The AIVP Team wishes you a very happy and fruitful New Year 2025!

In 2025, we are looking forward to the continuation of 2024’s projects but also to exciting new tasks. We will continue the rollout of the development strategy adopted at our General Assembly Meeting on 24 November 2020, aimed at consolidating our network and diversifying our resources to secure our association’s long-term future. The foundations are now in place, and we must work together to capitalize on all of the initiatives launched.

Our actions are directed towards five interlinked and complementary strategic priorities:

  • Scaling up the association’s network and activities;
  • Sharing experiences and best practices;
  • Promoting international cooperation between port cities;
  • Building AIVP’s profile and influence;
  • Adopting an agile organizational culture.

We aim to continue growing our network this year, and to that end, will therefore continue to canvas potential new members, and hope that 2025 will see our efforts made in North America over the last two years come to fruition. With that goal in mind, we are happy and thrilled to organize our 2025 AIVP World Conference in New York (USA) in partnership with the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), in November. This not-to-be-missed event will take an innovative, forward-looking, and pragmatic look at the future of port cities in the context of climate change adaptation while emphasizing the singularity of these territories, highly strategic at both local and global levels.

The other regions of the world remain just as important to us, and with the support of our Board of Directors, we will continue to look for new port cities around the globe to join our network.

Naturally, shared experiences remain AIVP’s core DNA. We will continue to leverage it for the benefit of our members. In 2024, we launched our new online self-assessment platform, inviting our members to evaluate their public policies regarding the AIVP’s ten Agenda 2030 goals. The aim is to promote the development of sustainable port cities. In 2025, we intend to scale up support for members willing to use the tool and build our international partnerships in this area. The ultimate objective is to enable every member to assess their own progress and capitalize on others’ experiences.

Also in 2025, AIVP will forge ahead with international cooperation actions and efforts to disseminate knowledge about port cities, through three European projects:

  • The MAGPIE project, on the energy transition in port cities;
  • The Connected River project, on shared uses of the waterways and waterfronts in port cities;
  • The Safari project, on ports’ resilience to extreme weather events.

Meanwhile, our team and our network of experts and practitioners will be here to assist members with any requests they may have, whether:

  • Helping to create a Port Center;
  • Providing in-depth benchmarks for the 10 themes of the AIVP Agenda 2030;
  • Arranging a masterclass to make their staff and partners more aware of City Port issues;
  • Training their staff with the sustainable port city course, and the AIVP Erasmus immersion programme set to be launched in 2025.

AIVP is steadily growing in visibility and influence. The year ahead will be particularly important, with the 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC) taking place in the summer organized by the UN, France, and Costa Rica. AIVP is already fully committed to preparing for the event, where we aim to achieve proper recognition for the strategic role of port cities in international ocean policy.

The first edition of the Antoine Rufenacht AIVP Prize was an interesting marker in terms of brand recognition for our association, as demonstrated by the six port cities that reached the final round: Buenos Aires, Los Angeles, Seattle, Oslo, Paris, and Tangier. These finalists and the winner will be valorized in 2025, giving them greater visibility, while the second edition of the prize will be launched in the fall.

To implement our programme of activities for 2025, we will continue to rely on our great team and flexible organization.

Thank you for your commitment, loyalty, and confidence over the coming year.

Bruno Delsalle, General Manager and the AIVP Team