2012 has already been a very busy year for ULI Asia Pacific – more than 900 people have participated in 26 ULI activities across nine cities in the region since January. Significant accomplishments include: the ULI Kai Tak Advisory Panel, the 2012 ULI Mainland China Real Estate Markets report (released at events in 7 cities), the ULI Manila 10 Principles for Urban Development initiative, and last month in Beijing, more than 350 ULI members representing 18 countries convened at the Inaugural ULI Asia Pacific Summit with the theme of “Shaping Sustainable Urban Growth”.

Last week we had the unique pleasure of hosting a very special members-only event to thank and congratulate Hong Kong’s Chief Executive-elect and ULI APAC’s Founding Chairman, CY Leung, and in February, Brandon Sedloff joined the ULI staff as Managing Director Asia Pacific after serving for four years in a volunteer capacity as ULI APAC’s Founding Young Leader Chair. ULI’s commitment to Asia Pacific and our relevant offerings in the region have never been stronger.

I am currently in Tianjin to support an important new global ULI partnership with the World Economic Forum. In collaboration with the WEF, ULI is participating in this initiative to help the city of Tianjin review its transportation, infrastructure, and economic development plans. Like most cities, Tianjin has many challenges to address to position the city to be competitive in the new economy. The issues discussed at the ULI Summit in Beijing – sustainable transport, efficient and connected infrastructure, the need for mixed-use communities, and livability/quality of life concerns – are the same issues that Tianjin’s city leadership are focused on and challenged by as well. We are pleased to contribute to this initiative and are encouraged that the work we have already undertaken in the region is yielding tangible results. We will soon announce a joint ULI/WEF event for this Fall in Hong Kong, so please stay tuned.

Thank you for your membership and continued support of ULI Asia Pacific. We look forward to furthering engagement with our members in the region and to building on this progress we’ve made so far in 2012.

Best Regards,
John Fitzgerald
Executive Director, ULI Asia Pacific