Embrace Jeju Island | The 2nd Jeju World Natural Heritage International Photo Competition

Under the theme “Embrace Jeju Island”, the UNESCO World Natural Heritage Office of Jeju Special Self-Governing Province is holding the 2nd International Photo Competition from March 1, 2010 to May 31, 2010. Any photos of landscape and ecology including World Natural Heritage Districts are acceptable. Everyone can join the competition with number of entries minimum 3 and maximum 5 photos of any format. All participants will compete for 10,000,000 KRW of Grand Prize. Click here for the competition guideline.

Jeju Island which has the panoramic views of the great nature through the four seasons is inscribed as UNESCO World Natural Heritage. It is the second year of inscription. Therefore, in order to refresh the meaning of the first UNESCO World Natural Heritage and to promote its natural beauty, the 2^nd Jeju World Natural Heritage International Photo Competition is held. Click here for further details of the competition.

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Dear Members of  UCLG ASPAC,

The Presidency, Secretariat and  all members of United Cities and Local Governments Asia Pacific express their solidarity with the people of Chile.

Early Saturday morning on 27 February 2010, an 8.8 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Chile collapsed buildings, damaged roads and triggered a tsunami warning throughout the Pacific. Death toll stands at 708; numbers are expected to grow.

According to the USGS, the quake struck at 3:34 a.m. (1:34 a.m. ET) off the Pacific coast at a depth of nearly 22 miles (35 km) and about 60 miles (100 km) northwest of Chillan, Chile. Santiago, the capital, is 200 miles (325 km) northeast of the epicenter.

Saturday's quake was 700 to 800 times stronger than the 7.0-magnitude quake that struck Haiti in January, which left some 212,000 people dead and more than 1 million homeless. 

It is with great sadness that they have witnessed the dramatic unfolding of the consequences of this catastrophe.

This is a moment of grieving but also one which calls for urgent action; the UCLG ASPAC Presidency encourages all its members to support the Chilean Local Governments.

 UCLG ASPAC shall keep its members informed of the humanitarian aid operations to which they can lend support as well as initiatives directed at Chilean Local Governments.

On behalf of UCLG ASPAC:

                      Mayor Kim Bumil                                                                  Emeritus Mayor Peter Woods OAM

                           President                                                                                  Secretary General

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Daegu Sends Medical Aid to Haiti

Daegu Metropolitan City’s Keimyung University Dongsan Hospital provided a medical team as part of the worldwide aid to Haiti’s victims of last month’s earthquake, which demanded a death toll of over 100,000 casualties.

The team comprising six medical doctors and two nurses which offered medical care had been put together in cooperation with charity organization Korea Food for the Hungry International.

The aid workers who had been deployed for a period of one week, returned home safely on February 4^th upon completion of their voluntary mission.

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4th Asia Partners Workshop

9-11 March 2010 | Jakarta

The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), International Co-operation Agency of Association of Netherlands Municipalities (VNG International) and United Cities and Local Governments Asia Pacific (UCLG ASPAC) are jointly organising the 4^th Asia Partners Workshop to take place in Jakarta from March 9^th to 11^th, 2010. The first workshop was held in Phuket in March 2007, the second in Manila in April 2008 and the third in Hanoi in February 2009.

The Fourth and last Asia Partners Workshop will focus on exchanging experiences on and drawing conclusions from Local Government Association (LGA) partner’s work in advocacy and financial sustainability over the past 2-3 years in order to inform future LGA planning and interventions. It will also be an opportunity to share knowledge and lessons on case studies documented by participating LGAs (from particular countries such as Cambodia, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Pakistan) and to strengthen linkages and determine the future development of the network.

Dr. Ing. Fauzi Bowo, in his capacity as Governor of Jakarta Capital City Government, President of the Indonesian Association of Provincial Governments (APPSI) and Co-President of UCLG ASPAC, will open the workshop on Tuesday morning, 9^th March, and host a welcome dinner for workshop participants.

On the last day, Friday 11 March, the Workshop will have a special session on Public Private Partnership for Infrastructure Development hosted by Cities Development Initiative for Asia (CDIA).

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Decentralised Wastewater Treatment Solutions in Developing Countries Conference and Exhibition

23-26 March 2010 | Surabaya

The International Water Association (IWA) and Bremen Overseas Research and Development Association (BORDA) are organising a Conference and Exhibition on Decentralised Wastewater Treatment Solutions in Developing Countries to take place from 23 to 26 March 2010 in Surabaya. The Conference will be kindly hosted by Surabaya City Government, one of city members of UCLG ASPAC.

The Conference aims to bring together top wastewater and sanitation experts, governments, utilities and international agencies to share and discuss their expertise, knowledge and experiences on decentralized wastewater treatment solutions. Some of the key areas that will be examined include technical decentralized options, community-based sanitation, management options, best practices, and sanitation up-scaling and integration.

The Conference will consist of a single track with presentations from invited speakers who are leaders in the field of decentralized sanitation as well as those voluntarily submitting abstracts.

For further information on the conference, kindly visit its official website at http://www.dewats-surabaya.com/

The following contact persons are available for your inquiries regarding the conference and registration:

Catherine Chan
Conference Secretariat
c/o Event Pulses Pte Ltd
Tel: +65 - 6468 8812
Fax: +65 - 6221 2989
Email: secretariat@dewats-surabaya.com

Brenda Lai
Manager, East Asia & Pacific Regional Office
International Water Association
80 Toh Guan Road East,
WaterHub, 3rd Floor
Singapore 608575
Tel: +65 - 6316 9935
Fax: +65 - 6885 2526
Email: brenda.lai@iwahq.org

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Seoul City to Send Money, Supplies to Haiti

The Seoul Metropolitan Government will provide 100-thousand dollars in monetary aid and emergency relief supplies to Haiti, which lies in ruin following a magnitude seven earthquake that hit the Caribbean nation on Wednesday, Korean time.

Seoul says it will supply food and daily necessities at the earliest possible time, will participate in restoration activities and will join in other global humanitarian efforts.

Seoul officials say that due to the considerable amount of time it will take to purchase and deliver the supplies --- given that transport is virtually paralyzed in Haiti --- the monetary aid will be delivered first to the Red Cross Korean branch for prompt use.

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Dear members of the UCLG ASPAC,

The Presidency and the all members of United Cities and Local Governments Asia Pacific express their solidarity with the people of Haiti following the catastrophe caused by massive 7.0 magnitude earthquake which has struck the Caribbean island of Haiti on Tuesday 12 January 2010.

The Red Cross estimates that up to three million people in Haiti have been affected by Tuesday's earthquake and 45,000-50,000 people have died in Haiti's devastating earthquake, as rescue teams race against time to find survivors. The country's infrastructure has been devastated, the scope of the calamity enormous.

It is with great sadness that they have witnessed the dramatic unfolding of the consequences of this catastrophe.

This is a moment of grieving but also one which calls for urgent action; the UCLG ASPAC Presidency encourages all its members to support the Haitian local authorities.

UCLG ASPAC shall keep its members informed of the humanitarian aid operations to which they can lend support as well as initiatives directed at Haitian local authorities.