On 22, 23 and 24 February, the World Trade Center in Barcelona was transformed into a hub where regions, cities and provinces from four continents demonstrated their perspectives in order to define a policy agenda from a local point of view.

Through debates, reflection and ideas for now and the future, the European local authorities made themselves heard. Their local perspective was reflected in issues such as their role in questioning current social and economic models.

Coming from all over Europe and from cities such as Medellín (Colombia), Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam) and Dakar (Senegal), the speakers posed questions regarding what governments should contribute and what local policies Europe needs in order to achieve full economic, social and territorial cohesion.

The participants tackled the debate through four major topics: Local governments in a globalised world; The framework of European policy innovation; From crisis to the knowledge economy and sustainability; New governance for active citizenship.

Towns and cities are no longer closed systems today, but have become plural spaces of relation that are open to engaging with the world. And it is increasingly clear that local governments serve as a positive counterweight to the worst effects of globalisation by neutralising dangers and taking advantage of opportunities.

In Europe in the 21^st century, the Europe of the Treaty of Lisbon, democratic values depend greatly upon Europeans' ability to shape better local governance to optimise service provision, spatial planning and civic participation.

As stakeholders in world economic competitiveness, cities are our main motors of innovation and economic development: they concentrate jobs, companies, institutions of higher learning, research institutes, services and social and cultural networks necessary for a quality of life and social cohesion.

In line with this, the work performed by the EUROCITIES network was presented on 24 February. Its Secretary General Paul Bevan stated that "despite its diversity, European cities are facing similar challenges: work, lodging, transport, integration, waste management, etc." He also stressed that "whatever Europe decides can either make our work easier or harder as urban administrators. Europe can establish the context for developing national laws, and that can mean getting the right resources for our needs."

The network's three major lines of action to respond to local and regional authorities' concerns are innovation, the environment and social inclusion. Various leaders from Eurocities talked about these challenges, such as Policy Director Vanda Knowles, who reviewed the state of technological innovation; the Environmental Forum's Technical Chair, Johannes Dictus, who tackled the subject of the environment; and the head of the Department of Labour and Social Affairs at Stockholm City Council, Anna Mattsson, who focused on aspects of social inclusion. Examples of good practice for all three were taken from Lyon, Nottingham, San Sebastián, Birmingham, Budapest, Barcelona and Terrassa.

Eurocities' raison d'être is the conviction that towns and cities are at the heart of socioeconomic development in Europe. Created in 1986, the 140-city and 34-country network works for 120 million people, fostering cooperation among towns and cities so they can share and compare experiences, collaborate and learn from each other.

The three days of the European Summit of Local Governments gave rise to more than 100 events dominated by conversation and dialogue in which the concepts of social cohesion, multi-level governance and spatial integration intersected and came out richer due to the human exchanges among the thousand participating individuals committed to the European dream.