Continuing the success of the 15th Asian Urbanization Conference in 2019, the Vietnamese-German University (VGU) collaborated with the Asian Urban Research Association (AURA) to host the 16th Asian Urbanization Conference (AUC2024) at the VGU campus on January 11 and 12, 2024. AUC 2024 focuses on the theme “Asian Urbanization: Forging a Livable and Sustainable Urban Future.” This year, the conference is sponsored by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (FNF) Vietnam, The Technical University of Darmstadt, Shippensburg University, the Center for Land Use and Sustainability, Ashui.com e-magazine, and the Vietnamese-German University.

Figure 1. Dr. Thomas Aulig, Vice President of the VGU, delivered the opening speech

Renowned as a distinguished international platform, the Asian Urbanization Conference series brings together scholars, experts, and practitioners to exchange knowledge and insights on the challenges and opportunities of urbanization in Asian cities. AUC 2024 witnessed the participation of over 100 scholars, experts, practitioners, students, and four keynote speakers from various corners of the globe, all contributing to the discourse on sustaining our urban future in Asia.

The conference commenced with the Young Scholar Workshop on the morning of Thursday, January 11. Dr. Pham Thai Son, Senior Lecturer at the Sustainable Urban Development (SUD) Master study program, delivered a presentation on the career paths of urban professionals. Subsequently, four distinguished experts – Prof. Hans Joachim Linke (SUD Program Director, TU Darmstadt), Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Hieu (SUD Academic Coordinator, VGU), Dr. Nguyen Quang (Former Country Director, UN-Habitat Vietnam), and Assoc. Prof. Jennifer Pomeroy (York College, USA) – shared their experiences in a roundtable discussion session, covering topics such as professional career paths, navigating complexity in professional life, academic career paths, and publishing experiences with the conference attendees and SUD students.

Figure 2: Four experts are sharing their insights and experiences during the Workshop

After the morning workshop, the main content of AUC 2024 started in the afternoon, featuring keynote speeches, presentations of participants in parallel sessions, and exchange activities that extended until Friday, January 12. Concurrently, poster sessions and discussions enriched the conference experience. Accepted papers will be selected for publication in the Conference Proceedings by Springer Nature, indexed in Scopus.

Figure 3: Participants joined the poster session

The AUC 2024 provides an excellent platform for academic engagement, including interactions with esteemed keynote speakers, networking opportunities, and discussions on varied topics such as city and region transformation, smart cities and urbanism, health-conscious cities, green buildings and construction, and urban governance transformation.

Figure 4: Delegates gathered for commemorative photos at the conference

The event not only facilitates learning and sharing but also aims to fortify academic networks and collaborations among participants, paving the way for the upcoming AUC 2026 conference in Bangladesh.