WeGO Establishes New Partnerships at the 9th General Assembly of the Silk-Road Universities Network (SUN) in Naples, Italy
Naples, Italy – The World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization (WeGO) successfully participated in the 9th General Assembly of the Silk-Road Universities Network (SUN) held in Naples, Italy, from 11-15 November 2024. The event brought together universities from across Asia, Europe, and the United States, providing a platform for academic exchange, collaboration, and the sharing of cultural and historical knowledge along the historic Silk Road.
WeGO’s participation in this key gathering marks a significant milestone in its commitment to advancing youth education in smart cities and sustainable urbanization through the WeGO Smart City Champions Program, a capacity-building initiative designed to empower young leaders in urban sustainability and smart city development.
During the event, WeGO signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the SUN Secretariat, laying the foundation for enhanced collaboration between the two organizations. The MoU focuses on promoting youth engagement in urban sustainability, smart city development, and cross-regional academic partnerships.
WeGO’s participation also sparked fruitful discussions with the event host Università di Napoli L’Orientale (Italy), as the team held a bilateral meeting with the university President to discuss the possibility of extending the Champions Program to local students and involving them in future offline workshops, both locally and internationally.
Further discussions were held with representatives from several prominent institutions, including the Chapman University (USA), the University of Coimbra (Portugal), the University of Donja Gorica (Montenegro), the University of Bucharest (Romania), the Ankara University (Turkey), the National University of Mongolia (Mongolia), and the Italian town of Eboli. These discussions centered on the potential involvement of these institutions in the WeGO Champions program, including opportunities for signing MoUs and hosting offline workshops. These collaborations are expected to expand the program’s global reach and impact, offering valuable learning opportunities for students and young leaders interested in smart city development.
Additional discussions also involved the possibility of these entities submitting project applications for the next edition of the Seoul Smart City Prize and participating in the upcoming Seoul Smart Life Week.
“The 9th General Assembly of the Silk-Road Universities Network presents a unique opportunity to deepen ties between universities across the Silk Road region and WeGO’s member cities,” said Eunbyul Elena Cho, Head of Program Department at the WeGO Secretariat. “We are excited to expand the WeGO Smart City Champions program through these valuable partnerships and explore the possibility of joint projects and workshops with universities from diverse regions.”
The 9th General Assembly served as an important platform for WeGO to engage with rectors, professors, and other university representatives able to connect students with smart city topics. WeGO looks forward to advancing its mission of fostering collaboration among cities, universities, and stakeholders worldwide to promote sustainable development of smart, resilient cities.
About WeGO
The World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization (WeGO), is a membership-based international association of local governments, smart tech solution providers, and institutions committed to the transformation of cities into smart sustainable cities through facilitating public-private partnerships (PPP). WeGO was founded by 50 member cities in 2010 as the World e-Governments Organization, hence our acronym. In response to the evolving concept of smart cities, WeGO expanded its vision and mandate at the 7th General Assembly (2017) and its name to the World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization. WeGO’s Secretariat is based in Seoul, Korea, and has regional offices in East Asia (Chengdu, China), the Mediterranean (Beyoglu, Turkey), Africa (Abuja, Nigeria), Middle East & North Africa (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates), Latin America (Cuenca, Ecuador), and Central Asia (Almaty, Kazakhstan). As the leading platform on smart city development, WeGO’s mission is to share knowledge and good practices in e-Governance; strengthen administrative efficiency and transparency; advance digital capacity; facilitate civic involvement; bridge the digital divide and inequality; and promote cooperation solidarity among cities and local governments around the world.
WeGO serves for its members as their international platform to improve the quality of life, innovate in the delivery of public services, and strengthen regional competitiveness.
Press Contact:
Name: Kakim Danabayev
E-mail: kakim@we-gov.org
Phone: +82-70-4202-9169