ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability, founded in 1990 as the 'International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives', is an international

International

----International mostly means something that involves more than one country. The term international as a word means involvement of, interaction between or encompassing more than one nation, or generally beyond national boundaries...

 association of local government

Government

Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...

s and national and regional local government organizations that have made a commitment to sustainable development

Sustainable development

Sustainable development is a pattern of resource use, that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for generations to come...

. The association was established when more than 200 local governments from 43 countries convened at its inaugural conference, the World Congress of Local Governments for a Sustainable Future, at the United Nations

United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

 in New York in September 1990. Today, more than 1200 cities, towns, counties, and their associations in 70 countries comprise ICLEI's growing membership. ICLEI works with these and hundreds of other local governments through international performance-based, results-oriented campaigns and programs. It provides technical consulting

Consultant

A consultant is a professional who provides professional or expert advice in a particular area such as management, accountancy, the environment, entertainment, technology, law , human resources, marketing, emergency management, food production, medicine, finance, life management, economics, public...

, training

Training

The term training refers to the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and competencies as a result of the teaching of vocational or practical skills and knowledge that relate to specific useful competencies. It forms the core of apprenticeships and provides the backbone of content at institutes of...

, and information services to build capacity, share knowledge, and support local government in the implementation of sustainable development at the local level. ICLEI's basic premise is that locally designed initiatives can provide an effective and cost-efficient way to achieve local, national, and global sustainability objectives.

Name

The organization is now officially called 'ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability'. In 2003, ICLEI's Members voted to revise the organization's mission, charter and name to better reflect the current challenges local governments are facing. The International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives became 'ICLEI—Local Governments for Sustainability' with a broader mandate to address sustainability issues.

Governance

ICLEI is a democratic organization with each local government Member holding a position on the Council. The Council convenes every three years at an ICLEI World Congress and establishes ICLEI's priorities and direction through the adoption of a six-year Strategic Plan. The most recent ICLEI World Congress was held in Edmonton from 14 to 18 June 2009. Members elect 21 representatives to serve on the Executive Committee, which oversees the implementation of the Strategic Plan and ICLEI operations.

ICLEI - Capacity Center

The ICLEI Capacity Center, formerly the International Training Centre, is the training and conference service unit of ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability.

EcoMobility

ICLEI legally represents and hosts the Secretariat of the Global Alliance for EcoMobility. The Secretariat office is in Bonn, Germany. The Global Alliance for EcoMobility is an international non-profit partnership that works to promote EcoMobility and thus reduce citizens’ dependency on private motorized vehicles worldwide. It was founded by a group of leading global organizations on the occasion of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali in December 2007.