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RESHAPING OUR CITIES AND OUR THINKING
Our Conference for 2012 in Manchester Central will take its inspiration and its spark from its setting. Manchester used the traumatic event of the Arndale bomb in 1996 not as a reason to fear the future, but as a reason to re-fashion it.
After the European perspective from the shores of Lake Geneva in 2011, I envisage Manchester 2012 as being every bit as global in its perspective but with on-the-doorstep examples of what a transformative chapter has been written in the years since that event at The Arndale - and the lessons on which we as a sector can draw.
When we were last in Manchester for the BCO Annual Conference in 2004, the first signs of progress were visible, but at that stage even the most committed believers could not imagine the scale and impact of what has been achieved since.
Our first plenary session will set the scene for the story behind this incredible effort. It will focus on drivers of recovery in second tier cities. And there could be no-one better to make the opening introduction ahead of this than Sir Howard Bernstein, Chief Executive of Manchester City Council and one of the UK’s most dynamic and successful figures in urban regeneration.
Sessions that follow will range across occupiers, scarcity of supply, the creation of ‘neighbourhood cities’ and we’ll end with a truly global perspective, not only on where the economy is trending but also on how to deal with those changes.
A substantive agenda awaits, but so does the opportunity for meeting colleagues in a relaxed and enjoyable environment. I am looking forward to Manchester in 2012 and to an agenda that does what our industry does best - sets people thinking and sets the pace on shaping the world in which we live.
We look forward to seeing you in Manchester from 23-25 May 2012 and invite you to start the discussion now!
Which topics do you want to discuss? What do you think are the landmark developments in Manchester? Have your say and keep up to date via LinkedIn and Twitter.