The two-day conference will examine the changing economic landscape of cities and their metropolitan regions in the US and internationally, to understand how cities are responding to economic instability and how they are harnessing the potential of the green economy to create jobs and support growth. With the participation of civic leaders, at an urban and national scale, and the presentation of new reserarch by the Brookings Institution and the London School of Economics, the conference will identify a road-map to create and sustain low-carbon, opportunity-rich and export-orientated urban economies in a liveable urban environment. Key themes will include the role of federal investment in city growth and competitiveness, state-of-the-art sustainable policies and the creation of green jobs that can deliver a lasting economy for over half the world's population who are now city dwellers.