International City Network for Crisis Management
International City Network for Crisis Management (ICNCM) is the unity of European capital cities and regions, which main activities are for exchanging information and materials related to crisis management, organising international crisis management conferences and arranging mutual events, studies and trainings. Since year 2003, there are arranged regularly international crisis management conferences, which goal is to deal with the issues related to the crisis management and citizen protection.
Initiative for creation of the City Network started in the 1990-ies, behalf of the city of Vienna, who wanted to build up international City Network of European capitals and regions in the field of the crisis management and citizen protection. Accordingly the city of Vienna concluded cooperation agreements in the field of crisis management and citizen protection with 13 European cities, including 9 capital cities and 1 region. The agreement with the cities included the exchange of the information in the fields of Fire and Rescue Service, Crisis Management and Citizen Protection. Also it included arranging mutual events, studies and trainings.
At the initiative of the Vienna city, in year 2003 was organised first International Crisis Management Conference, that was held in Vienna. The purpose of the conference is to deal and discuss the issues related to the Crisis Management and Citizen Protection with the different organisations (Crisis Management, Fire and Rescue Service, Police, etc) of the European cities, in order to make more efficient the cooperation among the cities and to exchange information and practical experience.
The Coordination Council of the City Network created in year 2007, in order to lead the work of the City Network and the cooperation of the cities belonging to the City Network. The Coordination Council has four members. The members of the Coordination Council are the representatives of the Vienna, Tallinn, Tel Aviv and Prague cities. Since year 2022, the city of Tel-Aviv leads the work of the Coordination Council and the Chairman of the Coordination Council is David Aharony, Director of Emergency and Security Department of the Tel Aviv City.
According to the Decision of the Coordination Council, the direct proposals can be made to twin cities or good cooperation cities in other areas in order to involve new cities in the City Network. AS the result, there are several cities, without a formal cooperation agreement with the city of Vienna, became an important partners of the City Network, due to their regular participation at the conferences.
Currently to the International City Network for Crisis Management belong 22 cities, including: Vienna, Tallinn, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Madrid, Prague, Ljubljana, Zagreb, Warsaw, Masovian Voivodeship, Nis, Budapest, Krakow, Düsseldorf, Berlin, Paris, Riga, Vilnius, Helsinki, Hamburg, Bordeaux, Rostock and Odessa.