Partners and Project Structure

Connective Cities is a cooperation project between the Service Agency Communities in One World (SKEW) of Engagement Global (EG), the German Association of Cities (DST), and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ)

Connective Cities is a cooperation project between the Service Agency Communities in One World (SKEW) of Engagement Global (EG), the German Association of Cities (DST), and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), together they bring supply and demand for urban development challenges and facilitate an exchange to develop solutions.

The cooperation project is carried out on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Connective Cities consists of the Steering Committee and the Secretariat. The Steering Committee advises and decides by consensus on all strategic matters of Connective Cities. The Secretariat provides the operational internal and external services of Connective Cities, as well as the necessary support services.

Connective Cities has regional external structures in the focus regions of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), as well as Southeast Europe and the Caucasus (SEE). Connective Cities is also active in the regions of Asia and Latin America.

As a service provider for international cooperation in sustainable development and international education work, GIZ is committed worldwide to creating a livable future.

Together with its clients and partners, GIZ develops and plans ideas for political, social, and economic changes and implements them in collaboration.

As a federal enterprise, GIZ upholds German and European values. It supports the German government in achieving its goals in international cooperation for sustainable development.

GIZ works on effective and efficient solutions that offer people perspectives and permanently improve their living conditions. The 2030 Agenda serves as the overarching framework that guides GIZ’s work in collaboration with partners and clients.

In Connective Cities, GIZ is primarily responsible for collaborating with international partners and organizations, implementing activities, and networking municipal practitioners in the partner countries.

Team GIZ

Person_Platzhalter_Icon

Ricarda Meissner

Head of Project

Person_Platzhalter_Icon

Jelena Karamatijevic

Advisor

Paulina Koschmieder

Advisor

Person_Platzhalter_Icon

Jimmy Joedsel

Junior Advisor

Muna_Shalan_Regionalkoordinatorin

Muna Shalan

Regional coordinator for Middle East and North Africa

Ketevan-Papashvili-Regionalkoordinatorin-Sudosteuropa-und-Kaukasus

Ketevan Papashvili

Regional Coordinator for Southeast Europe and the Caucasus

Moses Munuve, Regionalkoordinator Sub-Sahara Afrika auf der Netzwerk Seite unten als Kontakt

Moses Munuve

Regional Coordinator for Sub-Saharan Africa

Person_Platzhalter_Icon

Klaudia Sonntag

Administrator

The mission of Engagement Global is to promote and strengthen the development policy engagement of schools, associations, foundations, individuals, businesses, and civil society in Germany. The SKEW (Service Agency Communities in One World) is a division of Engagement Global and, since 2001, has served as the competence center for municipal development policy on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and co-financing federal states. It informs, advises, networks, promotes, qualifies, and motivates municipal actors—targeted, non-profit, and free of charge.

The key topics of the SKEW include municipal partnerships, fair trade or fair procurement, migration and development, and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda at the municipal level.

The SKEW is responsible for activating German partners for international exchange in Connective Cities and coordinates the activities carried out in Germany.

Team SKEW

Sibylle Loyeau

Project Manager

Marcella Sobisch

Project coordinator

Francesco Schapira

Project coordinator

Rashid Zampaligré

Administrator

Michelle Gassner

Administrator

The DST is an association of independent cities and towns in Germany. In the components of the DST, numerous representatives from the approximately 3,200 German member cities and municipalities are actively involved.

The German Association of Cities represents the interests of all independent cities and most of the towns belonging to districts. It engages in dialogue with the federal government, the Bundestag, the Bundesrat, the European Union, and numerous organizations, influencing legislation and ensuring the protection of municipal self-governance as guaranteed by the Basic Law (Grundgesetz). Above all, the DST advises its member cities, keeps them informed about significant developments, and fosters active exchanges between them.

Team DST

Sabine-Drees_Referentin

Sabine Drees

Referentin

Person_Platzhalter_Icon

Charlotte Watermann

Urban development specialist, seconded by the GIZ office

The Steering Committee:

The Steering Committee advises and decides by consensus on all strategic matters of Connective Cities. It consists of appointed, decision-making representatives of the cooperation partners.

Person_Platzhalter_Icon

Ricarda Meissner

Project Manager and Project Leader for Connective Cities at GIZ.


Ricarda Meissner

Project Manager and Project Leader for Connective Cities at GIZ.


Ricarda Meissner is responsible for strategy development, project coordination and collaboration with international partners within Connective Cities. She has over 25 years of experience in managing complex development cooperation programs. Her expertise includes work for GIZ, the European Union, and the World Bank. Her work focuses on Southeast Asia, Central Asia, and Africa.


Write an email
Simon-Boehler

Simon Böhler

Senior Specialist for Municipal and Urban Development at GIZ.


Simon Böhler

Senior Specialist for Municipal and Urban Development at GIZ.


Simon Böhler is a Senior Urban and Municipal Development Specialist at GIZ, with over 8 years of experience in international cooperation. He advises global projects on municipal, urban, and regional development. Previously, he led the team for local government reforms in Moldova and worked for BMZ as well as the World Bank.


Write an email
Sabine-Drees_Referentin

Sabine Drees

Officer for Foreign Affairs at DST

Sabine Drees

Officer for Foreign Affairs at DST

Sabine Drees, a graduate economist, leads the “International Affairs” department at DST. She is the chairperson of the “International Affairs” working group at DST and supports the committee for municipal development cooperation of the RGRE. She also represents RGRE in “Platforma” and serves as the deputy chair of the board of Engagement Global. Additionally, she is the managing director of the German delegation in the “Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.”

Write an email
Person_Platzhalter_Icon

Jessica Baier

Head of Department “Thematic Partnerships and International Municipal Exchange” at SKEW

Jessica Baier

Head of Department “Thematic Partnerships and International Municipal Exchange” at SKEW

Jessica Baier holds an interdisciplinary degree in Geography, Economics, Political Science, and Sociology. She brings many years of experience in project management and collaboration with municipalities in Germany, Africa, Latin America and Asia. Her areas of expertise include municipal development policy, international municipal relations, and sustainable urban development. She also works on the implementation of global agreements such as the 2030 Agenda.


Write an email

Other Partners

To expand the network and exchange practical experiences and good practices, Connective Cities collaborates with the following partners:

The German Association of Local Public Utilities of municipally determined infrastructure undertakings and economic enterprises (VKU) represents around 1,460 municipal companies in the energy, water/wastewater, waste management and telecommunications sectors. With over 262,000 employees, they generated sales revenue of more than 115 billion euros and invested around 11 billion euros in 2015. With their expertise in municipal infrastructures and services of general interest, municipal companies have built up extensive organisational, technical and economic experience over many decades, which is rarely pooled in this form anywhere in the world. Municipal companies can therefore contribute a wide range of input to international networks for the exchange of experience and practical development cooperation. They also train skilled workers who ensure long-term local operations.

www.vku.de

Urban sustainability exchange (USE) is a platform for and by urban practitioners worldwide. It offers a continuously growing database of international case studies with practical and innovative approaches to sustainable urban development as well as access to an active community of urban practitioners, experts and researchers. The platform's case study database is freely accessible and can be used free of charge. The use platform is an initiative of the international city network Metropolis under the leadership of the State of Berlin, Department of EU and International Affairs of the Senate Department for Urban Development. Its global partner network currently includes Connective Cities, Sustainable Cities Collaboratory, C40 Cities Finance Facility, Localising the SDGs, UCLG Learning, apolitical, Seoul Solution and World Urban Campaign.

www.use.metropolis.org

As the largest urban research institute in the German-speaking world, the German Institute of Urban Affairs (Difu) is the research, training and information organisation for cities, municipalities, districts, municipal associations and planning communities. Whether urban and regional development, municipal economy, urban planning, social issues, environment, transport, culture, law, administrative issues or municipal finances: Founded in 1973, the independent Berlin-based institute - with a further location in Cologne (environment division) - deals with a wide range of topics and takes a practical, academic approach to all the tasks that local authorities face today and in the future. The Verein für Kommunalwissenschaften e.V. is the sole shareholder of the research institute, which is run as a non-profit limited company.

www.difu.de

United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) represents the interests of local governments in an international context, regardless of the size of the municipalities. Headquartered in Barcelona, UCLG's mission is: ‘To be the united voice and champion of democratic local government, promoting its values, objectives and interests through co-operation between local governments and within the wider international communities.’ UCLG supports international cooperation between cities and their associations and promotes programmes, networks and partnerships to strengthen the performance of local governments. The organisation promotes the role of women at local decision-making levels and is a portal to relevant information from local governments worldwide.

www.uclg.org