NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today the Financial Times announced the panel of judges participating in the FT/Citi Ingenuity Awards: Urban Ideas in Action programme, sponsored by Citi. The judges, all leaders in their respective fields, will select the most innovative solutions to urban challenges in the fields of education, healthcare, energy and infrastructure.

"The majority of the world's population now lives in cities, drawn to them by the promise of employment and a better life,” said Michael Skapinker, Assistant Editor and Editor of Special Reports at the Financial Times. “Alongside cities' dynamism go the strains of over-crowding and congestion. Throughout the world, however, individuals and groups are coming up with inventive solutions to the problems of urban living. Our judging panel, all esteemed experts in their fields, will honour the best of city innovators."

“We are pleased these industry leaders will share their expertise to recognise the ingenious individuals who are developing practical solutions that positively and fundamentally impact cities,” said Francesco Vannid’Archirafi, CEO, Citi Transaction Services. “The demands on cities have never been greater than they are today. Through Citi’s sponsorship of this program, we are excited to highlight those who are helping cities realise a better, more efficient future for all.”

The judging panel includes:

• David Adjaye, OBE, Principal Architect, Adjaye Architects: Leading UK architect, current visiting professor at Princeton University School of Architecture, RIBA Chartered Member and AIA Honorary Fellow.
• Professor Abhijit Banerjee, Economist: Current Ford Foundation International Professor of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; co-author of Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty.
• John Bowis, OBE, Honorary President, Health First Europe: Former UK Health Minister, former member of the UK Parliament, former member of the European Parliament and Lead Coordinator & Spokesman for the Environment & Health Parliamentary Committee.
• Sir Terry Farrell, CBE, International Architect & Design Champion and Director, Terry Farrell and Partners: Leading architect, currently on the London Mayor’s Design Advisory Panel and Outer London Commission, author of many books including Shaping London.
• Reinier de Graaf, Partner, OMA: Architect and Partner of architecture and design office OMA, frequent lecturer in academia.
• Dame Zaha Hadid, DBE, Founder, Zaha Hadid Architects: (Honorary President of the judging committee, non-voting): Internationally known for her built, theoretical and academic work; awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize (considered to be the Nobel Prize of architecture) in 2004; recent projects include the MAXXI museum in Rome and London Aquatics Centre, London 2012 Olympics.
• Edwin Heathcote, Architecture and Design Critic, Financial Times (co-chair): Architect, designer and FT critic since 1999; also authored several books, including Monument Builders: Modern Architecture and Death.
• Bruno Lanvin, Executive Director, INSEAD eLab (co-chair): Executive Director of INSEAD’s eLab, a global knowledge engine focused on four main areas: IT-based competitiveness, internet and social media, innovation leadership and 21st century skills.
• Professor Carlo Ratti, Italian Architect and Engineer: Founding Partner of design practice 'carlorattiassociati' and Director of the MIT Senseable City Lab at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
• Luanne Zurlo, Founder and President, Worldfund: Former Wall Street Securities analyst (Smith Barney, CSFB and Goldman Sachs) and founder of Worldfund, a nonprofit using education to fight poverty in Latin America.

Submissions have been received from 41 countries, including: Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kenya, Lebanon, Lithuania, Macedonia, Mexico, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Nepal, Pakistan, Peru, Poland, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Uganda, U.A.E., the United Kingdom, the United States and Uruguay.

About the FT/Citi Ingenuity Awards

More than half of the world’s population lives in cities today, a number which is expected to rise in the decades ahead. As a result, cities have a pressing need to address the challenges of urbanisation and find solutions that modernise infrastructure, improve efficiency, enhance quality of life and foster sustainable growth and development.

The FT/Citi Ingenuity Awards: Urban Ideas in Action, a global programme sponsored by Citi, was developed to recognise individuals who have developed groundbreaking solutions to urban challenges that benefit cities, citizens and urban communities in the fields of education, energy, healthcare and infrastructure.

Criteria and metrics for the Awards have been developed by INSEAD, one of the world’s leading and largest graduate business schools. All entries will be reviewed by the FT and INSEAD for qualification. The judging panel will select finalists and winners. As sponsor, Citi will not review or judge submissions.

Submissions will be reviewed based on a range of criteria, including originality, impact, efficiency and outcomes.

Category finalists will be profiled in a series of Financial Times global magazines. A global winner and category winners will be announced at an awards dinner in New York City in December 2012.

For more details on the FT/Citi Ingenuity Awards, please visit www.ft-live.com/ftcitiawards.

About the Financial Times:

The Financial Times, one of the world’s leading business news organisations, is recognised internationally for its authority, integrity and accuracy. Providing essential news, comment, data and analysis for the global business community, the FT has a combined paid print and digital circulation of almost 600,000 (Deloitte assured, 2 April 2012 – 1 July 2012) and a combined print and online average daily readership of 2.1 million people worldwide (PwC assured, May 2012). FT.com has more than 4.8 million registered users and over 300,000 paying digital subscribers. The newspaper has a global print circulation of 290,765 (ABC, July 2012).

About Citi:

Citi, the leading global financial services company, has approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 160 countries and jurisdictions. Citi provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction services, and wealth management. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com | Twitter: @Citi | YouTube: www.youtube.com/citi | Blog: http://new.citi.com | Facebook: www.facebook.com/citi | LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/citi

About Citi for Cities:

Citi for Cities is an initiative that harnesses the best of Citi across the globe to enable cities to become more efficient, by providing financing that facilitates commerce and modernization, and by empowering citizens to access services that enhance liveability and prosperity. Citi aims to help cities achieve their ambitions across the key ecosystems that power a city including administration, roads and transit, ports of entry, energy and utilities, workplace and education, health and safety and regeneration and development. Citi’s span of engagement with cities includes public and private sectors, the financial sector and citizens and the communities in which they live. For more information, please visit www.citiforcities.com.