At the beginning of the 21st century, a passion for the future vitality of our cities requires us to take an interest in a number of very different questions, some of which may lead to conflicting answers. What are the central features of modern urban civilizations? What is human scale? How are great visions developed and then integrated into the public sphere of political debate and informed choices? How is it possible to plan the evolution of existing cities so that they encourage more satisfying rhythms and interactions for the people who live, grow, work, dream and create within them? What are the unique elements of a Canadian “architecture of happiness”?

The Sixth Trudeau Conference on Public Policies will explore these questions, one by one, examining the furthest reaches of the best international experience and expertise. We will start by having the conference participants take the measure of the needs to be satisfied, the efforts to be made and above all, the obstacles to overcome. The four Foundation themes will form the backbone of the conference while specific issues such as governance, immigration, homelessness, the greening of the city or the particular challenges of emerging cities will be addressed by Canadian and international experts, practitioners and academics, in dialogue sessions, that have become the trademark of Trudeau Foundation conferences.