Wellington gets $1m in funding as a 'Resilient City'
4 Dec 2014

Source: The Dominion Post
By: TIM DONOGHUE
Wellington has been named - along with Milan, London and Paris - as a "resilient city" worthy of funding by the Rockefeller Foundation.
The city of Wellington has $1 million in services heading its way after being named one of the New York-based Rockefeller Foundation's international network of 100 Resilient Cities.
The resilient cities scheme was launched last year by the foundation to help cities worldwide become more resilient to physical, social and economic challenges.
President of 100 Resilient Cities, Michael Berkowitz, said Wellington was selected because of its leaders' commitment to resilience building and the innovative and proactive way they had approached challenges.
He said Wellington could expect to receive about $1 million worth of expertise and resources over three years including funding to hire a chief resilience officer and assistance in developing a resilience strategy.
Mayor Celia Wade-Brown says the successful bid would mean increased access to expertise and resources here and overseas for Wellingtonians.
"Cities are learning that by building resilience, not only will they be better prepared for the bad times, but also life is better in the good times, especially for the poor and vulnerable," Rockefeller Foundation President Judith Rodin said in a statement.
Wellington and 34 other cities, including Sydney, were chosen from nearly 350 applications spanning over 90 countries. The United States is most represented, with six cities in the continental US and one in Puerto Rico, but there also are multiple selections in China and India.
About 30 other cities were named last year, and more applications will be taken next year.
The cities announced today are:
Accra, Ghana
Amman, Jordan
Arusha, Tanzania
Athens, Greece
Barcelona, Spain
Belgrade, Serbia
Bangalore, India
Boston, USA
Cali, Colombia
Chennai, India
Chicago, USA
Dallas, USA
Deyang, China
Enugu, Nigeria
Huangshi, China
Juarez, Mexico
Kigali, Rwanda
Lisbon, Portugal
London, England
Milan, Italy
Montreal, Canada
Paris, France
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Pittsburgh, USA
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Santa Fe, Argentina
Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic
Santiago (Metropolitan Region), Chile
Singapore
St. Louis, USA
Sydney, Australia
Thessaloniki, Greece
Toyama, Japan
Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA
Wellington, New Zealand