five ideas for cities "let's get on with it!"

David SingletonArup

13 March 2014

Five Ideas for Cities

Aristotle said:

“people come to cities for a living….. they live in cities for a better life”

More than half of humanity now lives in cities. Urban areas account for between 60-80% of energy consumption and a commensurate share of global CO2 emissions.

Within a decade, more than 500 cities globally will have populations exceeding one million.

A statement on climate adaptation from the recent C40 Summit in Johannesburg:

“…..countries talk…but cities act”

February 2014

Cities are the clusters around whichhuman interaction is fostered, creativity and innovation flourish and economic activity is focussed

They are the focii for economic development

To foster the contributions that cities make we must understand what drives their success

These drivers can be thought of in terms of:

Demographic factorsDensityDesign and planningDiversity, of all typesDigital economy

These drivers can be thought of in terms of:

Demographic factorsDensityDesign and planningDiversity, of all typesDigital economy

Economic growth

Urbanisation

In 2008 the majority of the world’s population lived in cities

By 2050 the UN projects that 6.9 million people will live in cities (>75% of population)

Urbanisation most marked in emerging markets

Ho Chi Minh City

These drivers can be thought of in terms of:

Demographic factorsDensityDesign and planningDiversity, of all typesDigital economy

Toronto

Beijing

Canary Wharf

These drivers can be thought of in terms of:

Demographic factorsDensityDesign and planningDiversity, of all typesDigital economy

What makes cities vibrant and successful?

© Arup

What makes cities vibrant and successful?

© Arup

Green Star, South Africa

Treasure Island, San Francisco

Helsinki

Manchester

These drivers can be thought of in terms of:

Demographic factorsDensityDesign and planningDiversity, of all typesDigital economy

Copenhagen

Asian Cities

Singapore

Low Emission Vehicles

High Speed 1, UK

These drivers can be thought of in terms of:

Demographic factorsDensityDesign and planningDiversity, of all typesDigital economy

Thank you

Office Realtime

Resistance orResilience?

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change defines resilience as “...the ability of a social or ecological system to absorb disturbances while retaining the same basic structure and ways of functioning, the capacity for self-organisation, and the capacity to adapt to stress and change”

IPCC, 2007

Cities should adopt a systemic approach to resilience that allows them to fail 'gently', rather than catastrophically.

A solution based around ‘gentle’ failure is considered a success when the city is able to function after disaster by using alternative resources and systems and through the initiatives of the local community.

Toolkit for Resilient Cities: Arup – Siemens

David SingletonArup

13 March 2014

Thank you