Global Mayors Academy

6-month path to world-class city leadership

Starting - 24 January 2026

(urban solutions)

To empower city leaders and deliver visible results, community engagement and sustainable development with world-class strategies, tools, and a supportive global peer network.

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108th mayor of NYC and founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies

About GMA

The Global Mayors Academy is designed to help city leaders face their most pressing challenges with clarity, courage, and collaboration.

We empower mayors and civic innovators with practical tools, trusted networks, and breakthrough solutions to address urgent urban issues - to navigate complexity and lead systemic change in your cities, from rising costs and social tensions to economic renewal and climate risks.

Our focus is on building long-term capacity: strengthening cross-sector cooperation, fostering resilience in communities, and creating conditions for thriving civic, cultural, and economic life.

Through world-class education, real-world projects, and a global community of peers, the Academy equips leaders to solve problems that matter - and to shape sustainable, living cities for generations to come.

"The future will be written in cities - on the streets, in the schools, through the jobs and opportunities created there. Mayors hold the responsibility and the power to shape that future for generations to come."

Mayor of Bern (2017-2024)

Cities facing challenges

Social

Demographic

Economic

Ecological

Cultural

Cities everywhere are navigating interconnected social, demographic, economic, ecological, and cultural challenges. These pressures demand not just isolated fixes, but leadership that can recognize patterns, connect sectors, and create solutions that work across boundaries.

At the Global Mayors Academy, we help city leaders turn complexity into opportunity -equipping them with the tools, networks, and strategies to address today’s urgent issues while laying foundations for thriving, resilient communities.

A modular, 6-month hybrid program (online + in-person summit) organized around 12 core themes

The Global Mayors Academy provides a clear framework for action: world-class modules, practical projects, and a strong international network. Leaders learn by doing, exchange insights with peers, and apply proven strategies directly to their cities - gaining both immediate impact and long-term capacity to govern and innovate effectively.

A curated, co-learning space with deep dialogue, practical application, and transformational frameworks

A global network of city leaders supported by networks like C40 Cities, ICLEI, Ashoka, Impact Hub, and UN-Habitat, with participation from mayors and city leaders across continents (TBC)

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Our Solution

Swiss Professional Certificate - global recognition for advancing city leadership

Real Impact - design and launch 1–3 tangible urban projects during the program

Practical Tools & Strategies - solutions for cities facing economic, social, and cultural pressures

Global Peer Community - trusted connections with mayors and civic leaders worldwide

Leadership Growth - personal transformation and skills to lead systemic change in cities

Long-term Capacity - readiness to govern complexity and drive sustainable urban development

Outcomes and Benefits for participants

Why it matters for City Leaders

Cities are where the world’s biggest challenges show up first, and where new ways of living, leading, and working take root. But many city leaders are stuck managing day to day crises with tools that weren’t designed to deal with today’s complexity.

The Global Mayors Academy offers a space to step back, explore new solutions, discover what works, and move forward with greater clarity, capacity, and support. We know Leader are already under daily pressure and are time poor so we make sure we’re helping them reduce their workload not add to it, this is leading differently, with more impact and less burnout.