Joyful opening ceremony
- Mistra Urban Futures officially on track in Kisumu
In the presence of the Swedish Chargé d’affaires, the Mayor of Kisumu, representatives from the Kisumu municipality as well as the Minister for Local Government in Kenya and Vice Chancellor of the Bondo and Maseno University, the Kisumu Mistra Urban Futures office is officially opened at a celebrative event today.
Mistra Urban Futures is a global knowledge and research center within sustainable urban development and with ongoing research and knowledge production in five local interaction platforms around the world. Headquartered in Sweden, the center also operates in China, Kenya, South Africa and the UK.
The Kisumu local interaction platform has been in a build-up phase since 2011 and will now officially start some important research projects within the local area. Researchers from the Bondo and Maseno University together with researchers from Chalmers University of Technology and PhD students from University of Gothenburg (HDK, School of Design and Crafts, and School of Business, Economics and Law) will work together in the two flagship projects that have been started: Ecotourism and Marketplaces. Smaller exploratory initiatives in the areas of solar-powered urban agriculture, urban greening through co-energy generation and urban cultural history and heritage are also in the pipeline.
The Ecotourism project has a focus on climate change, environment and poverty alleviation, both in the Kisumu city as well as its surroundings. The Marketplaces project aims at understanding the dynamics of periodic market places in Kisumu city and its surroundings in the context of climate change, environment and poverty. Dunga Beach is the focus area for close cooperation with local partners, including fishermen, craft, tourism and entrepreneurs. Several workshops with key stakeholders are planned and substantial research is soon to be performed.
At the opening ceremony, there will be several speeches including a presentation of the planned research projects.
- I am very proud and pleased to be able to show what we are doing in the Kisumu area, says Professor Stephen Agong, Director of the Kisumu local interaction platform. And I’m delighted to welcome both the Mayor of Kisumu and the Swedish Chargé d’Affaires to our premises.
The program also includes a variety of entertaining activities, including a road show and a yearly football tournament, where wards from the Kisumu municipality will compete together.
For more information, please contact:
Prof. Stephen Agong, +254-722-760-538 , Director Kisumu Local Interaction Platform, Mistra Urban Futures (for questions related to Kisumu)
Susanne Björklund, +46 708 642780, Head of Communications, Mistra Urban Futures HQ (for global questions)
Facts about Mistra Urban Futures
Mistra Urban Futures is an international center for sustainable urban development. The headquarters is located in Gothenburg, Sweden and the center operates in five cities around the world including Cape Town, Gothenburg, Greater Manchester, Kisumu and Shanghai. Co-production of knowledge as well as creating Fair, Green and Dense cities is a winning concept for a successful sustainable urban future. A global Arena provides for interaction with external actors and between the five cities.
Download the press release below
Read more about the projects in Kisumu here
