The first edition of Tilia – Today's Ideas and Leadership in Action (Romanian Cities Summit), organised on 23-24 April at the Palace of Culture in Iaşi by the Iulius Foundation in partnership with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), brought together 600 in-person participants and more than 300 virtual participants.
The format connected local and central government, architects, urban planners, international financing experts, as well as the business community, academia, and civil society.
The summit approached urban development from two perspectives. While the first day was dedicated to vision, urban design, architecture, mobility, and wellness in cities, the second day looked at tangible solutions, infrastructure, financing, European funding, and public-private partnership (PPP) mechanisms.
Charles Montgomery, Author of Happy City and one of the most influential urbanists in the world, talked about the direct connection between urban design, social trust, and people's wellbeing. In his keynote presentation titled "The Science of Happy Cities and Human Wellbeing", Montgomery pointed out that "urban design dictates behavior, and the cities we are building today can bring us closer together or, conversely, isolate us" and that "designing car-centered cities causes us to lose space, freedom, and ultimately happiness."
Stefan Behling, Senior Executive Partner Foster + Partners, known for landmark projects such as Apple Park, German Parliament headquarters, and Kuwait International Airport, explored the need to reconnect cities with nature and with people's real life experiences. "Architecture is not only about buildings, but experiences. We must give cities back to the people and create spaces they can truly enjoy. We aim to create healthier places for the people and to help nature return to cities," said Stefan Behling.
Raluca Munteanu, Development Manager at Iulius, presented the projects developed by the company and their underlying vision, namely that major urban transformations are driven by courage, confidence, and the ability to see potential where others only see limitations. "At Iulius, we believe in building for generations, not for quick returns. Our greatest challenge is neither the money, not the permits – but rather convincing the government, the locals and our team that a place can become greater than it is today," said Munteanu.
