Domain

Content: Cities

We all want a roof over our heads. But with the population growing, studies by the UN, among others, reveal that some 40% of the material urbanisation for 2050 still has to be built. A significant challenge, especially given that the current manner of urban development is ecologically untenable, says UU professor of Urban Futures, Maarten Hajer. Measures will have to be taken in both the construction and the consequences of the social-spatial organisation of cities.

After coal and fuel oil, we will have to say goodbye to gas, with electricity and thermal power replacing them. This will demand a drastic change in our energy infrastructure, especially in the Randstad. Furthermore, if we are to achieve ‘Paris’, the somewhat 7.3 homes in the Netherlands will all have to become climate-neutral – 180,000 homes a year with a zero meter reading, the lion’s share in the city.
Expected is that we are going from petrol to electricity and/or hydrogen, cars will be self-driving and they will be a service rather than be owned. What does this mean for the city? And, our cities are growing, but is liveability growing too?

The creative industries can help find answers to these issues. Ideally by exploratory designs for future neighbourhoods and cities. In a broader sense: using the imagination of architects and designers to tackle the design issues above.