Reflections of the World Urban Forum in the Balkans

Abstract

The World Urban Forum held eleven sessions of the global urban forum from 2002 to 2022. Modelled after the global urban forum, other urban forums take place before the global forum. Two urban forums were held in the Balkan countries in line with recommendations of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme UN Habitat in order to improve communication among diverse stakeholders in the area of urban development and prepare them for participation in the global urban forum. Experiences of Marmara region in Turkey and Serbia are shared in this paper to explain how the interaction between the global and other urban forums can open the way to improvement of urban development activities. The results could become more evident in the future since there could be more urban forums organized to take place in the Balkans.