The city of Singapore awards the Lee-Kuan-Yew World City Prize every two years. For 2020, Singapore has subsequently honored Vienna. Photo: Dimitry Anikin / Unsplash
Award winner Vienna
Every two years, the city of Singapore awards a prize for special achievements and contributions to the creation of liveable, sustainable and vibrant urban communities. For 2020, Singapore has subsequently honored Vienna. Read here what to make of the award and why Vienna won here.
On March 14, it was announced that the Austrian capital is the winner of the Lee-Kuan-Yew World City Prize for 2020. Every two years, Singapore awards this prize for outstanding achievements and contributions that create liveable, sustainable and vibrant cities. The 2020 winner was announced late due to the pandemic. In 2022, another city will also be chosen as this year’s winner.
The agency Urban Innovation Vienna submitted the application for the Lee-Kuan-Yew World City Prize on behalf of the city. The jury was particularly impressed by the combination of history and modernity, as Vienna has both a cultural and historical foundation and a sustainable, future-oriented vision for the future.
“I am very proud and grateful that Vienna has emerged as the winner among so many ambitious cities. We will continue on our consistent path of high quality of life for all with the greatest possible conservation of resources through social and technical innovations and remain a reliable partner for others,” said Mayor Michael Ludwig (SPÖ).
(Photo: Dimitry Anikin / Unsplash)
Vienna impresses with its "reinvention"
The jury of the Lee-Kuan-Yew World City Prize declared that Vienna had received the prize for its successful reinvention in the 21st century. The city had succeeded in preserving its special identity as the capital of culture, music and history. The jury also emphasized Vienna’s leading role as a climate-conscious city. Vienna’s urban development plan, STEP 2025, was described as the “epitome of a holistic planning approach”, as it represents a clear and shared vision.
Back in 1989, Vienna built a 21-kilometer flood protection channel, which can now also be used for leisure activities and is surrounded by a large park. Through these and other measures, Vienna has succeeded in improving the water quality and flow of the Danube in the city and the surrounding area. This has brought economic as well as social benefits, such as closer links between Vienna and its suburbs.
Social housing, affordable public transport and smart city
In addition to this focus on sustainability, the jury of the Lee-Kuan-Yew World City Prize also emphasized that Vienna is a pioneer in the field of social housing. There have been pioneering projects here since the middle of the 19th century. Today, Vienna offers a large number of affordable apartments and new communities, such as in Aspern Seestadt and at Nordbahnhof.
The jury was also impressed by the active promotion of cyclists and pedestrians in Vienna through a large network of public transport with multimodal connections. The annual public transport ticket in the city costs 365 euros, i.e. 1 euro per day. Since 2018, more Viennese have owned the annual ticket than a car. 28 percent of city residents walk, 7 percent cycle, 38 percent use public transport and 27 percent use motorized means of transport.
According to the jury, another reason why Vienna won the World City Prize is the Smart City Wien Framework Strategy. Since 2011, this strategy has been helping to optimize the quality of life in Vienna with the help of smart city technologies. Innovative technologies are integrated with existing infrastructures to achieve long-term social and sustainable, environmentally friendly goals.
Last but not least, the jury also praised the many grassroots initiatives in Vienna, such as the Grätzloase. Here, citizens can actively contribute to shaping public spaces.
The Lee-Kuan-Yew World City Prize will be awarded this year at the World Cities Summit in Singapore. This will take place from July 31 to August 3, 2022. In addition to a certificate, Vienna will also receive a cash prize of 300,000 Singapore dollars (approx. 201,000 euros) and a gold medal worth 50,000 Singapore dollars (approx. 33,600 euros).
Vienna had already been recognized by the jury in the “Special Mentions” category in 2016, together with Auckland, Toronto and Sydney.
The Lee-Kuan-Yew World City Prize
The Lee-Kuan-Yew World City Prize is named after the first Prime Minister of Singapore. It is jointly organized by the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore (URA) and the Centre for Liveable Cities (CLC) and sponsored by Keppel Corporation. The prize has been awarded every two years since 2010.
“We hope that through the award, we can gain inspiration, share experiences and move forward together as a global community,” said Dr Cheong Koon Hean, Chairman of the 2020 Nominating Committee. According to its website, the award aims to recognize cities and their leaders as well as key organizations that demonstrate foresight, good governance and innovation in addressing the many urban challenges.
The jury prefers best practice examples that are practical and cost-effective and can be easily replicated in other cities. The aim is to inspire cities around the world and promote sustainable urban development.
These are the previous winners of the Lee-Kuan-Yew World City Prize:
Not yet a prize winner, but the first of its kind is the new IKEA Vienna, designed by Querkraft Architekten.
