It is possible to link together many of the issues discussed above with a suggestion for a three year pilot project, which would begin to develop long-term, on-going relationships with a select number of cities. Such cities might be designated AUICK Associate Cities.
These sustained relationships would be the mechanism by which AUICK could work towards a more distinctive integration of its information-gathering, dissemination, and training activities. In the three year period, AUICK could work towards developing an urban projects data base, carry out one broad Inquiry and two in-depth studies, and conduct a concerted plan of training. It could also focus on ways to link its information-gathering with urban planning, and with strategies for addressing urban problems.

The first step would be to decide the specific activities that AUICK would like to undertake with cities and their planning offices if a long term, sustained relationship could be developed. This would carry implications for the resources needed, which would provide information for the next step, deciding on how many countries and cities to be included in the relationship. Next it would be necessary to select the specific countries and cities with which to build a relationship. Specific cities could be invited to join the network of Associate Cities. A schedule could be devised to begin with a few cities, adding a few more each year. Visits of the selected cities' mayors or chief administrators to Kobe, and a small workshop on working together through an AUICK Associated Cities project could be convened.

Part of the city selection could rest on considerations outside of AUICK. It could be suggested to the candidate cities, for example, that they work together with AUICK to search for funds at their national level, from various United Nations Agencies or other private or public donors. For example, if UNFPA country programs in some countries were willing and able to assist certain city planning units to work with AUICK on population and urban development projects, there could be synergistic gains for the donors as well as for the individual cities. Alternatively, the ESCAP regional population activity might be approached to work with AUICK on a regional plan for population and urban development strategies. Again, synergistic gains could be expected.

The selected cities could be offered a multiple year plan of training by Kobe. AUICK staff would work together with the city government leaders to decide on a schedule of training, numbers of participants, different levels of participants, and the specific subjects to be covered. At the same time, collaborative efforts could be used to develop the information protocols for collecting and managing an urban projects data base. Those selected cities and their planning units might also assist AUICK's information gathering by acting much as the access persons acted in previous Inquiries.

It would be especially useful to identify a university or research institute in the selected cities and invite scholars, or research units to participate in the Associate Cities exercise. Especially where urban administrations are typically overworked and understaffed, external assistance from university faculty and students could provide extra personnel for some activities, and technically specialized personnel for information gathering, data base management and analysis.