Speech

Thank you for the opportunity to speak at this critical juncture in the modern history of cities and nations.

In many respects, this Meeting of G7 Urban Ministers — the first ever — is the culmination of almost 50 years of research, thought, deliberation and discourse. Since the UN Habitat meeting in Montreal in 1976, networks of nations, cities and stakeholders have been working together to create a strong foundation for global action on sustainable urban development.

It is an absolute pleasure to be back in Barcelona, a city of breath-taking beauty, incomparable assets and kinetic energy.

I am here to speak about the kind of economy that this city and other leading global cities should strive to create for themselves — and for their regions and nations — in the midst of a waning pandemic and a rising global conflict.