How one of the world’s most rapidly urbanizing regions copes with extreme weather, resource scarcity and surging demand for reliable energy will be addressed by Bechtel’s Ian Laski, Region President , Asia, at an upcoming panel event at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), “Driving Sustainable Urbanization in Asia."
The panel, to be held tomorrow from 1:30-3:00pm at CSIS headquarters in Washington, D.C., will focus on the challenge for the development community posed by the fact that nearly 200 million people moved into East Asian cities from 2000 to 2010.
During the session, the panel of experts -- including representatives from IBM, the Millennium Challenge Corp and the Asian Development Bank – will explore ways in which urbanization can become a driver of development and stability through targeted investments from donors, host country governments, civil society, and the private sector. The discussion will focus on infrastructure, technology, and financial services.
“Southeast Asia’s urbanization is an economic opportunity, yet it also can be a constraint and challenge to long-term sustainable development,” said Laski. “Future-proofing Asia’s infrastructure requires a commitment to better project selection, financing and partnerships. Bechtel has contributed to a century of global development and has addressed big urbanization challenges with bold infrastructure solutions worldwide -- from Saudi Arabia, to the UK and select countries in Africa.”
Follow the conversation about the importance of sustainable infrastructure on Twitter during the event Wednesday by typing in the hashtag #build100.
