Oslo, Norway.

The congress will discuss the rapidly-evolving topic of "Climate Change and Urban Design", and the latest implications in science, policy, education and best practice.

While our focus is on European place-making we will explore urban design examples from around the globe that offer opportunities to address critical climate change issues.

What is the latest science telling us? What are the consequences for urban development internationally? What are the practical solutions available to reduce climate gas emissions from urban settlements and transport? What strategies are available to adapt to changing conditions?

The C.E.U. congress will welcome government officials, planners, architects, social scientists, ecologists, developers, local community activists, and all other development stakeholders who feel a responsibility to contribute to more sustainable urban development.

The four C.E.U. congress themes:

Climate Change and Science:

What we know
What is the scientific evidence for or against particular links between urban form and contributions of greenhouse gases? What are the interrelationships? What are the pitfalls in research, and in its application? Papers will survey previous literature and/or present new research. We will explore the implications for further inter-disciplinary and inter-institutional research.

Climate Change and Public Policy:

What we must do
What are the steps being taken to address the contribution of urban design on climate change through public policy, and how well are they succeeding? What steps are being taken to mitigate initial diseconomies, create new incentives, ease regulatory restrictions, and shift market behaviour? What new tools are available - codes, certifications, trading systems, incentives?

Climate Change and Education:

How we will disseminate the skills to do it
How should academic and other institutions respond to the climate change agenda? How should design schools respond to the challenge? What alternative curricula are implied or required? How can curriculum reforms tie this agenda to wider social and environmental challenges?

Climate Change and Best Practice in Urban Design:

How we will implement it
What are the implications of climate change research for new standards of best practice? What does the evolving evidence suggest about the relative importance of such parameters as density, transit modes, mixed use, building height, social diversity, the relationship to agricultural lands and wilderness, and others? What about the relative benefits of retrofit versus new construction? How can best practice address issues of market acceptance and consumer choice? We will examine promising pilot projects from around the world, and evaluate their successes, weaknesses, and next steps in research and development.