future is more than a conference. It is a series of experiences and conversations that continue over coffee, on ferries, around dinner tables and while wandering through neighbourhoods and bazaars. 🌳☕️🌆   𝘞𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳!   A huge thank you to Leyla, Nurbanu, Cem, and everyone at Türkiye Tasarım Vakfı, Humane Urbanism & İstanbul Planlama Ajansı for sharing your city, ideas and local knowledge with us!

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We went to Istanbul last week to scout locations & potential partners, explore neighbourhoods, and get to know the city.   But first, priorities. 🐈   If you’ve ever been to Istanbul, you’ll know that cats are highly revered by locals. They’re cared for by neighbours, shopkeepers and café owners, and you’ll find them napping on chairs or supervising just about everything.   🐾 So here’s our entirely unplanned (but completely necessary) collection of Istanbul kitties.    We’ll show you more of the city next... Promise. 😸🇹🇷

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One street is full of life. Another sits empty. One city attracts talent. Another watches its young people leave. 🌆   𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞?   Some places seem to have a magnetic pull. They attract talent, inspire pride & leave a lasting impression. It rarely happens by accident.   At 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫-𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭 in Istanbul, we’ll explore 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞 𝟑: 𝐔𝐑𝐁𝐀𝐍 𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆. We’ll look beyond logos and marketing to discover how cities build identities that people genuinely connect with.✨   Together, we’ll turn questions like these into ideas for action:   📍 How can cities earn the trust of their citizens through better services and more responsive government? 📍 How do culture, public space, architecture and local stories shape the way people experience a place? 📍 Can digitalisation and AI make city life simpler, fairer and more human - not just more efficient? 📍 When a city transforms, how can residents feel part of the journey rather than left behind? 📍 How can cities build on their citizens’ experiences to create an authentic identity that attracts talent, investment and visitors? 📍 As cities evolve, how can they strengthen their reputation without losing what makes them unique? 📍 How can cities and their surrounding regions work together to create a stronger, more recognisable identity?     Every city has a story. The most memorable ones are written by people who understand what makes their place different & have the courage to build on it. 🌍   We’re looking for cities, districts, organisations and individuals who are redefining what their place stands for. 𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬?   Nominate them now 👉 #linkinbio

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Vacant shops. Quiet squares. Ideas waiting for someone to say: 𝘓𝘦𝘵’𝘴 𝘥𝘰 𝘪𝘵. 👧🏾👨🏻‍💼👱🏻‍♀️🙍🏽‍♂️👩🏻‍🦰👩🏻👨‍💼👧🏽 Every city is full of people who spot opportunities long before they appear in a strategy or masterplan. Why do some people take the first step while others stay on the sidelines? And how do we make it easier for more people to turn good ideas into lasting change?   At 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫-𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭 in Istanbul, we’ll explore how cities can unlock that energy in 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞 𝟐: 𝐏𝐄𝐎𝐏𝐋𝐄-𝐏𝐎𝐖𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐃 𝐂𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐄𝐒. 🌱🤝 Together, we’ll turn questions like these into ideas for action:   💪 You have an idea for your neighbourhood. Where do you find the people, funding and support to make it happen? 💪 How do grassroots projects grow from a single street or community into city-wide change? 💪 How can local governments become partners who help great ideas move faster? 💪 How do we help community initiatives survive beyond their first grant?   Some of the biggest changes in our cities begin with residents, local businesses, community groups or public servants - those who prove that transformation can start from the ground up.   𝐖𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞. 𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬?    Nominate them now 👉 #linkinbio

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