7. “Urban planning” – Moving towards Better Cities

Main takeaways:

• Companies need a deeper understanding of customer habits to design multi-utility offerings
• The average customer is becoming increasingly urban
• A global transition to sustainability should therefore begin with a fundamental re-thinking of options to make cities sustainable. The article outlines the main principles

“Divine nature gave the fields, human art built the cities.” (Marcus Terentius Varro)

The evolution of technologies in Energy, Water, Mobility, Security and Waste Management has accelerated in recent years. The advances in Connectivity have fostered the Convergence of these sectors. No company can easily afford to be a pure-play company any more in these domains, except if they occupy certain niches. For example, as electricity becomes cheap, the business value doesn’t come from the electrons themselves, but from the services and solutions that are built around them. This requires more knowledge of customers and their daily habits. A deeper relationship with the customer in turn can enable it to be broadened to other sectors. We thus have telecom, water, gas and electricity companies now cross-selling multi-utility offerings to customers, and combining them with additional B2C and B2B services.

The average customer is becoming increasingly urban. Cities already represent more than 50% of today’s global population. The per capita consumption of resources is higher in cities as compared to rural areas. Cities are hence responsible for a large share of the overall resource consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. A global transition to sustainability should therefore begin with a fundamental rethinking of options to make cities sustainable. This should include environmentally friendly energy, water and waste management options, good air quality, healthy lifestyles, easy commuting, safe and connected neighbourhoods, a vibrant economy, and efficient governance.

The exact designs for each city need to be specific to the socio-political context in which they are administered. There can be no “one size fits all” option. But one can think of certain principles to frame the planning and administration process that result directly from Convergence:

A)   Air Quality: Industrial emissions-intensive activity should be located outside city limits to the extent possible. A greener transportation strategy should be implemented. Green cover (urban forests, gardens, parks and tree-lined avenues) should be improved and protected from urban sprawl

B)   Energy: Renewable energy options should be deployed within city limits where economically feasible. The city’s overall energy footprint (e.g. industrial activity and power plants located outside city limits) should aspire to become 100% emissions-free

C)    Water: Water conservation, harvesting and recycling should be enforced. The true cost of water should be reflected in its price. Or at the very least, it should be made transparent to encourage responsible consumption

D)   Mobility: The eventual transition to autonomous vehicles should be utilised to reduce traffic congestion and re-think the balance between public and private transportation

E)    Waste: Recycling should be mandatory, and carried out as part of a roadmap to creating a fully Circular Economy (more on this in another article). Landfills should be phased out and redeveloped

F)    Buildings: Buildings should fully integrate “energy positive” principles in their form and functionality. They should offer a balance of social engagement and individual space

G)   Connectivity: The mix of WiFi, Broadband and IoT networks should be ubiquitous, reliable, and energy efficient

H)   Security: The security apparatus should combine an efficient network of CCTV cameras, deep analytics and smart human intervention when necessary

I)     Governance: The city’s public administration should be designed in a way that it mirrors the Convergence of sectors, with the removal of silos, better coordination of information gathering and infrastructure maintenance (e.g. Think of roads being dug up by multiple utilities at different points of the year. This should be a thing of the past!)

J)     Branding: The city’s brand is often attached to its heritage – its arts and culture, events & attractions, landscapes, business climate, port and lifestyle. Each city should also be recognised for its ability to sustain this brand in harmony with its natural environment

Great cities have always been seen as hubs of opportunity. A truly better city is one that will grasp the opportunity to reinvent itself in the orientation towards sustainability.