3. Participating Cities:
1. Atlanta, Georgia
2. Dallas, Texas
3. Denton, Texas
4. Fayetteville, Arkansas
5. Maui County, Hawai’i
6. New Haven, Connecticut
7. Orange County, Florida
8. San Antonio, Texas
4. The objectives for the SDGs Cities Challenge
1. Understand how cities engage with, learn about and ultimately develop solutions to local
urban sustainability goals, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
2. Increase city knowledge and understanding of localizing the SDGs, including learning about the
process of developing and implementing a Voluntary Local Review (VLR), through examining
examples of cities that have conducted them around the world.
3. Co-devise and develop the engagement needs of cities in implementing the SDGs into their
existing city plans, through the example of the VLR.
4. Understand and enhance the roles and relationships between cities, academia and industry in
knowledge creation, capacity building, skills and innovation specific to localizing the SDGs.
5. Utilize existing forums of city-to-city engagement and networking to better engage with issues
relating to the localization of the SDGs.
7. North Texas Local Food Dialogue on Inclusive Food Systems, hosted by University of Texas at Arlington and International Council for
Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) was intended to be the regional moment for official contribution from cities and counties to
the proceedings. We aimed to collate interests, issues, and priorities of local governments — in order to submit the outcomes to
both FAO at the global level and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) within the U.S.
Objectives:
To highlight the role that local governments and other organizations are playing in improving their urban food systems as well as
identify key food systems challenges, opportunities and priorities
To generate discussions, action and commitments from local stakeholders on food systems reforms to achieve the SDGS and the
health and wellbeing of people and the planet. These will feed into the UNFSS processes such as game changing solutions
(“actionable messages”)
To contribute as a UN Food Systems Summit Independent Summit Dialogue and connect this U.S. event with those happening
nationally.
To achieve a lasting collaboration on urban food systems in support of the RCE North Texas and North Texas Food Policy Alliance
(NTFPA).
