Three weeks ago North & South Magazine named New Plymouth the best city in New Zealand and last night at 3am 11 November 2008 NZ time New Plymouth was voted best city in the world in both of the competitions it was in the running for in the LivCom awards held in Dongguan City China. Coming first in Category Two with a gold medal for the best city in the world and also coming First with a gold medal in the Natural Project Award (our coastal wlakway). We also got a special awad fro sustanability within our community. New Plymouth was a clear stand out. This is a great honor for New Plymouth and also the entire New Zealand. This is a great job done by all including our representatives in China, our mayor and two councilors.
The LivCom Awards is the world’s only Competition for local communities that focuses on environmental management and the creation of livable communities. The objective of The LivCom Awards is to encourage best practice, innovation and leadership in providing a vibrant, environmentally sustainable community that improves the quality of life.
Involvement in The LivCom Awards will result in increased international profile for our community and will have communities from around the world International looking at us in regards to Best Practice in environmental and landscape management, heritage management, community empowerment and forward planning. We are now world leaders at this.
The Awards covered five population categories. And New Plymouth come out on Top in our category. Communities are not compared against others within their population category but are judged as to how they are performing in respect of the judging criteria within the cultural, political, economic, geographic and climatic environment in which they are situated.
THE JUDGING CRITERIA
Enhancement of the Landscape: Landscaping, in the context of the Awards, is the aspect of the City and Townscape, which creates an environment enhanced through horticultural and infrastructure designs. It must be demonstrated how landscaping in a community has brought together all of the distinct elements, both built and natural, so as to establish a sympathetic relationship between the built and natural landscape. The Judges will seek evidence of the protection of the natural heritage and of ecologically important sites, biodiversity and introduction of vegetation in more difficult environments. This section should demonstrate how the landscape in your community has been enhanced to create an environment that generates civic pride, facilitates enjoyable recreational experiences and improves the quality of life within your community.
Heritage Management: Heritage, in the context of the Awards, is defined as the bringing together of historic property, green and natural heritage, industrial heritage, language and cultural practices, designed to ensure that the legacy of the past is protected. This section should demonstrate how your community values, preserves and manages its built and natural heritage and, where relevant, the multi-cultural nature of this heritage, so as to contribute positively
to the quality of life of current and future generations.
Environmentally Sensitive Practices: This section should demonstrate how your community has adopted innovative environmentally sensitive practices and pursues initiatives that result in sustainable management of the environment. The Judges will seek evidence that your community is involved in efforts to apply sustainable development and to promote best practices that lead to the development, conservation and preservation of the environment. This would include the enhancement of the quality of air, water and land, biodiversity and the reduction in the consumption of natural resources through use of alternative materials and sources of energy and recycling.
Community Sustainability: This section should demonstrate the method and style of ongoing involvement of individuals, groups and Organisations in the planning, development and management of the local community, and how the local community is empowered and react to the opportunity of being involved in its development. Components of this section will include
integration, development, satisfaction, resources and involvement.
Healthy Lifestyles: This section should demonstrate the community’s record of healthy lifestyles, both through the provision of appropriate facilities, and the promotion of active participation. The healthy lifestyle context should include evidence of the development of wellbeing, community cohesion, active participation in play, recreation, sport, cultural activity (especially festivals, carnivals etc.), and by further examples of dynamic social integration.
Planning for the Future: This section should demonstrate the use of sensitive and creative planning techniques for the creation of a sustainable, liveable community. Your Presentation should demonstrate how higher levels of strategic plans integrate with more specific plans. It
should demonstrate how plans reflect the needs of the community and how they are being, or are to be, implemented in a practical context linked to available resources, so as to address all the aspects that make up a truly liveable community.
LIVCOM 2008 RESULTS
WHOLE CITIES
Category A
1. Greystones, Ireland Gold
2. Guanda Community, China Silver
3. Nieuwpoort, Belgium Silver
Ogema, Canada Silver
Linlithgow, Scotland Bronze
Trafalgar, Australia Bronze
Category B
1. New Plymouth, New Zealand Gold
2. Chrudim, Czech Republic Gold
3. Kladno, Czeck Republic Silver
Montreux , Switzerland Silver
Zhujiajiao, China Silver
Newark on Trent, England Bronze
Eger, Hungary Bronze
Category C
1. Broadland, England Gold
2. Pecs, Hungary Bronze
3. Mikolow, Poland Bronze
Category D
1. Changxing, China Gold
Category E
1. Municipality of York, Canada Gold
2. JiangYin, China Silver
3. City of Johannesburg, South Africa Bronze
Project Awards
Built
1. The World is Mine China Gold
2. Dongli, Vanke City China Gold
3. UniverCity, A model sustainable community Burnaby, Canada Gold
Qinglingjing Community Silver
Johannesburg Cosmo City Silver
Poly – Spa Island Silver
Chinese Overseas Community Silver
Yokohama, Tamadaira no Mori Housing Complex Silver
Enjoy Happiness Community Silver
Chinese Eminent Garden Bronze
Cosmos Eastown Bronze
Hidden Valley Bronze
The Blue Peninsula Bronze
Green Wild Villa Bronze
Dragon Mountain Community Bronze
Natural
1. New Plymouth District, New Zealand Gold
2. Johannesburg Xtreme Park Makeover Gold
3. Pilsen, Czeck Republic, Improvement of
Water quality in Velky Bolevecky Pond Silver
Johannesburg, South Africa: Klipriver Greening & Rehabilitation Project Silver
Broadland: Stairway Silver
So well done New Plymouth. This is a great place to live and a great place to be a great place to live and a great place to grow up. A place all people of New Plymouth should be proud to call home.
14 thoughts on “New Plymouth Named Best City In The World at The 2008 Global Livable Communities Awards”
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I bet there is a buzz about the town today Deon, what wonderful recognition for New Plymouth and New Zealand.
Sharon,
There is a huge buzz here. People are talking about it all over town. In the office everyone is proud and also shocked that our town is the best city in the world with population under 75,000. Great stuff really.
New Zealand should be proud that one of our cities has this award.
Also notice no Australian places mentioned at all. Did you watch 60 minutes last night about the aussies coming to New Zealand. We all need to appreciate that people around the world think this country is great.
Those judges must have been really hammered when they made that decision! Just joking, congrats to all and a truely beautiful place with a great set of locals – cheers
Yea I’d say peter. But yes your right in saying the people here are friendly and most of all very relaxed with life.
I was raised in New Plymouth in the 70’s to late 80’s and it wasn’t that much of a city back then but now where i was raised as a child is now a car sales yard and a main road where us kids used to play football and touch on the road (molesworth street)WOW New Plymouth has changed so much and what a place im trying to get back there to live i loved the place but now it will be harder than ever to get a house there I bet the rent/house prices will increase just like they did when Tom Cruise visited and filmed “The Last Samurai” that really put New Plymouth on the world map as a whole.
they only love it because you live there 🙂
Luke cheers mate. haha. Its a great place to be. Almost as good as Christchurch.
Kelly, there have been so many world events focused in and around new plymouth. There is such a choice of activities that can be done and been only of a relatively small population your not constantly in another persons face.
In terms of rental prices and housing prices I feel that they are relatively affordable and in line with the rest of the country. Just because of all the great points New Plymouth has to offer people moving into this location its still not immune to the influences of both the national and global trends.
I was born and raised in New Plymouth. Now live in the UK with my family. After seeing all the pictures all over the news I would love to come back home and live. There is nothing like home.
congrats 2 “da naki” big.ups!!!!!!!!!!
“rock on!!!!!!!!!!”
I’d like to see a list of all cities up against New Plymouth! Who actually entered the contest?