Introduction
The International Academic Consortium for Sustainable Cities (IACSC) was established in September 2009 with an initiative of the Yokohama City University (YCU). It was originated from a meeting session entitled “Cities and Universities – Towards Collaboration for Sustainable Cities” during the conference of CITYNET, Yokohama on September 9, 2009, in which YCU served as a coordinator.
The IACSC aims to develop cooperation, to foster dialogues and discussions, to encourage sharing of information and resources and to promote research and collaborative activities among academic and research institutions as well as to strengthen relationship among universities and cities to contribute to a sustainable society.
There are three main units (environment unit, urban planning unit and public health unit) within the IACSC to achieve its goal.
International symposium sites and themes
| No. | Year | Venue | Hosting University | Theme | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2010 | Japan: Yokohama | Yokohama City University | Exploring Sustainable Cities: A New Role of Universities | Report |
| 2 | 2011 | Malaysia: Penang | Universiti Sains Malaysia | Towards a Sustainable Future: A Collaboration of Higher Education Institutions and Local Society | Report |
| 3 | 2012 | Thailand: Bangkok | Thammasat University | Re-imagining Sustainable Cities | Report |
| 4 | 2013 | The Philippines: Quezon/Manila | University of the Philippines | Transforming Cities into Sustainable and Resilient Communities | Report |
| 5 | 2014 | Vietnam: Ho Chi Minh | Vietnam National University | Opportunities and Challenges for Urban Sustainable Development | Report |
| 6 | 2015 | Japan: Yokohama | Yokohama City University | Global Partnership and Local Initiatives for Sustainable Cities | Report |
| 7 | 2016 | Malaysia: Penang | Universiti Sains Malaysia | Prosperous Urban Living | Report |
| 8 | 2017 | Thailand: Bangkok | Thammasat University | Well-being of Sustainable Living in Aging Population Era | Report |
| 9 | 2018 | The Philippines | University of the Philippines | Equity and Health in Urban Environments in the Era of Sustainable Development | Report |
| 10 | 2019 | Indonesia: Makassar | Hasanuddin University | Creating Resilient Cities with Diverse Urban Resources | Report |
| 11 | 2020 | Vietnam: Ho Chi Minh and online | Vietnam National University | Cities for People: From Theory to Practice | Report |
| 12 | 2021 | Japan: Yokohama and online | Yokohama City University | Co-creating Solutions to Urban Challenges beyond the Pandemic: Reimagining the role of higher education and IACSC | Report |
| 13 | 2022 | Malaysia: Penang and online | Universiti Sains Malaysia | Sustainable Urban Living in a Covid-19 and Climate Change Environment | Report |
| 14 | 2023 | Thailand: Bangkok | Thammasat University | Peri Urbanization - From Bangkok Metropolitan to Region | Report |
| 15 | 2024 | Philippines: Manila | University of the Philippines | Sustainable and Resilient Future Cities through Research and Innovation | Report |