Global Urban Competitiveness Project
GUCP was founded by Peter Karl Kresl and Ni Pengfei in Ottawa in 2005.
It is a group of eighteen academics who are specialists in the study of urban competitiveness, in policies to enhance that competitiveness, in and associated policy issues such as clusters, the knowledge economy, and strategic economic planning.
Our members are located at universities in Asia, North America, Africa and the European Union. We organize annually a two-day conference, in the city of a GUCP member, with local planners and decision-makers in the public and private sectors of individual urban regions or cities.
Our objective is that of applying our expertise to issues that are crucial for that locality so that local authorities will be able to decide the future course of the development of their urban economy and to enhance its relative competitiveness most effectively.We have published our conference proceedings each year. Prof. Kresl has served as president of GUCP since its founding in 2006.
The GUCP Definition of Urban Competitiveness:
Urban competitiveness refers to the degree to which a city, or urban region, in comparison with other “competing” cities, is able to provide the jobs, income, cultural and recreational amenities, degree of social cohesion, governance and urban environment to which its current and targeted new residents aspire.
CASS Office of GUCP Kresl and co-founder Ni Peng-fei and staff