Amsterdam, The Netherlands – 7 September 2011 - ARCADIS (EURONEXT: ARCAD), the international consulting and engineering company, today opened UN-HABITATs 6th Steering Committee Meeting of the World Urban Campaign (WUC), which it is hosting in Amsterdam, with a keynote from CEO Harrie Noy. Attended by some of the world’s most notable ‘habitat’ experts, the meeting forms part of 4 days of UN-HABITAT and private sector partner discussions to be held from 6-9 September 2011 in the Dutch capital.

The World Urban Campaign is a global coalition of public, private and civil society partners united by a common desire to advocate on the positive role of cities around the world and to promote sustainable urbanization policies, strategies and practices. “ARCADIS has always been dedicated to improving the quality of life around the world and providing sustainable solutions that enhance the built and natural environment” said Harrie Noy. He continued, “Our partnership with UN-HABITAT via the Shelter Program, support for the World Urban Campaign and in hosting these key meetings is very much central to our collective goals for improving living conditions and balancing human needs within natural constraints.”

Launched last year, the Campaign is coordinated by UN-HABITAT, the United Nations’ agency for human settlements, which helps the urban poor by bridging the urban divides and transforming cities to cleaner, greener, safer, smarter and more equitable places. The Campaign Steering Committee will be meeting to ensure that its actions remain consistent with the goals of UN-HABITAT. Dr. Joan Clos, UN-HABITAT Executive Director since last October 2010, shared, “A new approach to the city is required and we should be able to create an optimistic and positive view towards urbanization. A city is a collective effort that includes the public and private sectors and requires basic human and political input through good urban planning and design. The World Urban Campaign is the best platform to achieve those goals.”

The delegation which includes representatives from Habitat for Humanity, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and the Huairou Commission, will also be guests at the official residence of the Mayor of Amsterdam on Wednesday 8 September where they will be hosted by Deputy Mayor Maarten van Poelgeest. “We are proud that the Campaign is meeting in Amsterdam and feel honored to welcome to our city so many experts with an interest in advancing the creation of sustainable solutions for the human habitat.”

In addition to the upcoming Shelter Program missions to Haiti later this month and missions to Mozambique and Indonesia in November, ARCADIS and UN-HABITAT will also be holding their first specialist ‘Shelter Academy’ in Rotterdam (13-15 September) in which a number of municipality heads from coastal cities around the world will participate. The Academy will focus primarily on knowledge sharing and capacity building for the management of climate change issues.