Local leaders sometimes look to innovation as a way to add value for residents without significantly shaking up basic service delivery. But some of the most valuable innovations happen when cities take a fresh look at those very services, such as sanitation, education, or housing. While these essentials may seem routine, improving them can significantly raise the quality of people’s everyday lives and help cities stay ahead of future problems.
That’s why Bloomberg Philanthropies focused its 2025 Mayors Challenge on uncovering new ways to deliver essential city services. And it’s why 200 local leaders from the Challenge’s 50 finalist cities (selected from more than 630 applications and hailing from 33 countries) recently came together in Bogotá for an Ideas Camp designed to stretch their ambition, fine-tune their ideas, and show them what it takes to transform a core city service.
Ultimately, only 25 of these cities will be awarded $1 million and technical assistance to bring their winning solutions to life. But already, their work is producing insights about what becomes possible when cities start with a foundation of bold mayoral vision, test ideas aggressively, and then work to win the hearts and minds of residents for change.