City and Regional Planners met together in October 2024 in Siena, Italy, to “Reinventing the (In)Visible Cities: From Heritage to Innovation, Forging Pathways to Resilience”. Prepared by ISOCARP with 50 volunteers, the Congress attracts 500+ participants coming from 70+ countries to discuss on 430 papers, participate to 10 Urban conversations, 8 Special sessions, 9 high-level Keynotes in plenary sessions, attend to 6 awards, and mobilize 18 young planners and 13 high-level professionals on placemaking charette for the City of Siena.

Thanks to UN-Habitat (Ana Claudia Rosenbach and Michal Mlynár) and UNESCO (Jyoti Hosagahar) the Congress was positioned with key international agencies for planners. The large experience in the preservation of historical centers is source of innovation that inspires urban regeneration based on circular economy, a critical contemporary challenge that drives the new planning paradigm moving from the old fashion “city of speed” to the contemporary “city of proximity” (Carlos Moreno’s 15 minutes city). The new approach in heritage conservation (Jad Tabet) refers to the Historic Urban Landscape Recommendation of UNESCO (2011), a holistic approach based on the city and regional planners’ approach. Several initiatives from UNESCO World Heritage Center (Jyoti Hosagrahar) provide a global framework to share experience and give easy access to innovative experiences on historical centers. Inclusiveness is central in city and regional planning and critical for resilience (Orna Rosenfeld) to face contemporary challenges. Revitalization of cities and towns is critical to reduce the Carbon print of cities. And like a story can change a city, film making is a way to change city planning (Chris Elisara). Starchitects (Massimiliano Fuksas) can play a guiding role to make cities more resilient.