In the summer of 2019, NewCities launched the first ever Wellbeing Cities Award, in partnership with the Novartis Foundation, Novartis US Foundation, the City of Montréal, and in collaboration with the Toyota Mobility Foundation, Transdev and the U.S. Green Building Council.
We had more than 115 participating cities from nearly 30 countries and 5 continents throughout the year. The inaugural Wellbeing Cities Forum gathered 250 urban leaders in Montréal on June 19th and 20th, 2019 — showcasing many highly innovative and inspiring solutions from around the world.
Meet our 2019 laureate cities
Our Laureate cities, Milan, Pune, Kigali, Lisbon, and Santa Monica are actively transforming urban life by investing in public health, strong communities, a thriving and sustainable environment, and the local economy. Their success stories provide testimony to what can be achieved when planning and policies focus on creating a better quality of life for the community.
Scroll down for more details on the finalist and laureate cities, their selected initiatives, and access op-eds by the laureate cities’ mayors.
Governance of the 2019 Wellbeing Cities Award
Advisory Board
The 2019 Wellbeing Cities Award was advised and guided by an Advisory Board composed of urban experts, each with keen insight into a particular sphere of urban wellbeing. The Advisory Board was chaired by Dr. Ann Aerts, Head of the Novartis Foundation and John Rossant, Founder of NewCities.
Members of the Advisory Board
- Amy Fry, President of the Novartis U.S. Foundation
- Caspar Herzberg, President of Middle East & Africa Region, Schneider Electric & Author, Smart Cities, Digital Nations
- Vatsal Bhatt, Director of Cities and Communities at the U.S. Green Building Council
- Lamia Kamal-Chaoui, Director, Center for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities, OECD
- Jeff Risom, Partner, Chief Innovation Officer, Gehl Architects
- Dr. Jo Ivey Boufford, President of the Internationa Society for Urban Health, Professor of Global Health at NYU
Jury
The 2019 laureates of the Wellbeing Cities Award were selected by an esteemed jury of experts composed of:
- Arianna Huffington, CEO, Thrive Global
- Dr. Aisa Kirabo Kacyira, Former Deputy Executive Director and Assistant Secretary-General, UN Habitat
- Daniel Libeskind, Architect and Founder, Studio Libeskind