On November 19, 2019, the Sustainable City & International Green Model City Workshop 2019 was successfully held in Qingdao West Coast New Area. Nearly 100 participants including officials from various Chinese cities, famous business leaders and experts attended the meeting. The Administrative Committee of Qingdao International Economic Cooperation Zone was also invited.

The workshop discussed the policy trend, initiative and standards of International Green Model City (IGMC) and strategies of sustainable land development and utilization. Zhang Jianguo, deputy head of the Administrative Committee of Qingdao International Economic Cooperation Zone made a keynote speech titled Exploration and Practice in Sustainable City & New International Green Model City which systemically introduced the green and eco-friendly practices in planning and construction of Qingdao International Economic Cooperation Zone.

The IGMC Initiative was launched by Global Forum on Human Settlements (GFHS) at UN headquarters in April 2011. The initiative has been improved constantly to keep pace with the times. As an innovative green and low-carbon urban development action plan supported by the UN, IGMC Initiative aims to use IGMC standards as the planning tool for evaluating and guiding sustainable city development. With innovative concepts and comprehensive strategies and methods, certification and monitoring system and solutions, pilot projects are carried out to create sustainable city environment and living environment shared by all, so as to help Chinese cities shift from quantitative increase to sustainable quality elevation. It facilitates the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Paris Climate Agreement and New Urban Agenda at regional and local levels. A number of well-known cities and companies have joined the IGMC initiative including Vancouver in Canada, Cape Town in South Africa, Manheim in Germany, Cuenca in Ecuador, Liuyang National Economic and Technological Development Zone, Xi’an Economic and Technological Development Zone, Vanke and Country Garden. Some of the cities or projects are already designated as IGMC pilots.