The second capacity building workshop under the Urban95 programme Phase 2 was held on the 15^th of February 2023 in Udaipur. Organised by the Urban95 Project Management Unit (a joint venture between ICLEI South Asia and Ecorys India Pvt. Ltd.) with support from Udaipur Municipal Corporation (UMC) in collaboration Bernard van Leer Foundation (BvLF), the workshop focused on building understanding of the conceptual design and feasibility involved in a project cycle and how objectives are framed, among other aspects.

This was the second in a series of five planned workshops that aim to help Udaipur  in imbibing Urban95 principles in all urban built environment projects and activities, and to build the capacity of government officials, development agencies and urban practitioners, among other stakeholders.  The first workshop, held in December, had focused on site identification and finalisation.

Addressing more than 70 government and non-government officials who attended the second workshop, Ms. Ragini Damor, Deputy Commissioner, UMC, appreciated the Urban95 team’s efforts aimed at transforming Udaipur into a child-friendly city and mentioned a recently inaugurated primary healthcare centre where ITCN components have been implemented. Mr. Mukesh Pujari, Superintending Engineer, UMC, in his remarks, said that such workshops help engineers and urban practitioners to improve their technical knowhow and capacity.

During various sessions involving presentations, group exercise and interaction, the Urban95 team discussed the approaches and methodology for deriving a conceptual design proposal that should include ITCN focus areas of ‘accessibility’, ‘playful’, ‘green’, ‘inclusive and safe’ along with the barriers in each area, and their relevant behavioral impact.

In their feedback at the end of the workshop, the participants indicated that they had learned about the importance of these techniques and methods, and how they could help in data-driven decision making, in place of ad-hoc decision making.