CITY GOVERNANCE BEST PRACTICES – PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

International round table about city governance will be held in organization of MBA Croatia Association on 25^th of April in Kongresni Centar Forum in Zagreb

Well-being of individuals and societies, outlining negative and positive features of life is something that we know as “quality of life”. It unites life satisfaction, including everything from physical health, family, education, employment, wealth, religious beliefs, finance and the environment. All the categories are mutually intertwined in both individual’s and societies living environment – city.

What is the actual definition of the city? What is the difference between small and large cities – metropolis? Is there a difference in governing them and what are the challenges? Are there any best practices that could be applied widely? What is expected to happen in city governance development from 2017 onward?

The goal of this round table discussion is to define and detect community governance best practices, share the experiences of the different profile majors, discuss the social awareness about quality of life among different cities and social action in raising it, implementation of past and current discoveries and future challenges.

Honorable guests that will speak on 25^th April in Kongresni centar Forum starting at 18:00 o’clock and present their own experiences and ideas are:

1. Alastair Watson, Lord Mayor of Bristol Councillor, Great Britain
2. Sandra Švaljek, Candidate for the Mayor of the City of Zagreb
3. Rupert Gole, Mayor of Šentrupert, Slovenia

For members of the Association of MBA Croatia admission is free, for RIT alumni tickets are available with 50% discount, while the non-members ticket price is 50.00 kn and it can be purchased through this link (online Entrio booking obligatory for all groups of visitors –> Entrio sustav).
              
   1. Alastair Watson                                           2. Sandra Švaljek                                                3. Rupert Gole

Alastair Watson was Lord Mayor of Bristol in 2015, one of the UK’s major cities. As Bristol’s ‘first citizen’ he chaired Full Council Meetings and worked with Council to promote the interests of Bristol at home and abroad. Prior to his appointment as Lord Mayor, he was a member of the ruling cabinet with responsibility for Children, Young People and Skills. He has chaired Scrutiny Committees, and sat on numerous other committees such as Resources, Place, Planning and Audit. He has also been a Member of Court for Bristol University, and is now an Honorary Alderman for the City of Bristol.

Alastair is a graduate of Oxford University, where he gained a degree in Material Science. He has an MBA from the Cranfield School of Management and worked as a management consultant in a wide variety of companies and organisations in both the public and private sectors. He has started up a number of companies, and grown a successful consultancy practice. Currently, he works as a freelance business consultant, is a member of the High-Tech Sector Group for the region and owns a restaurant with his son.

Dr. Sandra Švaljek is a Senior Research Associate at the Institute of Economics in Zagreb where she served as Director from 2005-2013. Between June 2013 and March 2015 she was Deputy Mayor of the City of Zagreb in charge of economy and urban development projects and Acting Mayor from October 2014 to March 2015. She was a member of the Croatian National Bank Council from 2000-13. Dr. Švaljek has authored and co-authored many journal articles and book chapters on public policy issues including healthcare reform, taxation and public debt. She holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Zagreb.

Rupert Gole is the mayor of the municipality of Šentrupert, which was established in 2007. Municipality Šentrupert was part of the project »Zlatni kamen« and has been awarded for the second the most advanced municipality in Slovenia in 2012 &  2015 and won »Zlatni kamen« award as the most pervasive developmental municipality in Slovenia. Between 2011 and 2013 Šentrupert won an award for the most innovative municipality in Slovenia.

In 2011, the project low-energy wooden kindergarten won the “Energy Efficient Project of the Year”, which was jointly awarded by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The municipality of Šentrupert is also the first from Slovenia received the certificate “100% Renewable Energy Municipality” project of the European Commission – the award was Kaslu in Germany. Rupert Gole was in 2014 named the 52 ambassadors of knowledge in Slovenia. Developer model Šentrupert Municipality, has been selected for presentation at the First International Congress of Green integral economy, as the best example of a comprehensive model for development of the local community.

Rupert Gole is an architect and until December 2011 he was regularly employed at the Faculty of Architecture where he lectured on the subject of Digital Methods and presentation and worked as an assistant for the course Residential buildings. In his architectural practice in the company Esplanada d.o.o.pa for more than twelve years he is  pursuing a number of projects built from wood.

About association:

MBA Croatia is an association of students and graduates of MBA programs in the Republic of Croatia. The activity of the Association is gathering students on MBA programs in the country and abroad; organizing lectures and seminars, connecting MBA students and graduates in business and social activities.

Sponsors:

Kongresni Centar Forum                                                                                Kutjevo