Around 300 leaders from administration, investment and financing, architecture, and civil society are set to gather in Iași for TILIA – Today's Ideas and Leadership In Action - Summit of Romanian Cities next month. The event, organized by IULIUS in partnership with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), will focus on key urban development challenges and solutions.

The first edition of the summit will take place on April 23–24 at the Palace of Culture in Iași, implemented through the IULIUS Foundation.

The discussions will center on urban planning and mobility, public-private partnerships, and affordable housing, as cities across Romania face growing pressure to modernize infrastructure and improve quality of life.

“We often talk about cities either in terms of the future or looking backwards. Through TILIA, we want to bring the conversation to the present, to what we can do concretely, today, for the cities in which we live. We thought of this approach as a framework in which administrations, investors, architects, academia, and civil society work together, not only to generate ideas, but to transform them into applicable solutions, based on real examples and on the application of lessons learned and on the exchange of good practices,” said Raluca Munteanu, Development Director, IULIUS.

The two-day event is structured to address both strategy and execution. The first day will focus on urban design and regeneration, including international perspectives and case studies, while the second day will examine financing mechanisms, legislative frameworks, and implementation tools for urban projects.

Participants will include representatives of commercial banks, international financial institutions, and public policy experts, who are expected to debate funding challenges and regulatory issues affecting city development.

In parallel, a second stage titled “Cities in the Making: Design, Culture and Nature” will explore the broader elements shaping urban life, including architecture, creative industries, green infrastructure, and mental health.

The summit will be accompanied by an architectural exhibition by Foster + Partners, open to the public at the Palace of Culture between April 7 and May 3. The exhibition will showcase models and 3D representations of international projects, including Apple Park, the Great Court at the British Museum, and the Reichstag building in Berlin.

A masterclass led by the Foster + Partners team will also be held during the summit, offering professionals and decision-makers the opportunity to engage with approaches to architecture and urban planning applied in real projects.

Further details are available here.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: press release)