Intelligent Resilient Liveable Cities

Professor Derek Clements-Croome The University of Reading

www.derekcroome.com

What do we know?

IMPACT OF ENVIRONMENT ON WELLBEING

n PHYSICAL n MENTAL n SOCIAL

e.g.Health and Wellbeing in Homes Report UK GBC 2016

n Cities can be stressful arising from ineffective infrastructure and buildings

n Urbanisation is increasing n Pollution levels are unacceptable and

about 9000 people die per year in London

n The UK climate likely to be Mediterranean by 2080; in 2003 35,000 people die due to heat stress in Western Europe

n Loneliness and mental illnesses are increasing

Walking to Work in Letchworth Garden City

RUSH HOUR IN LONDON

THE CULTURE OF CITIES

“ A City should be built to give its inhabitants security and happiness”

---Aristotle

An Intelligent City and Liveable City is

Ü An Accessible City Ü  A Business City Ü  An Attractive City Ü A City for Living Ü A Just City

THE RESILIENT SUSTAINABLE CITY IS: n  A Just City, where justice, food, shelter, education, health

and hope are fairly distributed and democratic n  A Beautiful City, where art, architecture and Nature spark

the imagination and move the human spirit; n  A Creative City, where open-mindedness and

experimentation motivate human resources and allow a fast response to change;

n  An Ecological City, which minimises its ecological impact, where landscape and built form are balanced and where buildings and infrastructures are safe and resource-efficient;

n  A City of Easy Contact and Mobility, which protects the countryside, focuses and integrates communities within neighbourhoods and maximises proximity

n  A Diverse City, where a broad range of overlapping activities create liveliness, inspiration and foster vitality and vivacity.

Foresight(2008). Mental capital and well-being. London:

The Government Office for Science. n  diverse types of open space

(combining green as well as hard landscaping), and a higher relative proportion of public to private space.

n  self-reported altruistic behaviour is more prevalent in neighbourhoods which incorporate space design related to diversity, proximity, accessibility and qualities

n  the provision of art, planting and landscaping, wildlife features (e.g. insect boxes), and seating.

n 

K. Steemers (2015), ‘Architecture for well-being and health’, Daylight & Architecture, issue 23, pp 6-27. J. Anderson (2015), ‘Living in a communal garden associated with well-being while reducing urban sprawl by 40%: a mixed-methods cross-sectional study’, Frontiers of Public Health, vol 3, 1-14. J. Anderson, K. Ruggeri, K. Steemers and F. Huppert, (2016), ‘Lively Social Space, Well-Being Activity, and Urban Design: Findings from a low-cost community-led public space intervention’. Environment and Behaviour, 1-32.

DIVERSITY REFERENCES K. Steemers (2015), ‘Architecture for well-being and health’, Daylight & Architecture, issue 23, pp 6-27. J. Anderson (2015), ‘Living in a communal garden associated with well-being while reducing urban sprawl by 40%: a mixed-methods cross-sectional study’, Frontiers of Public Health, vol 3, 1-14. J. Anderson, K. Ruggeri, K. Steemers and F. Huppert, (2016), ‘Lively Social Space, Well-Being Activity, and Urban Design: Findings from a low-cost community-led public space intervention’. Environment and Behaviour, 1-32.

WHAT DO WE NEED TO KNOW?

Ecological Resilient Liveable Cities

Neighbourhoods, Cities, and Metropolitan Areas that seek to be for now and the future:

n Greener n Safer and Healthier n More Efficient and Effective n More People-Friendly n More Socially Equitable

The Ecological Cities Project, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, www.ecologicalcities.org

What is Liveability? Liveability is the sum of the factors that add up to a community’s quality of life—including the built and natural environments, economic prosperity, social stability and equity, educational opportunity, and cultural, entertainment and recreation possibilities.

Partners for Liveable Communities Washington, D.C.

H0W COULD/CAN WE MOVE FORWARD ?

PUT PEOPLE FIRST

n Effective support systems

n Economic use of resources

n Address health and wellbeing issues

Sustainable Intelligent Cities

Digital (Cyber) Intel

Sentient Quality of Life Liveability

Green

ICT Web-Based (e services)

Sensory

Environmental Social Smart

Nature

Environmental-Socio-Economic Value

Cities Should be Planned to Achieve the Following Goals:

n  economic (such as economic revitalization and development);

n  n  land use (such as compact, mixed use development); n  transportation (such as walkability, accessibility, and

transportation choices); n  equity (such as affordable housing and mixed-income

communities); n  community development (such as sense of place,

safety, and public health);

n  plenty of green space

CHANGE NEEDED n How to achieve seamless connectivity n Monitor health and wellbeing and use

medical and other disciplines evidence n Reconnect with Nature n Long term vision with adaptability n Use technology to add value (eg hydrogen

transport; 3D/4D printing for construction) n People participation in design , monitoring

and caring n Educate for holistic thinking

Recommendations:

n  Use of urban form to

promote environmental

diversity

n  Consider spatial and temporal

diversity … rather than

‘optimal’ conditions

n  Maximise appropriate

diversity with respect to

climate and seasons

Steemers K 2017 Photos: Jamie Anderson

Urban form and performance

SOFT AND HARD METRICS Do we need: n an URBAN WELL Standard? n Health, Happiness and

Flourish indicator? n More personalisation and

community participation in monitoring eg air pollution

n ?????

THERE IS BEAUTY AND RELIABILITY IN

SIMPLICITY

QUESTIONS

n What do we know but not using and why?

n What do we need to know?

n How could we move forward?