It happened for the first time in 1976, and per its bi-decennial cycle it took place again in 1996, and it's due to happen this year; on October 20th in Quito, Ecuador, The third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development is happening under the title of Habitat III. Anyone who is concerned with the environment, the trends of urbanisation, and its development has been stoked for the highly anticipated conference that's designed to influence positive urbanisation in cities around the world.

Part of why we're excited this year is because of Egypt's representation through Cairo-based platform, progrss. The online hub is a leader in the field of the environment, positive urbanisation, and particularly 'Urbanovation', which will be the focus of the events they are currently holding in Quito as we speak. According to progrss, it refers to "a new idea, device, process or model designed to solve an urban problem or contribute to building better cities," and the event "will put a spotlight on the entrepreneurs and social movements succeeding in solving urban problems and contributing to the creation of liveable cities."

The representatives at the conference – which started on the 17th and is set to go on until the 20th – are led by social entrepreneur Mohamed Helmy, founder and CEO of progrss, who will be hosting innovators from Quito, Cairo, Glasgow to share knowledge about their civic and urban solutions. “The traditional top-down model of urban development is no longer able to cope with the rapid urbanisation we are experiencing across the world,” Helmy says.And that just gives you an idea of how innovative, diverse, and extraordinary their participation will be, as they are collaborating with MasterPeace, a global grassroots peace-building movement headquartered in Cairo and Amsterdam.

Aside from progrss, Egypt will also be represented through its government delegation, which is hosting events today that are concerned with integrated housing policies and urban development of informal settlements. They will present their new housing strategy and their strategies regarding affordable houses.