On the morning of October 19, 2015, Dr. Joan Clos, Executive Director of UN Habitat attended the ceremony to receive his honorary professorship from Tongji University at the CAUP, and he also delivered a lecture as a part of the ceremony. President of Tongji University Pei Gang and Vice President Wu Jiang extended their warm welcome to Dr. Clos and his colleagues. Leaders that also appeared at the event included Li Zhenyu, Dean of CAUP, his deputy Li Xiangning, Peng Zhenwei, Party Secretary of CAUP, Yang Guiqing, Dean of Urban Planning Department, Wang Yuncai, Dean of the Department of Landscape Studies under CAUP, LI Fengting and Wang Xin, Deputy Deans of UNEP-Tongji Institute of Environment for Sustainable Development (IESD), Wang Xinzhe, Deputy Director of Shanghai Tongji Urban Planning and Design Institute, and Professor Huang Yi, coordinator of the cooperation program between UN Habitat and Tongji University. The visitors that came with Dr Clos included Shen Jianguo, Advisor to the UN Habitat Regional Cooperation Department, Lars Onsager Stordal, Special Assistant to Executive Director of UN Habitat, and Li Zhe, Resident Representative of the Ministry of Housing at UN Habitat. Dr. Zhen Yanlin, Chief Planner of Planning Administration of Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province, also attended the event.

Group photo in front of Building C

Dr. Clos and his colleagues first talked with Tongji leadership at the C1 conference room of CAUP on the potential cooperation. At the symposium hosted by Secretary Peng Zhenwei, Vice President Wu Jiang delivered a welcome speech and gave a brief introduction to Tongji University, and then Dean Li Zhenyu gave a brief account of CAUP and made detailed introduction to the Memorandum of Tongji University-UN Habitat Cooperation Program (2016-2020), a comprehensive program that includes the “Eastern Africa Urban Planning and Management Training Workshop for Mayors”, preparation for the launch of “the Habitat Research Center in CAUP of Tongji University”, and a range of education support and communication projects to be carried out in Africa. Dr Clos nodded approval to the contents of the memorandum, and hoped that he can build closer ties with Tongji on the basis of this agreement. 

The meeting in progress

Dr. Clos speaking at the meeting

Group photo at the end of the meeting

At 10am, the honorary professorship conferring ceremony was held at the Bell Hall, hosted by Peng Zhenwei, Secretary of CAUP. Vice President Wu Jiang celebrated the career highlights of Dr. Clos, especially his contributions to urban administration and upgrading. And then, President Pei Gang conferred to him the certificate of honorary professorship of Tongji University, while Li Zhenyu, Dean of CAUP, presented to Dr. Clos two special gifts in his