(October 29, 2021, Shenzhen) “Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements Awards Ceremony 2021” (SCAHSA 2021) was successfully held in a virtual format on October 27-29. Forest City, located in Johor, Malaysia, has won the “Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements Awards 2021 (SCAHSA) Global Model of Low-Carbon City Planning and Design", for its excellent low-carbon and green development concept.

The "Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements Award Ceremony 2021 (SCAHSA 2021)", which is the commemoration of the 2021 "World Cities Day", is the highlight of the 16th Global Forum on Human Settlements (GFHS 2021). Prior to this, Country Garden Forest City has won SCAHSA awards for five consecutive years, including "2020 Global Model of Coastal Ecological Environment Protection Award", "2019 Global Green Smart City Award", "2018 Global Model of City-Industry Integration Award", and "2017 Global Model of Green Building Industrial Park (IBS Park)” and “2016 Global Human Settlements Award on Planning and Design”.

Forest City - Global Model of Low-Carbon City Planning and Design Award

Ten major UN agencies work together to award the annual "SCAHSA"

GFHS 2021 aims to unite world cities to tackle climate change towards sustainability. 25 leading organizations joined the forum as co-organizers and collaborators, including 10 major UN agencies, such as World Meteorological Organization, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, United Nations Industrial Development Organization, and United Nations Centre for Regional Development, as well as the Asian Development Bank, the African Development Bank, and a number of well-known international institutions. The theme of this year's conference is " Accelerate Green Transformation and Innovation towards Healthy, Resilient and Carbon-neutral Cities".

Prof. Petteri Taalas, Secretary General of World Meteorological Organization, Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury, Chairman of Global Forum on Human Settlements, Former UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representative, Dr. Bambang Susantono, Vice President for Knowledge Management & Sustainable Development at Asian Development Bank, gave speeches at the opening ceremony.

the commemoration of the 2021 "World Cities Day"

Participants from different countries conducted in-depth discussions around the theme and put forward scientific solutions and policy recommendations. The meeting reached a series of consensus and guiding significance, launched a batch of demonstrative best examples, and awarded the "Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements Awards" to many outstanding example units and individuals from all over the world. The awardees include the world-famous historical and cultural city – Barcelona Metropolitan Area, Spain; carbon-neutral tourism destination – Sani Resort, Greece and Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan and other projects.

As one of the awardees, Country Garden Forest City was recognized by judges and guests for its low-carbon and green development concept. The project is located in the Iskandar Special Economic Zone in Johor, Malaysia. with green infrastructure development as a foundation, plans and continues to introduce eight major industries to empower the city’s economic development, leverage on high-tech industries to enhance urban economic development, and eventually become a green and vibrant city with diversified industries and cultures.

Mr. Alex Camprubi, Senior Advisor for Fundacion Metropoli Spain, Senior Architect, Planner, Landscape Designer with the representative of Forest City

Country Garden Forest City's low-carbon and green development concept has been internationally recognized and won the "Global Model of Low-Carbon City Planning and Design Award"

Mr. Alex Camprubi, Senior Advisor for Fundacion Metropoli Spain, Senior Architect, Planner, Landscape Designer presented the "Global Model of Low-Carbon City Planning and Design Award". The award is comprehensively selected from the dimensions of planning concepts, low-carbon energy, low-carbon buildings, low-carbon travel, low-carbon economy, low-carbon management and innovation.

As one of the reviewing experts, Arab Hoballah, Senior Sustainability Expert, former Chief, Sustainable Consumption and Production, UNEP, commented: “Forest city use plants to sequester carbon, which can effectively reduce the heat island effect. Its urban planning, the concept of green building design and the integration of industry and city has promoted Forest City to become a green and low-carbon city. Forest City is also outstanding in protecting the coastal ecological environment, building a diversified culture, and using smart city technology."

Forest City is committed to building a green, ecological and vibrant city, advocating a low-carbon working lifestyle

Since the beginning of its development, Forest City has always adhered to the concept of sustainable development and vigorously carried out environmental protection work and green ecological construction. The project adopts a multi-dimensional greening system from the ground to the roof, building a plane greening area of ​​2.71 million square meters, and a vertical greening of about 256,000 linear meters, achieving the effects of plant carbon sequestration, reducing heat island effect, and reducing energy consumption of the temperature control system. Through smart applications, Forest City realizes smart and convenient travel, provides a coherent, green, and supporting infrastructure for the traffic system, encourages walking and cycling, improves urban resilience, and facilitates green travel. In addition, the integrated development plan of industry and city will also help reduce residents' daily commuting and realize a lower-carbon working lifestyle.

Country Garden Forest City, located in Iskandar Special Economic Zone, Johor, Malaysia

In order to reduce energy consumption in the construction phase, Forest City has begun to adopt prefabricated construction methods. The prefabricated construction method can effectively save water sources, energy consumption and reduce construction waste. At present, Forest City has built 5 sewage treatment stations with a processing capacity of 170,400 population equivalents. As an advocate of Sponge City, After an advanced ecological sewage treatment system and an advanced treatment system for constructed wetlands, the effluent quality has reached CLASSⅡB, which is higher than the general discharge standard in Malaysia. And use the water for irrigation of roof gardens, vertical greenery, outdoor landscapes, as well as public toilets flushing, etc. Wastewater recycling has significant environmental and economic benefits.

Forest City has invested more than RM 140 million in environmental protection, including the establishment of seagrass protection areas, protection and nurturing measures. In order to build surrounding communities and support regional development, Forest City has invested more than RM 53 million, including the adoption of 7 local schools and 7 local villages. After five years of development and construction, Forest City is gradually completing its staged ecological development goals and has begun to see the scale. In the future, Forest City will respond to the global carbon neutral goal with practice, and is committed to achieving a harmonious way of urban development and ecological protection.