10 Reasons to Apply for Vanguard El Paso

Perhaps you’ve heard that applications are open for Next City’s 2022 Vanguard Conference in El Paso, happening October 24-27, 2022. Vanguard is an immersive, experiential conference that gathers 40 urban leaders for four days of inspirational cross-sector collaboration. Thinking you might apply? Consider these top 10 reasons to throw your hat in the ring. 

1. Get to know 39 other rising urban leaders in your generation, all doing amazing work in cities across North America and beyond.
2. Learn from experts in the fields of urban planning, community development, environmental justice, transportation, philanthropy, design and more about what’s working and what’s not in their fields of practice… as well as what innovations inspire their work.
3. Experience El Paso, a majority-Latino city that encompasses a metro area including both Las Cruces, New Mexico, and Ciudad Juárez, in Mexico’s Chihuahua state. The city has made strides in historic preservation and cultivating a welcoming, pedestrian-friendly downtown. It’s finishing projects tied to a quality of life bond passed in 2012, which proposed new cultural spaces but also generated controversy. Now, a major revision to its downtown master plan gets under way, and the community engagement strategy will be pivotal to realizing an El Paso that works for all residents. 
4. Meet the people leading the change in El Paso and participate in a Big Ideas Exchange that will leave a lasting impact on the city.
5. We’re planning events and conversations in Ciudad Juárez — be there for Next City’s first cross-border conference. Trust us, we are not here to talk about politically motivated border-crossing traffic jams.  This city views the border not as a threat, but as an opportunity for economic and cultural collaboration. Bear witness to the threads that connect El Paso and Juárez from across the Rio Grande.
6. Form deep and lasting connections within an influential network of your peers.
7. El Paso has six restored Art Deco PCC streetcars that traverse two loops through downtown to the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). Hop on and let your transit geek flag fly.
8. Hear from leading journalists, practitioners and academics about trends in urban policy.
9. A thriving downtown arts district + cross-border collaborations + new friends who also want to talk about equitable public spaces, guaranteed income and affordable housing. Need we say more?
10. You work hard all year — why not join us for four days in the largest city along the U.S.-Mexico border? You’ll enjoy some truly exceptional Mexican food, taste a margarita at the birthplace of the margarita, experience ongoing Dia de los Muertos celebrations happening the week we are there, and more.

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