The future of our planet depends on our cities. By 2050, that’s where seventy percent of the Earth’s population will be living—growing from 3.3 billion people today to a breathtaking 6.4 billion. This wave of urbanization presents enormous challenges and opportunities to all of us—but especially to city leaders, and especially now as broad consensus for change emerges, driven by economic necessity and environmental concern.

The good news is that we now have the capability—both technological and political—to transform our cities for greater sustainability, growth and social progress. We now possess new tools and models to make cities more productive, more efficient, more vibrant and more responsive—in a word, smarter.

Hosted by IBM Chairman, President and CEO Samuel J. Palmisano, this leadership forum will bring together senior government and business leaders from Latin America’s most progressive cities to examine how we can spur economic development, modernize infrastructures and transform our cities to create a new urban model.

At our SmarterCities forum, we will convene experts from around the world to discuss the opportunities and challenges associated with urbanization and globalization. We will explore new approaches to regional partnership, identify roadblocks, evaluate frameworks for investment and review the tools that are helping our cities meet 21st century realities.