Dear Colleagues and Friends,
On behalf of the whole Presidency and the UCLG team, I would like to wish you a happy Holiday Season and a peaceful New Year.
2014 has been a successful year for our World Organization which has seen renewed commitments from local leaders around the world and increased recognition of the role of local and regional governments in the international agenda.
2015 will be instrumental to ensure that our views are further taken into account in the definition of the Sustainable Development Goals and in the definition of the New Urban Agenda as we work towards Habitat III.
I further hope that we will be able to keep working in solidarity, learning from each other and promoting peace and understanding. Our strength lies in our capacity to unite our voices and build on our respective experiences.
I very much look forward to working with you in the coming year and allow me in the meantime to renew to you the expressions of my highest regard .
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
Kadir Topbaş
Mayor of Istanbul
President of United Cities and Local Governments
