APPROACH:
Given that 60% of AkzoNobel's products are used in the Buildings & Infrastructure and Transportation end-user segments, the company can play an important role in the process of urban transformation. AkzoNobel will therefore use its color, coatings, and chemicals expertise to not only help cities become structurally stronger and more resilient (for example, via products that help preserve energy, protect buildings, and make roads safer), but will also help make city life more energizing, inspiring, and enjoyable. This will involve going beyond the purely functional aspects that most urban strategies are restricted to. The aim is to also help cities and their citizens connect on a more emotional level. AkzoNobel will therefore help cities to build resilience by sharing both its hard and soft resilience expertise.
This commitment will be carried out in three parts. Firstly, AkzoNobel will develop an urban resilience guide for cities, outlining how the right coatings and chemicals can help build both hard and soft resilience into city systems. This will include, for example, explaining the importance of color to creating a sense of community and identity, and offering advice and guidance on the use of color in the urban space. AkzoNobel will also be commissioning research into the effects of color on building design. The findings of this research will be made available in the Urban Resilience Guide. Secondly, AkzoNobel will provide coatings and chemicals expertise to the Advisory Committees of the Rockefeller Foundation's 100 Resilient Cities (100RC) program, offering advice and guidance where needed. Finally, AkzoNobel will carry out projects in at least four of the cities in the 100RC network. Each project will explore the contribution of color and coatings to a particular aspect of resilience: from improving public health to protecting urban heritage, from community identity to economic prosperity, from education to social connection, and from reliable mobility to improving infrastructure efficiency. The company will work closely with 100RC to identify sites for these projects, to be staged in conjunction with 100RC, AkzoNobel Decorative Paints' Let's Color campaign, local authorities, and local people.
ACTION PLAN:
To implement this commitment, AkzoNobel will deploy the following Action Plan:
September 2014: Set up project team
October 2014: Provide AkzoNobel expertise to the appropriate 100RC committee to advise on color, chemical and coatings resilience (ongoing until the end of the commitment)
December 2014: Further scope the contents of the Urban Guide in cooperation with CGI / 100RC
December 2014 - January 2015: Identify four cities to take part in projects in partnership with CGI/100RC
December 2015 - March 2015: Develop first draft of the Urban Guide
April 2015: Publicize Urban Guide to all cities in the 100RC network
March - August 2015: Implement two projects taking into account the findings of the Urban Guide
August - November 2015: Update Toolkit on the basis of lessons learned via the projects and other 100RC experiences
November 2015 - June 2016: Implement two additional projects, taking into account the learnings from previous experiences and the Urban Guide
September 2016: Publish updated and improved Urban Guide to all cities in the 100RC network
To monitor progress towards implementing our Commitment, AkzoNobel proposes to schedule quarterly calls with 100RC and the Clinton Global Initiative. These calls will be used to share progress, identify challenges, and propose solutions.
By the 2050s, more than 75% of the world's population will live in cities. While cities provide great opportunities, they are also at the forefront of one of mankind's greatest challenges: climate change. Creating 'resilient' cities, cities that can withstand the effects of natural disasters and cope with other long-term stresses, is therefore one of the great challenges of our age, and everyone has a role to play.
One way of building resilience into city systems is to enable cities and their citizens to connect with each other on an emotional level. In fact, a recent Associated Press-NORC report commissioned by the Rockefeller Foundation shows that communities that bounce back most effectively from natural disasters and deal best with other long-term stresses are those that can address 'soft' resilience issues (such as community cohesion) as well as 'harder' issues like building design.
In June 2014, AkzoNobel launched its Human Cities Manifesto. It outlines some of the issues the company thinks cities across the world should be focusing on (including color, heritage, transport, sport, education, and sustainability) to ensure the creation of cities that are both more human and resilient. It also sets out the company's commitment to supporting cities in these key areas with knowledge, expertise and practical assistance. The Human Cities initiative builds on a number of existing AkzoNobel activities, such as its employee-led Community Program and global Let's Color campaign, as well as several external partnerships with organizations including the Rijksmuseum, UNESCO, and the Cruyff Foundation.
