Transcript Bridging the Green and Brown Agendas

Towards a Best Practices
Knowledge Management
System
Presentation by
Vincent Kitio
www.bestpractices.org
Best Practices’ Concept
United Nations General Assembly defines best practices
as initiatives which:

Have a demonstrable and tangible impact on
improving people’s quality of life;
 Result from effective partnerships between
public, private and civic sectors of society;
 Are socially, culturally, economically and
environmentally sustainable.
Genesis of Best Practices
The original call for Best Practices was launched in 1996
during Habitat II conference in Istanbul

The international community defined what constitutes
a best practice and adopted guidelines for their
documentation and dissemination.

The Habitat Agenda mandates that best practices be
used to monitor and assess progress in achieving
sustainable urbanization.

The Best Practices and Local Leadership Programme
(BLP) was established as a global network of public,
private and civil society organizations
Policy Relevance
Best Practices are promoted by UN-HABITAT as a
means of:
 Improving public policy based on what works;

Raising awareness of decision-makers at all levels &
of the general public of potential solutions to social,
economic and environmental problems;

Assessing emerging issues, trends and policy
responses;

Sharing & transferring expertise & experience
through networking & peer-to-peer learning city to city
collaboration.
Identification of Best
Practices
Identification is achieved through three principle means:

Targeted search by a global network of institutions;

Calls for best practices using the incentive of the biennial
Dubai Award for Best Practices & collaboration with
other award and recognition systems;

Ongoing research, operational activities and
development project & program.
Documentation of Best Practices

Best Practices are documented by people,
communities & organizations who are directly
involved in their implementation.

Documentation process is intended as a capacity
building exercise as well as an exercise in selfappraisal.

Standardized reporting format for the
documentation process has evolved over time
due to lessons learned & in response to emerging
issues and trends.
Documentation of Best Practices
The use of a common set of criteria and a standardized
reporting format is useful in identifying and analyzing
lessons learned on:

How people & communities perceive their problems &
what empowers them to undertake or initiate change;
 What obstacles people & their communities face &
approaches effective in overcoming them;
 What are the: roles, responsibilities & contributions of
different social actors & partners;
 Contributing factors in sustaining an initiative;
 Promising policy options, effective institutional
frameworks & governance systems.
Assessment of Best Practices
The evaluation of BP involves a three-step process:
validation; technical assessment; and normative
assessment.
Validation
 Involves the global network of partners, ad hoc
organizations, & individuals representing relevant
geographic and/or thematic expertise and experience.

The aim is to verify that information submitted is an
accurate reflection of reality.

The process is carried out through e-mail.
Assessment of Best Practices
Technical appraisal:
 Undertaken by independent technical advisory committee
consisting of 15 experts with equal geographical distribution
and gender balance.
 The committee meets physically & its mandate is to
differentiate between “best”, “good”, “promising” and “not
qualifier”.
 For each practice the following perspectives are considered:
 three basic criteria: impact; partnerships and sustainability
 additional criteria: leadership & community empowerment;
innovation within the local context; gender equality and
social inclusion; and transferability;
 Absolute merit within a national and/or local context;
 Relative merit in comparison to other practices from same
region or in same thematic area.
Assessment of Best Practices
Best Practices Jury
 Short-listed practices are forwarded to an
Independent Jury made of seniors professional
and formal ministers, policy makers, etc.
 The Jury uses similar approach in deciding on
award-winning practices.
 An international press-conference is organized to
announce the award-winners.
 The short-listed practices are used extensively for
research and analysis.
Knowledge Management Framework
Objectives/Activities
Target Audiences/
Users
Instruments
Awareness-building
Informed public
Media
Media professionals
Decision-makers
Dubai Award (DIABP)
ICLEI Local Initiatives
Stockholm Challenge
Award
UNDP Equator Initiative
UNEP Success Stories
Networking &
Information Sharing
Decision and policymakers
Practicing professionals
Training and Leadership
development institutions
Best Practice Databases
Publications/Articles
Web-pages, Newsletters
Listserv
Knowledge Management Framework
Objectives/Activities
Target Audiences/
Users
Instruments
Learning tools and
capacity-building
Training & leadership
development institutions
Local authority associations
Professional associations
Best Practice Case studies
Best Practice Casebooks
Issue briefs & articles
Training materials
Peer learning and city
to city cooperation
Local authority associations
Networks of NGOs/CBOs
International organisations
Multi- & bilateral
assistance
Transfer guides, methods and
tools
Match supply/demand for
expertise
Conferences & seminars
Advisory services
Policy Development
Decision-makers at all
levels
Policy advocacy groups
National governments
International & intergovernmental organizations
Database on urban policies
and enabling legislation
Policy trends and responses
Normative guidelines
State of the World’s Cities
Report
Knowledge Management Framework
Step-by-step approach to BP Transfers
• Match supply with demand
• Structure the learning process (study tours, staff
exchanges/secondment, leadership encounters,
incremental approach to change)
• Important role of third party facilitator (Local
government academy, professional association,etc.) for
monitoring and assessment
Environmental Sustainability
Fossato di Vico, Umbria, Italy
Context:
• Population of 2500 people situated in the region of the
Umbria, Italy;
• High level of migration in the 1950s and '60s to USA;
• Underdeveloped town with poor economic and social
state development;
• Progressive ageing of the population;
• High unemployment (prevalently female) and lack of
opportunities for youth;
• Violent earthquake in 1997 and the town suffered
damages to building and property; 60% in total, of
which 12% were totally unusable.
Environmental Sustainability
Fossato di Vico, Italy
Actions:
Good Leadership that make things happen;
Proper planning and use of emergency fund for the
reconstruction;
Use of appropriate consultants to study strength and weaknesses
of Fossato di Vico;
Priorities were identified through community participation and
consultations with all stakeholders (political parties, social
group, the private sector etc.);
Emphasis were put on historical and environmental aspects of the
territory;
Reorganize the Council Administration for efficiency and
transparency;
Public private partnership:
Environmental Sustainability
Fossato di Vico, Italy
Results:
Increase job opportunities, among women and youth.
All new buildings have antiseismic characteristics;
An information center to promote social inclusion
and integration support ageing people and
immigrants.
Citizens are environmentally conscious: solid waste
is recycled at all levels and a wind generator produce
clean energy
The private sector is now co-operating with social
and cultural initiatives.
A newsletter is published every 4 months to inform
the public on the activities of the municipality.
Twinship with 2 other cities in France and Germany.
Fossato di Vico is alive again after a long sleep
thanks to a committed leadership with a clear vision
and with the ability to make things happen.
Political Sustainability
Porto Alegre, Brazil
Context:
 Pervasive slums and social exclusion
 High levels of urban poverty and
unemployment
 Corrupt and unresponsive local
government
Political Sustainability
Porto Alegre, Brazil
Actions:
 Decentralisation &
empowerment of
communities;
 Participatory
Budgeting
and Municipal
Finance
Political Sustainability
Porto Alegre, Brazil
Results:
 Communities in control
of part of budget;
 Vastly improved
transparency & accountability
 Improved efficiency in planning &
management
 The URBAL 9 Network
initiated by Porto Alegre has
seen the replication of
Participatory Budgeting in 200 +
LAC and European cities
Lessons Learned

Process:
Process as important as
outcome;
2. Process is transferable,
not the solution;
3. Matching supply with
demand for knowledge,
expertise and experience
1.
Lessons Learned
Need to combine:

Physical improvements and tangible
economic benefits;
 Awareness building and effective
mechanisms for participation;
 Partnerships and improved governance;
 Decentralisation and capacity-building.
Lessons Learned




Need to focus more on up-scaling and transfer of
BPs
Need to combine BPs with good policies &
legislation
Need to promote the creation of national/regional
best practices knowledge management system;
Need to strengthen and mainstream
national/regional BPKM systems as a policy tool.
Pointers for the future
 Turn good practices into
policies
 Refocus debate on inclusive
and equitable development
 Eliminate competing
jurisdictions and redefine
the mandate of cities
 Balance between
participatory &
representative democracy