The HIC Presidential Elections 2007 are well on their way. The new and only nominee is Davinder Lamba. If you wish to communicate your concerns and suggestions for the Coalition, please do so in our presidential forum.The forum entries are listed below in detail. If you wish to participate in these elections by posting your opinion or suggestion, click here.
4 comments have been made:
Nick Volk said…
1) How will the Presidential candidate achieve the “social production of habitat” ?
2) How can we – HIC – outreach to many more partner advocacy organisations around the world , increasing the strength of all of our voices in achieving decent living habitats for all ?
3) Can and how should HIC help to achieve the Millennium development goals ?
4) In the UN Habitat Debate magazine March 2007, p6 “Three Things we Should Know About Slums” Daniel Bau, Director of UN-Habitat’s Regional and Technical Cooperation Division, writes “Slums are economically useful, a reflection of the human divide, and a bedrock of human resilience” . But much needs to be done – holistic approach to improvement, “…affirmative action to secure the urban poor access to land, housing, credit and basic service”, and “participatory and transparent governance”. Is Daniel Bau correct ? How can HIC accelerate these changes ?
I like to ask the candidate/s (at the moment there is only one) HOW they want to meet
(with the words of companion Davinder) the challenges in the “inner world, outer world and another world”.
What are the main challenges, especially in the “inner world” and “outer world” ? HOW, by which measurements can HIC “become more responsive to members, innovative and results oriented”? HOW can HIC become “more people-centred, activist and reflective”?
And, in connection to this: What is the task of the president in relation to the HIC bodies? And what are the tasks of the bodies, including the GS and the board, in order to become more effective?
Knut Unger, Habitat Netz/Witten Tenants Association, alternate board member Europe
Thanks to Knut for stimulating some discussion. Perhaps to be more specific, I think one of the critical inner/outer world issues for any HIC presidential candidate to address here is the strenghtening of the Coalition’s visibility and message so as to reflect the tremendous creativity within it. Perhaps HIC would never be able to realize its full potential–like the human brain, only using a fraction of its actual capacity. However, HIC’s unique potential for posing alternative solutions to our common world habitat crisis needs to be better understood both internally and externally. As the crisis spreads and deepens, that HIC President’s role, as its political leader, becomes ever more important.
The process of identifying HIC’s new president has advanced without debate. We have one candidate, who has kept very discreet.
This tranquil process can be good or bad. It is good that the Coalition is in a phase of unification without internal conflict.
Yet, it is bad that we do not know what HIC members expect from its new president.
As HIC’s secretary, I hope the new president will be the voice of all of the messages that emanate from the Coalition to what Davinder calls the “outer world”; also I hope that he guarantees the coherence of our work, the “inner world” (our Coalition).
With the difficulty and high expenses of meeting once a year – how will we ensure that all the members of the Board have a say and give their support in the construction of another possible world?
For this, we need debate.