The first batch of LivCom Finalists 2025

The LivCom Awards Finals 2025 will take place in Avcilar Istanbul, Türkiye from 18-21 November inclusive.

Up until September, the first batch of 20 cities and 24 projects from 25 countries has been invited to the Finals. The Jury process is underway and the full list of finalists will be released later.

The first batch of cities and projects invited to the Finals are listed below:

The first batch of LivCom Finalists 2025 to be released

The 23^rd LivCom Awards Finals & Forum will be organized in Avcilar, Istanbul during 18-21 November 2025, with the theme of Culture Innovation for Sustainable Urban Future. Similar to the previous LivCom events, multiple high-level professional conferences on sustainable urban development, UN training session, and the Finals review of the "World Healthy & Positive Ageing City" pilot project will also be held concurrently with the LivCom Finals, partnering with outstanding universities as the academic partners.

As of early September, LivCom has received registrations of 275 applicants from 52 countries. Among the five new demographic categories of the Whole City Awards, it covers a number of large cities such as Vienna Austria, Dubai UAE, Sao Paulo Brazil, Busan South Korea, Abuja Nigeria, Baoding China, as well as many medium and small-sized cities including Katowice Poland, Saint-Etienne France, Liverpool Australia, Port Moody Canada, Birgu Malta, Concepcion Chile, and Konza Kenya, etc. A vast of applications for the Environmentally Sustainable Project Awards and the Technology and Solution Awards are also received.

The Finals & Forum 2025 will be co-organized by the LivCom Committee, the International Society of City and Regional Planners (ISOCARP), the International Institute on Ageing United Nations-Malta (UN-INIA), the United Nations Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD), the International Center for Human Sciences of UNESCO (UNESCO-CISH), the United Nations University Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS), the Center for Environment and Development for the Arab Region and Europe (CEDARE), etc, and hosted by the Avcilar Municipality. The LivCom Awards has been robustly supported by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme this year. Multiple regional offices of UN-Habitat have participated in the promotion of the LivCom Awards and recommended outstanding cities for participation, aiming to encourage cities to better utilize the LivCom platform to share and exchange solutions of local sustainable development.

Currently, the second round of Written Submissions are currently being reviewed, and the Panel of International Judges will soon announce the first batch of Finals shortlists. Delegates are required to register on-site and complete equipment test for presentations at the Youth Center in Avcilar during the registration hours on 18 November, followed by attending the Opening Ceremony & Welcome Gala Dinner of LivCom 2025 in the evening. The Finals presentations will take place on 19-20 November, and the Closing Ceremony & Awards Ceremony will be held in the afternoon of 21 November. During the Finals, LivCom will collaborate with UN agencies to organize the "International Forum on Cultural Innovation and Sustainable Urban Development" and the “International Training on Healthy & Positive Ageing Cities and Communities". The Avcilar Municipality will also arrange city excursion activities and networking events with local cultural features for delegates. The two-day USF Conference - Active Ageing and Sustainable Urban Development will also be organized during 19-20 November. Delegates are welcome to attend these events not in conflict with their Presentation sessions.

The detailed Programme Agenda and conference logistics will be released successively starting from the end of September. Please stay alert to the announcements and information updates on the website.

The Second Round of Registration of LivCom Awards 2025 is Open

As of 30 June 2025, LivCom has received registrations of 147 applicants from 36 countries, covering Awards categories of Whole City, Environmentally Sustainable Project and Technology & Solution Awards. These applicants are required to provide Written Submission before 31 July for interim jury review.

After adjusting the demographic categories of Whole City Awards this year, LivCom is receiving increasing number of registrations from cities within Category E (population over 1,000,000). The global registrations are now scientifically and evenly distributed through all demographic Categories ranging from A-E. The well-known liveable cities from countries usually participated have registered, including Poland, Italy, United Arab Emirates, Nigeria, Brazil, Korea, China, USA, Canada, Australia, etc.

LivCom values the diversity of international best practices, aiming to provide opportunity for sharing, exchange and partnership to a wide range of cities and projects at different population size and genre levels. The second round of registration is now open, with the deadline extended to 15 August; the Written Submission remains open for provision prior to 5 September. Applicants passing through the review of the International Panel of Judges will be invited to participate in the LivCom Finals and a wide range of networking events during the Finals.

Themed by Culture Innovation for Sustainable Urban Future, this year’s Awards center on promoting the inclusion of culture as a distinct goal in the global development framework and advance innovative practices and recent technologies for future sustainable development. As such, initiatives, actions and technological innovations related to the culturally-prosperous development are encouraged to be included in the Submission.

Media representatives are also welcome to attend the events. Please stay alert to the announcement for further details and contact info@livcomawards.org should you have any question with regards to registration and application.

LivCom T&S Awards Start to Call for Entries

Following the launch of the LivCom Whole City Awards and Environmentally Sustainable Project Awards in early March, the registration for the LivCom Technology and Solution Awards (TSA) is now officially open.

Echoing the cultural development initiative in the Pact for the Future of the United Nations, the theme of LivCom 2025 has been set as "Culture Innovation for Sustainable Urban Future", aiming to encourage local authorities to integrate culture into economic, social and environmental development policies and strategies, and effectively enhance the important role of culture in sustainable urban development.

1. Cultural Heritage Preservation in Urban Development

2. Smart Cities and Cultural Engagement

3. Sustainable Urban Mobility and Culture

4. Green Architecture and Urban Design

5. Digital Technologies in Cultural Preservation

6. Cultural Diversity and Inclusion in Urban Spaces

7. Public Art and Community Identity

8. Sustainable Tourism and Cultural Experiences

9. Community Resilience through Cultural Initiatives

10. Interdisciplinary Approaches to Urban Cultural Sustainability

11. Policies and Frameworks for Sustainable Urban Cultural Development

12. Climate Change and Cultural Resilience

13. Technology-Enhanced Community Engagement

14. Cultural Education and Sustainable Learning

Please refer to Registration TSA for details. Qualified technologies and solutions in these areas are welcome to apply for the T&S Awards.

More updates will be released soon. Please follow the Announcement in the website.

The 23^rd LivCom Awards is now open for registration to cities and projects from across the world. The annual Finals & Forum will be held in Avcilar City, Istanbul during 18-21 November 2025. Both deadline for registration and Submission is 30 June 2025 and 31 July 2025.

It is a critical year of 2025 for the acceleration to achieve the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The LivCom 2025 will welcome new partner organizations on board on the basis of past cooperation with UN and international organizations. The Whole City Awards and Environmentally Sustainable Project Awards of LivCom adopt upgraded Judging Criteria and demographic category this year. The application rules of Technology & Solution Awards will be released shortly.

Echoing the cultural development goals emphasized at UN Summit of the Future, the theme of LivCom Awards 2025 will focus on sustainable urban cultural development, in particular the creation of Future Culture Goal for cities. The annual LivCom Forum will unite multiple global and regional organizations, focusing on the important role and potential of culture in promoting sustainable urban development and sharing local best practices.

It’s subject to further notice on the LivCom technical conference, UN training programme and other series of events during the Finals.

Please stay alert to the announcement and further releases for more information on the website.