The future of the city. The future of big cities. City of "pebbles"
We are accustomed to living in a constantly changing landscape of cities. Old buildings disappear - new ones appear, familiar modes of transport gradually fade into oblivion - more environmentally friendly analogues remain. Some architectural styles are replacing others. These changes happen constantly, and we have already stopped noticing them. What if you look 10-20 years ahead and imagine what the cities of the future will look like, built from scratch and overflowing with technology?
And then fantasy draws cities on Mars, cities - space stations, settlements in other galaxies... Perhaps this will happen. But for now we will land back on Earth and talk about projects for cities of the future that will change the appearance of not only countries and entire continents, but also the entire 21st century.
"Great City" without cars, China
"Great City" - an environmentally friendly project clean city, built on a site of about 3 square kilometers near the city of Chengdu. It has the potential to solve China's widely recognized problem of infrastructure congestion by essentially eliminating cars entirely. The city does not consume much energy and does not pollute environment carbon dioxide emissions, more than half of its territory is occupied by green spaces, which can be reached from any home in just two minutes.
Eco-parks will process wastewater, solid waste and generate electricity. The local climate is not very suitable for solar panels, so all buildings are designed to make maximum use of wind energy.
The “Great City” will become home to 80 thousand people, some of whom will be employed on the project itself. The distance between any two points in the city can be covered on foot in 15 minutes, eliminating the need for a car. But not completely. Half of the road space will be reserved for non-motorized transport. The city will be connected to Chengdu and its surrounding areas using a transport communications network, forming a regional transit hub in the city center, located underground.
Desert Rose, Dubai
Green "Desert Rose".
“Desert Rose” is the name of the project of a satellite city with an area of 14 thousand hectares, which will use only environmentally friendly transport, and will be connected to Dubai by an overground metro line. Electricity supply will be produced from alternative renewable sources. In addition, there are air-conditioned walking paths for hot weather. Construction of the city will take ten years and will take place in four stages.
The project includes 550 comfortable villas, educational establishments and organic farms, the energy for which will be generated using 200 square kilometers of solar panels. Solar panels will be able to provide half of the city's needs, and the use of environmentally friendly transport will offset the remaining carbon dioxide emissions.
"Floating Greens", Japan
Growing upward is a standard solution for the development of cities in the Asian region, but for Japan this method is not always good due to the frequent threat of earthquakes and tsunamis. But then the Japanese found another way out - to build cities on the water! The “Floating Green” project, consisting of ten islands like water lilies, with central towers about a kilometer high, became such a city.
The towers must accommodate more than 30 thousand people. In the upper part there will be space for work, shops and service companies. In the middle of each tower is a farm area for growing fruits and vegetables. The base of the island is used for a residential area that can accommodate 10 thousand people, as well as forests and beaches. Each floating oasis will be anchored on the ocean floor.
The world's first underwater city, Japan
A spherical city underwater.
But for the Japanese, the idea of a floating city is far from new: by 2035 they plan to create the world's first underwater city, Ocean Spiral. It will be a spherical structure that can accommodate up to 5 thousand people and receives energy from the bottom of the sea. Oxygen will be converted from carbon dioxide, and the large difference in temperature and pressure will be used to produce electricity.
Inside the spherical structure there is a skyscraper designed to accommodate and work 5 thousand people.
The shape of the high-tech city is huge balls with a diameter of 500 meters and a capacity of 5 thousand people. The balls will be able to float on the surface or sink underwater along a giant spiral structure going to a depth of 15 kilometers, where a mining plant will appear. The system of huge balls should protect people during earthquakes and tsunamis. The cost of such a structure is estimated at $25 billion, and the main building material will be rubber.
A solid spiral rests on the ocean floor, on which a mining plant is located.
Arctic city project “Umka”, Russia
A unique project called “Umka”: they are going to build a city on permafrost beyond the Arctic Circle. The structure of the International Space Station is taken as a basis. For city residents there will be a water park, an amusement park, their own production of bread and fish products, houses, scientific laboratories, schools, temple, hotels, hospital. City transport will run on electricity. The dimensions of such a city will be 1.5 kilometers by 800 meters, and construction will cost approximately 5-7 billion dollars.
The estimated location is Kotelny Island of the New Siberian Islands archipelago in the Arctic Ocean (about 1.5 thousand kilometers from the North Pole).
The city is going to create a controlled climate system using space and other advanced technologies. The source of electricity will be a floating nuclear power plant, and all types of waste will be processed at two plants.
India's first smart city
Megacities such as Delhi and Mumbai are famous for their developed industry, infrastructure, financial markets, skilled labor and the presence of foreign companies. But most of India are poor provinces with very low level life of the population. That’s why the idea of building an industrial corridor (DMIC) between the largest metropolitan areas was born, which will allow the development of the provinces, creating new jobs and high-tech infrastructure. Such a project will cost 90 billion dollars.
India's first smart city, Dholera, will be built as part of the Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor project
Let us note one very pretentious fact: the Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor is one of the most important parts of the plan to build hundreds of smart cities throughout the country. Hundreds, Karl! In India! And the first such city will appear in the state of Gujarat. Dholera will be built in ten years and will be a real technological gem of India: digital traffic control, no pollution, no traffic jams and no crowds. In comparison, Dholera will be twice the size of Mumbai.
Gujarat International City of Finance and Technology will be one of the very first Indian smart cities.
In the same state, another no less futuristic project is at the implementation stage - the Gujarat International City of Finance and Technology (GIFT). It also involves providing the population with the infrastructure of the future and many jobs. The complex will include offices, schools, residential premises, hotels, a conference center and retail space. And the most striking building of this city will be the Diamond GIFT Tower.
"Khazar Islands", Azerbaijan
To build a new smart city, Azerbaijan decided to create an artificial archipelago of 44 islands with a total area of 3 thousand hectares. The Khazar Islands will have an airport, a yacht club, a Formula 1 track, houses for 800 thousand residents and the world's longest boulevard - 150 kilometers. The cost of the project is estimated at $100 billion.
Azerbaijan Tower could become the tallest tower in the world.
But the main attraction of the archipelago will be the Azerbaijan Tower. Its height will reach 1050 meters, which may break the record of the high tower Burj Khalifa. The Azerbaijan Tower will be very strong and will be able to withstand a magnitude nine earthquake. The skyscraper was planned to be completed by 2018-2019, and the islands by 2022, but last year construction was postponed indefinitely due to lack of funding.
"Cloud Dweller" of China
Cities in the clouds are a dream for densely populated areas of the planet.
In the Chinese city of Shenzhen, it is planned to build a sky city - a new business center of the world. It will feature residential modules, office and IT clusters, public and commercial zones and green terraces. The city will include three interconnected towers approximately 600 meters high. total area the building will be comparable to the area of the Principality of Monaco, and the windows of the towers will overlook Hong Kong. And this was done on purpose. Local authorities want to demonstrate the new financial capabilities of the region to Hong Kong, which represents the old financial model of the world. A smart city in the sky will be able to fully provide itself with environmentally friendly electricity.
Earthscraper in Mexico
Not a bunker, but a city of the future of a new type - an earthscraper!
While other countries see the future of cities in the clouds, Mexico has found another way - underground. The Earthscraper is a 65-story inverted pyramid with an area of 7,618 square meters. It will appear in the center of Mexico City. The roof of the building will be a panel made of clear glass 240 by 240 meters. From the outside, it will look like a public square where residents can enjoy walks, concerts, exhibitions and military parades. The energy source for the building will be geothermal energy, which will make the underground city self-sufficient.
China's first megalopolis
The size of the new Chinese city will exceed the size of London by 137 times.
In China, it is planned to create a metropolis of Jing-Jin-Ji, which will unite Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei. It is expected to be home to 130 million people, and its size (212 thousand square kilometers) will exceed the size of more than half of the individual countries in the world. Each city in this association has its own role: Beijing is a cultural and technological region, Tianjin is a manufacturing region, and Hebei will concentrate small industries. To ensure that the journey from one city to another takes no more than an hour, new high-speed trains are being built.
3D printed city on the water, Rio de Janeiro
Worthy of attention is the very unusual concept of the Belgian architect Vincento Callebaud, who proposed building a city on the water in the coastal area of Rio de Janeiro. Construction material a composite of recycled plastic waste and algae will serve, and the city itself will be printed using a 3D printer. Building structures can grow on their own using calcium carbonate in the water, which can form an exoskeleton and semi-permeable membranes for desalination. sea water, and microalgae will be used to produce energy for heating and climate control.
Externally, residential structures with a diameter of about 500 meters will resemble jellyfish. They will house workspace, workshops, recycling plants, science laboratories, sports fields and farms. Such a city will be able to provide housing for about 20 thousand people.
The architect solves the problem of food shortages with the help of huge farms (Farmscrapers) in which plants will be grown. The location of the farms is at the very top of the structures. One of the main tasks of such a city will be the construction scientific centers for ocean exploration.
Instead of a conclusion: and still about Mars
For some, fantasies about cities on Mars become not just a plot for a science fiction book, but an entire architectural project.
If we think about this question, it becomes obvious that human settlements have their own power of attraction. Like stars and planets in the Universe, cities attract people from all surrounding areas. How bigger city, the larger the area over which it has a great influence.
Some scientists, such as Geoffrey West of the Santa Fe Institute, believe that cities are "living." Just like animals, cities have a heartbeat and this heartbeat consists of us, its inhabitants. While roads and streets act as the veins and arteries of the body, people act as its blood cells, transferring energy from one place to another. The city experiences an influx of passengers at dawn and then an ebb in the evening, just like the heart.
In any case, cities have always been an important source of knowledge and wealth for humanity, and they will remain so. Approximately 54 percent of the world's total population lives in urban areas and this number is expected to reach 66 percent by 2050. That's about a million people moving into cities per day and that's why we need to make cities self-sufficient as soon as possible.
10. Masdar City – United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates has the most significant environmental footprint per capita in the entire world. And all this is due to the massive production of oil in the country and its distribution, as well as large construction projects last decade. In light of this fact, they decided to create the world's first zero-carbon, zero-waste city called Masdar.
It is powered entirely by a farm of 88,000 solar panels located right outside on the outskirts of the city. All taps and light switches within the city are automated and based on motion sensors in order to limit energy consumption as much as possible. Architects have studied ancient settlements to better understand and apply various methods to reduce energy consumption. By surrounding it with walls and raising the entire foundation of the city by about 7 meters, and also by building 45-meter skyscraper towers that suck in air from above and drive cold wind through all the streets, the engineers lowered the average temperature of the city by about 20 degrees. The buildings themselves are located close together and designed in such a way that they allow air to pass through much more easily, providing both shade and a comfortable climate, while maintaining the Arabic-style architecture.
Cars are prohibited within the city walls, causing all commuters and tourists to park their cars outside the city. Transport within the city walls is provided by an underground network of automatic electrical Vehicle that transport people from place to place. The lack of private cars eliminates the need for "normal" city streets, which is why Masdar has none. The city also has a light elevated rail system that helps people reach their destinations.
Once completed, Masdar will be able to accommodate approximately 40,000 residents and will also provide jobs for another 50,000 commuters. The reason for the creation of this experimental city is its possible position as a world center for the development of renewable energy. Today, the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology occupies one of the first completed buildings. German engineering company Siemens also has its Middle East headquarters there, as does IRENA (International Renewable Energy Agency).
9. Delhi - Mumbai Industrial Corridor - India 
India, on the other hand, faces more bigger problem. It is currently home to more than 1.2 billion people, 350 million of whom will move to cities in the next decade. Since the country is predominantly underdeveloped and the majority of its population is approximately 27 years old, the need for stable jobs has never been greater than it is now. That is why the Indian government is embarking on the largest infrastructure project in the history of this country: the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor.
The idea behind this 1,480 kilometer “corridor” is that India will become the cheapest producer of goods in the world. In order to do this, a series of modern railway lines will be built that will directly transport these goods from the assembly line to ports and airports (which have yet to be built). Along the route of the corridor, 24 brand new smart cities will be built that will be superior to any other Indian cities in terms of infrastructure, quality of life and services. These cities will also be built as environmentally friendly as possible, relying mainly on renewable energy sources.
This mega-project is financed largely by the Japanese, whose economy is based on industry high technology, and who want India to become their main manufacturing “factory”. Estimated costs will reach $90 billion, but as most of us know, the initial estimates rarely match the final result.
8. King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) – Saudi Arabia
Considering that 24 percent of all world trade passes through the Red Sea, it is not at all surprising that the Saudis have completed the largest port (King Abdullah Port - KAP) in the region. But this is just the beginning, as the entire project revolves around one of the most sophisticated and well-planned cities in the Arab world, Economic City King Abdullah.
This $100 billion scheme, located just an hour north of Jeddah (the second largest city in Saudi Arabia), is set to be as huge as Washington, DC, while connecting the cities of Mecca (Makkah) and Madinah (Madinah) through a high-tech, high-speed rail network. The second stage in the development of the project is the Industrial Valley, in which a large petrochemical plant is located. Industrial Valley has successfully attracted more than 60 national and international companies, some of which are already operating in King Abdullah Port.
No city will ever be complete without access to higher education. That is why the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology began to be built back in 2009. It is one of the best-funded universities in the world, with an initial endowment of $20 billion donated by the King himself. It is surpassed only by Harvard and Yale. It is also the first gender-mixed university in the country.
In all likelihood, this multi-billion dollar mega-project will be the legacy that King Abdullah leaves for his people, housing more than 2 million people and creating an estimated one million jobs by the time the project is completed.
7. Songdo International Business District - South Korea
South Korean engineers are currently developing the Songdo International Business District on 607 hectares of reclaimed land near Incheon International Airport, about 65 kilometers from Seoul. One of key features The project is its proximity to the airport, which is directly connected to the Songdo International Business District by the 11-kilometer Incheon Bridge. This will shorten the trip from the city center directly to the airport, which will take no more than 10 minutes.
The city itself will consist of about 40 percent parks and green spaces, with some emulating places like New York's Central Park, the canals of Venice and Savannah, Georgia. One of the most ingenious technologies being used in the construction of the Songdo International Business District is a waste disposal system that will suck garbage directly from bins through a series of underground pipes directly into a waste treatment facility. Another interesting idea used in city design is the use of an information network that connects all devices, services and components through wireless communication technology. This allows for a more coordinated and synchronized city.
By the end of 2016, the Songdo International Business District will be able to accommodate approximately 60,000 citizens and provide jobs for another 300,000 people. Of the initial $30 billion investment, $10 billion has already been spent on approximately 100+ buildings. It is expected that upon completion of the project, the Songdo International Business District will become the central business center Northeast Asia.
6. One tower, one city, several countries
When it comes to city planning, building up is almost always best choice. Today's skyscrapers, such as the 828-meter Burj Khalifa in , provide the most efficient use space in terms of the number of people per square meter. Cities that lack land to expand tend to create the most skyscrapers. The boundaries of a typical city typically extend for many kilometers beyond the densely populated core in the form of residential, commercial and industrial zones. They create an incredible amount of wasted resources such as fuel, energy and water, not to mention the enormous number of hours spent in traffic on a daily basis.
That is why some countries around the world are already beginning their journey towards achieving the incredible goal of building the first tower-type megacities in history. Kuwait and Azerbaijan are waiting for the completion of the construction of their Mubarak al-Kabir (1001 meters high) and Azerbaijan (1049 meters high). The towers are due to be completed in 2016 and 2019 respectively. These, of course, are not separate cities, but rather a step in the right direction, which, by the way, has been taken upward. Next on the list is the Dubai City Tower (2400 meters high), whose name alone shows how close we are to making this dream a reality. The estimated completion date is set for 2025.
The Americans had their own own design back in '91. They were going to build a 500-story tower approximately 3.2 kilometers high. They called it Ultima Tower, placed it in San Francisco and designed it to accommodate over one million people. However, the plans started were never translated into reality. Also gone are Japan's plans to build the "Shimizu Mega-City Pyramid" (2003 meters high), which had one of the most efficient lighting systems in the world.
5. Rabbit Hole of Mexico 
As with the tower cities we talked about earlier, Mexico plans to follow the same principle, but in reverse. Instead of going up to the clouds, they decided to go underground. The name "Earthscraper" appears to have been chosen in the same way. Architects and engineers are planning to build this 65-story, 7,618-square-meter inverted pyramid right in the center of Mexico City. The “roof” of this underground building will be a 240 by 240 meter panel of transparent glass, which will act as a public square where residents of the city can walk and entertain each other with concerts, open exhibitions or military parades.
On the other hand, American designer Matthew Fromboluti has drawn up his own plans for a similar underground settlement near Bisbee, Arizona, called Above Below. His project is based on the existing abandoned Lavender Pit Mine, which is 275 meters deep and 91 meters wide. By using a series of pipes that will allow air to circulate and conduct light, much of the original surface area can be returned to its natural shape.
Geothermal energy could be the main source of energy in both of these cases, allowing these future cities to make the most of the resources of their surroundings and design to become as self-sufficient as possible.
4. Arctic Russians
Next, we will look at Russia's attempts to colonize the Arctic. Deciding that now was the time to start pushing through the Siberian tundra, the Russians developed a self-contained city called Umka (after the popular Soviet cartoon polar bear character) that would hopefully keep its inhabitants from freezing to death.
Its location will be Kotelny Island, which is part of the Novosibirsk archipelago, which is located approximately 1,609 kilometers from the North Pole. It is one of the most inhospitable places on Earth, where temperatures rarely rise above the freezing point of water. It also has some of the strongest and coldest winds. The design of Umka is reminiscent of the International Space Station, but on a much larger scale, given the fact that more than 5,000 citizens will live in the city. Since a city of this type can be built on any type of terrain, being completely self-sufficient and independent from the outside world, Umka is a large-scale experiment for future Russian space colonies.
Other, more futuristic plans include a floating settlement capable of housing approximately 800 people. It will literally be able to “feed” on melting icebergs. This Arctic Harvester was dreamed up by French students who envisioned in their design that the city would follow icebergs on their annual migration route south, while at the same time being provided with fresh water all this time. Thanks to a combination of solar energy and an osmotic system that uses a combination of fresh and salt water, the Arctic Harvester will generate all the energy it will ever need.
3. Conquest of the sea
Like the Arctic Harvester we talked about above, the Chinese have begun drawing plans for their own floating city. Driven by climate change, rising sea levels and dwindling resources, China has decided it is time to consider moving some of its people to sea. This future metropolis, with an area of about 10 square kilometers, will consist of hexagonal modules interconnected by an underwater network of streets and roads.
The Japanese company Shimizu has developed its own floating city and called it Floating Greenery. As the name suggests, this floating "Ecopolis" will be almost entirely covered in vegetation and will extend over several artificial islands. The thousand-meter-tall tower in the city center will act as a vertical farm and housing for city residents. Their vision extends even further, as Japan plans to build the world's first underwater city called Ocean Spiral by 2030. It will be a spherical structure that can accommodate up to 5,000 people. It will receive its energy from the bottom of the sea.
We can only wait and see which of all these projects will be built first. However, regardless of this, it is safe to say that they were all designed to be self-sufficient in terms of food production, reducing energy consumption and optimizing waste disposal.
2. Venus Project
The Venus Project is the vision of 98-year-old Jacque Fresco, who has developed an ideal plan for future cities. If we ever build entirely new, high-tech cities on a regular basis, this design will certainly come in handy. All buildings and structures are pre-fabricated and then sent to the construction site. This system allows for better coordination and much lower construction costs. Standardization of basic structural elements allows changes to be made to meet different needs in terms of new technologies and different structural designs in the future.
One of its main characteristics is its round form. It will provide the ability to make the most efficient use of available resources, which also includes time. Time spent either going to work, or simply moving from point “A” to point “B”. Since the project does not have the “hard edges” of a regular rectangular city, “walking around the city” takes on a more literal meaning and thus saves you time on your way back. This is effective and progressive thinking!
The basis of the Venus project will certainly be a “mega city-factory”, which will be able to mass produce entire apartments or houses in one mold for several cities at the same time. These one-piece structures will be lightweight and weather-resistant, greatly reducing the risk of damage from earthquakes, fires or floods. Did we already mention that these “modules” can be easily moved from place to place?
Once the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor technology becomes available, it is possible that countries like India, with its industrial corridor, will be able to afford to host and maintain a plant of this scale.
1. Elimination of an existing problem
These future plans and projects already underway that we have discussed so far all refer to starting construction from scratch. Building an entirely new city from scratch is usually cheaper and much easier than improving an old city to the same standards. This is the most difficult undertaking in which ingenious micro-projects thrive.
We're talking about things like electronic QBO (e-QBO), which could revolutionize photovoltaic power generation in urban environments. Its initial design is a standard dark cube, but it can come in a variety of shapes and sizes. It has a pleasant appearance and fits well into the city skyline. It acts like a regular solar panel, but besides producing free energy, it can also be used in a number of other ways. practical applications such as placing it in someone's home, or using it as a park bench, or simply as a paperweight on your desk.
How about something like a Masdar-style automated electric vehicle system that could easily replace many private cars in any city? This is the main goal in Masdar. We need to find and show different and better ways to make our cities energy efficient.
In any case, this will be a difficult task for any country, regardless of its economic power. The nice aspect of this idea is that underdeveloped cities have an advantage because much of their infrastructure can be built from scratch and made initially self-sufficient.
Mikhail Alekseevsky, Candidate of Philological Sciences, Head of the Center for Urban Anthropology
The larger the city becomes, the fewer people there become. Cities continue to grow, there are more and more citizens, and the role of each of them is less and less. Now the voice of an ordinary citizen in the hum of a huge city is practically inaudible. But everything is not so bad, because modern city residents are increasingly united in communities of interests, and these communities are able to significantly influence the city agenda, defending their rights and interests. So the value of one citizen in big city is steadily declining, and the role of urban communities is becoming increasingly important.
It is this question that is most difficult to answer if you do not clarify the scale and position of the city. Asian megacities, Russian single-industry towns and small historical cities of Western Europe have a set of current problems will differ noticeably. But if you still try to name the key problem of the modern city as a whole, then, in my opinion, it will be an unfavorable environmental situation. It hardly needs explaining why many cities have problems in this area. Industry, car emissions, dominance of asphalt and concrete, lack of greenery... For a long time it seemed that this problem had no solution, and that the main thing was to strive to slow down the deterioration of the situation. Modern world experience shows that the ecology of a city can change for the better. However, this is expensive, time consuming and requires a lot of effort on the part of all parties involved.
All futurists agree that in the future cities will become larger and more crowded. And it’s really difficult to argue with this, because cities continue to accumulate various kinds of resources: industrial, financial, human. But personally, I really like the hypothesis that at some point the attractiveness of big cities will begin to noticeably decline. They will continue to grow, but due to a number of problems (primarily environmental), life there will seem less and less attractive. With the development of modern communication technologies, a person is now less and less tied to his place of work, so he has the opportunity to choose where he prefers to live. Under these conditions, the popularity of cottage villages and small towns may noticeably increase, especially those with a favorable environmental situation and a comfortable environment.
I won’t lie: I feel like a city person, and in general, the city is a more comfortable living environment for me than the countryside. I can easily live in the countryside, but this is more of a story about escapism and a temporary break from the city. But I increasingly think about which city would be most comfortable for me to live in. And there is a feeling that gradually I, too, am beginning to feel more and more sympathy for small towns.
Dmitry Zamyatin, Chief Researcher, Higher School of Urbanism, National Research University Higher School of Economics
1. What is the role of a citizen in the life of the city today? What has changed compared to previous eras?
Today there are two city dwellers - of course, roughly generalizing. One: in a hurry everywhere, lack of time, business, meetings, negotiations, does not have time, often a workaholic, sometimes “social” city life; he is in the “thickness of city life.” Other: often absent-minded, lonely, sometimes lost; post-flâneur; things, in principle, can go well; For him, the city is a backdrop of sometimes inexplicable, obscure events. These two images can be combined in one person - at different times, in different circumstances. In general, what we today traditionally, out of habit, call a city is no longer a city in the classical sense. I prefer to describe current situation"city" life the word "post-city".
2. Can you identify the main problem of modern urban life? Why did it happen and is there a solution?
The main problem is the decomposition, the collapse of the classical city of previous eras as a place, a space of traditional “face to face” communications. Although the post-city is characterized by an explosive quantitative growth in communications, supported and provoked by technological breakthroughs of the previous century, “post-urban residents” find themselves in a situation of disruption of traditional communications and in a zone of increasing mutual transcendental, metaphysical “invisibility”. A post-city is a set of parallel spaces, very often metaphysically invisible to each other, personal and group. There is no obvious solution to the problem yet, but it is clear that it is necessary to study post-urban co-spaces, the conditions of their emergence and interaction - the post-geography of the city.
3. How will cities develop in the future?
The old division between cities and countryside looks set to finally disappear. New forms of human settlements will emerge, implying a different organization of space and communications. Along with rigid monofunctional spatial zones ( transport hubs, recreation areas, individual industries) there will be “scattered” spaces, plastic, mobile, dynamic, constantly changing their forms depending on the content and activity guidelines of individuals and communities. The communicative engine of such changes will be the search for new co-spaces (a kind of new metageography, or postgeography).
4. How important is the city to you personally? Are you ready to move to the countryside?
The city is important as a place of unexpected meeting, sometimes as a place of long-awaited revelation. As a place of creativity, the city is often unstable and hostile. But in traditional rural areas, the ruins of which still remain, there are other communication restrictions associated with mandatory neighborly communication, a set of strict local rules that can irritate or interfere. Potentially, I am ready to move, rather, to a pseudo-rural suburban area - a dacha-cottage area (there, like everywhere else, there is also its own communicative specificity).
Konstantin Trofimenko, director of the Center for the Study of Transport Problems of a Megacity, National Research University Higher School of Economics
1. What is the role of a citizen in the life of the city today? What has changed compared to previous eras?
At the moment, there are simultaneously several types of citizens, formed within the framework of various socio-economic formations.
The first option is a “socialist” city dweller. He does not believe that he can influence the life and development of the city in which he lives, he believes that there is a Power that will itself figure out what needs to be done, and from which he will demand something only if he is extremely irritated by its actions. Another type is the “individualistic” city dweller. He guards his personal space, and treats public space according to the principle “whoever captured it first is a great guy.” Finally, the city as a bourgeois system, having gone through several stages of evolution, has formed the third type of city dweller, the “burg resident,” who treats personal property responsibly and economically treats public property. This is also his property, which he can also develop, correlate his vision with the vision and interests of other citizens. This simplified classification is certainly not a verdict; the same person (especially in our modern realities) can behave differently depending on external circumstances. But nevertheless, these types clearly manifest themselves in public discussions. As for the role of a city dweller, it is decisive. The city is its citizens today.
2. Can you identify the main problem of modern urban life? Why did it happen and is there a solution?
The first thing to note is that the process of urbanization is objective and voluntary. Nobody is forcing masses of people to move to cities from villages and villages. In large cities they find for themselves Better conditions and, therefore, fewer problems.
The main problem of cities is the crowding of people in a limited area. This is a problem, but at the same time it is also the reason for the development of urban infrastructure, which attracts people to cities. It is thanks to the high concentration of people in space that you can find within walking distance every conceivable manifestation of human civilization.
But overcrowding also gives rise to all the problems of the city, including the transport problems that I love so much to solve. And the root cause of all these problems of each specific city lies in the humanitarian sphere; it stems precisely from the way the citizens in these cities relate to the personal and public. Traffic jams, the problem of parking, the ratio of personal and public transport are a consequence of this relationship. Our post-socialist “mutant cities,” in which people live in a capitalist formation, but at the same time in concrete nests and with a common (and essentially bureaucrat-controlled) street, turn these questions into paradoxes. However, I believe that this process is evolutionary, and with the development of social relations these issues can be resolved.
3. How will cities develop in the future?
This depends on the general development of scientific and technological progress and specifically on which technologies will receive the greatest development in the future. Until recently, the development of cities was absolutely dependent on transport technologies, namely on the answers to the questions of how many people, at what distance, at what speed and at what cost of travel we can transport. Today, transport technologies equal rights IT technologies have been added.
What will the future be like? Whatever. IN long term all options are equally probable. Mass development of cheap high speed trains(like China and Japan) will lead to the formation of mega-metropolises (“megalopolises”), when hundreds of kilometers of urbanized territory are located in the middle of thousands of kilometers of wasteland. The development and mass introduction of “flying cars” will lead to disurbanization, when people will settle within a radius of a thousand kilometers from points of socio-cultural attraction, because they will be an hour and a half away. The development of IT technologies in the spirit of the film “The Matrix” or Victor Pelevin’s novel “The Love of Three Zuckerbrins”, when people stay in individual cells and receive all communication with the outside world in individual capsules through virtual reality, is the third way. But all this is a matter of the relatively distant future. In the near future, cities will remain approximately the same as they are now, and we will observe in practice the implementation of the municipal Smart City program.
4. How important is the city to you personally? Are you ready to move to the countryside?
I am an absolute urbanist. The countryside and wild nature can be a source of relaxation and inspiration, but in everyday life I need the dynamics of a huge city. It's boring without it. Cities are the most striking manifestation of human culture. And only in the city, feeling its dynamics, feeling through the architecture and urban landscape the continuity with previous generations of citizens, does familiarization with civilization as a whole occur.
Vasily Baburov, urban architect, leading employee of the Laboratory of Urban Planning Research of the Moscow Architectural Institute
1. What is the role of a citizen in the life of the city today? What has changed compared to previous eras?
On the one hand, the city dweller is a consumer of the goods produced by the city, and on the other hand, he is their creator. These are constants that remain the same as eras change. In addition, ideally, a citizen should be not only an object, but also a subject of city management. But, as experience shows, this task is difficult and rarely solved.
The differences between our time (post-industrial era) and previous eras are expressed in the following. Firstly, there are many more life roles, and secondly, these roles are no longer permanent ( we're talking about not only about the profession, but also about the lifestyle). Life is becoming more and more dynamic, and adapting to the acceleration of change is becoming increasingly difficult.
2. Can you identify the main problem of modern urban life? Why did it happen and is there a solution?
It’s impossible to single out just one – there are many:
- atomization of society, increasing in proportion to the size of the city (this is especially noticeable in a metropolis), which leads to full-scale anomie.
- the small number of townspeople themselves (i.e., citizens of the city) - in contrast to the amorphous mass of the population, weakly rooted in the environment, mentally alienated from it and treating it as a consumer.
- increasing disproportion between the scale of man, which is a constant, and the scale of the city, which is constantly growing. Understanding the city by its inhabitants becomes increasingly difficult, people have to constantly adapt to an artificial environment that changes beyond their understanding, “overcome” it, instead of enjoying city life.
The weakness of public institutions, the absence of an urban community, which are the result of the factors mentioned above, essentially make the very existence of the city impossible, turning it into an “urbanized settlement”, i.e. a simulacrum, an ersatz.
Managing such a surrogate is, of course, easier than managing a full-fledged city, but the effectiveness of such a model (primarily from the point of view of human development) is extremely low. In the end, not only the residents, but the country as a whole are the losers.
3. How will cities develop in the future?
Cities will develop differently, depending on the combination of external and internal factors and the ability of urban elites to overcome them or use them for good. We can expect that most cities will simply cease to exist, merging with each other into a single mass. But if we talk about the desired future, then the development of cities should follow the path:
- optimization of spatial structure,
- humanization of the urban environment, including integration with the natural environment,
- its “customization”, i.e. “adjustment” in accordance with the needs of each specific citizen.
4. How important is the city to you personally? Are you ready to move to the countryside?
Human civilization is primarily a civilization of cities. It is the city, and not the countryside, that provides the opportunity for choice and is the focus of places of employment, diverse infrastructure, culture, etc.
This is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future, although the unexpected factor should not be underestimated.
As a hereditary city resident, it is now difficult for me to imagine my life in the countryside as a professional Agriculture), and in everyday life, meaning a narrow set of benefits to which we are accustomed in the city.
Olga Karpova, Dean of the Faculty of Management of Sociocultural Projects and Head of the Urban Studies master's program at the Moscow Higher School of Economics and Social Sciences
1. What is the role of a citizen in the life of the city today? What has changed compared to previous eras?
It is impossible to answer this question seriously, bypassing the issues of property and power; it is their configuration that determines the circle of subjects of urban development, be it ancient Athens, medieval Florence or modern Moscow. Since the second half of the twentieth century, the circle of ruling elites has been expanding, primarily due to business and expert professional communities.
Without a doubt, the role of the individual city dweller and small urban communities has grown significantly in recent years. But this concerns so far not so much the real processes of urban change as the gradual transformation of management thinking, which, with difficulty, is beginning to focus on the city dweller as a “consumer of the city,” moreover, having a “right to the city.”
The real, direct participation of citizens in the processes of urban change, perhaps, occurs at the level of neighborhoods and microdistricts, that is, where their rights and responsibilities are established. Today, more and more new practices and services are being generated at the so-called grassroots level, which gives us hope that we will gradually learn to be responsible citizens.
2. Can you identify the main problem of modern urban life? Why did it happen and is there a solution?
I would highlight, in addition to classical problems, low standards of housing quality and urban environment. With all the variety of capital projects aimed at visible improvements in the urban environment - public spaces, bicycle paths, parks, etc. - the quality of urban housing, even in the capital, has essentially not strayed too far from the standards of the Khrushchev era. With all the ensuing communal consequences and the reproduction of a certain way of life.
It’s clear where it came from: until recent years, demand in the housing market exceeded supply, and we have no other serious regulators in this area besides the market. We need meaningful and long term strategy introducing housing standards focused not on the principle of a “living wage”, but on the modern quality of life.
3. How will cities develop in the future?
I think that in the near future the trend towards the expansion of megacities will intensify, with all the accompanying transport, logistics, environmental and management problems. The number and variety of remote services will increase, as will remote jobs. I would like to believe that the principles of horizontal network management, involving ever wider circles of citizens, will be increasingly introduced into city management. This is what can be predicted in the foreseeable future, the rest is a matter of futurology.
4. How important is the city to you personally? Are you ready to move to the countryside?
All modern civilization as we know it is an urban civilization, and it is unlikely that anything will change in the next hundred years. In Russia, with a different spatial organization than in compact and densely populated Europe, it is still unrealistic for the active working population to live in rural areas, if this is not the nearest suburban belt. Opportunities for professional self-realization, the quality and diversity of the urban environment and public spaces, the intensity of communication, the quality of leisure and a wide variety of services can still be obtained only in cities, and large cities at that. None modern concepts suburban life is not able to even partially fill this deficit. Therefore, no matter how much I dream of bucolic pictures of life in the lap of nature, this is still an unrealistic scenario for me.
According to the UN, by 2050 two thirds of the world's population will be concentrated in large cities. It's time to think about moving to one of the economic and cultural centers peace! The portal "ZagraNitsa" names the 25 most comfortable cities on Earth for living, promising and open to innovation.
Whatever one may say, globalization will sooner or later take its toll, according to United Nations analysts. Very soon, large metropolitan areas will become home to two-thirds of the planet's population. Recently, the international consulting company AT Kearney presented the TOP 25 most promising cities in the world. Experts took into account economic indicators, openness to innovation, the quality of city management and the comfort of residents.
Vancouver
The capital of British Columbia, Canada, is experiencing a boom in foreign investment. Foreigners are investing in real estate, as well as the city's infrastructure, which cannot but affect the prospects of Vancouver.
Photo: Shutterstock 24 Copenhagen
One of the most open cities in Europe to innovation, the quality of life (but also real estate prices!) is ahead of many competitors.
Photo: Shutterstock 23 Taipei
In recent years, Taiwan's capital has significantly improved its business climate, making it excellent option for investors.
Photo: Shutterstock 22 Brussels
One of the centers of world diplomacy, politics, and business negotiations. The prospects of such a site are difficult to overestimate.
Photo: Shutterstock 21 Los Angeles
The poor environmental situation and crime level explain the relatively low rating of California's largest city.
Photo: Shutterstock 20 Dallas
A clear city plan, innovation, and collaboration with Google are making Dallas one of the cities of the future.
Photo: Shutterstock Tokyo
The capital of Japan has one of the highest percentages of educated population - and this is the best indicator of prospects.
Photo: Shutterstock 18 Toronto
Experts predict the city to become one of the largest IT hubs in the region. In addition, local authorities pay great attention to environmental protection.
Photo: Shutterstock 17 Singapore
One of the financial centers of the world is inferior to many competitors in environmental friendliness, as well as comfort of life.
Photo: Shutterstock 16 Geneva
Perhaps, best city for a calm and measured life. Among the disadvantages are high prices for everything, including housing.
Photo: Shutterstock 15 Melbourne
The city is a leader in the amount of foreign investment in the economy, and local authorities do not skimp on investing this money in innovative projects.
Photo: Shutterstock 14 Berlin
One of the cultural and economic centers of Europe with excellent ecology.
Photo: Shutterstock 13 Paris
Its advantages are a high percentage of educated young population, development scientific developments and technology, compactness and high comfort of life.
Photo: Shutterstock 12 Sydney
In recent years, Sydney has become a magnet for overseas investors. Foreigners are not deterred even by the additional property tax for non-residents.
Photo: Shutterstock 11 Chicago
Along with Boston, San Francisco and New York, Chicago is part of the Global Elite, a group of the best cities in the world. There is an excellent business climate and an emphasis on infrastructure development.
Photo: Shutterstock 10 Zurich
Ease of doing business, incredibly high standard of living, wonderful ecology - Zurich offers all this.
Photo: Shutterstock Munich
In terms of the number of patents per capita, Munich is on par with world leaders - Houston and Shenzhen.
Photo: Shutterstock 8 Amsterdam
Friendly to innovation and startups, the city has made significant progress in recent years in solving its main problem - poor ecology.
Photo: Shutterstock 7 Stockholm
One of the most democratic and open cities on the planet to private entrepreneurship.
Photo: Shutterstock 6 Atlanta
Now all key areas of the city’s development have achieved high indicators: attracting investment, innovation activity, standards of living.
Photo: Shutterstock 5 Houston
This is the world leader in GDP per capita!
Photo: Shutterstock 4 London
One of the financial centers of the world did not make it into the TOP 3 due to problems with the environment and affordable real estate.
Photo: Shutterstock 3 Boston
Educational center of the USA, one of the cities claiming the title of “smart”.
Photo: Shutterstock 2 NY
New York's influence could rise sharply in the coming years in light of Brexit and a possible outflow of investment from London.
Photo: Shutterstock 1 San Francisco
World capital of innovation and IT technologies with headquarters largest corporations peace.
Photo: Shutterstock New York in 3000, Futurama.
Hundreds of architects, scientists and futurologists are looking for the answer to the question “what will the cities of the future look like, will they become a pile of multi-kilometer skyscrapers or will they go underground?” Against the backdrop of rapid population growth in urbanized areas of the Earth, resource depletion and environmental problems the city is utopianly perceived as a real cradle of life, realizing the most daring urban ideas and solutions.
Today, anyone can become a virtual architect: copies of real and fictional cities are built in Minecraft, urban simulators like the Anno series offer to build hypertrophied versions of modern megacities even on the Moon, designers draw concepts of settlements that trample all modern achievements in the field of construction and transport logistics.
However, in addition to virtual construction sites, about a hundred real settlements are being created in the world, claiming to be called “smart cities”. In this article, together with the Mail.Ru Real Estate project, we will talk about the most interesting ones.
City management
Songdo city in 2020, concept.
The city of the future is a city in which most systems and infrastructure are controlled by computers. In South Korea, in the city of Songdo, a prototype of a unified urban information network is already being tested, which will connect all buildings into a common cluster. Information from myriads of sensors and cameras will flow into a certain database. The purpose of this system is to control and manage all urban systems, including transport, water supply, etc. It is no secret that modern city services are still very far from the peak of their efficiency. In addition, the experimental system will also take care of the safety of residents. For example, the floor in a nursing home will be equipped with sensors, thanks to which it will be possible to detect the fact that a person has fallen and send an alarm. Or a more current example: a citywide information network will allow the introduction of a universal card that will serve as a key to the front door, a bank card, a travel ticket and an identity card. The routes of garbage trucks will be built based on data on the degree of filling of garbage bins. And there’s nothing to say about traffic control, it’s simply a must-have.
Nowadays, in many Songdo houses, the front door can be opened not with a key, but with a smartphone. In a few clicks you can consult with a doctor via video conference. For solutions administrative issue you can contact the official through the application. And much more.
Songdo is located on an artificial island 50 km from the capital of South Korea. Construction of the city, which, according to outside estimates, cost South Korea $35 billion, has been underway for 15 years with the active assistance of Cisco Systems. The city should be completely built in 2020, and its population by this time will be 250 thousand people. In 2016, with about 400 smart buildings commissioned, Songdo will be able to claim the title of the world's first smart city.
The eternal issue of traffic jams is being resolved radically: in the city you can do without a car thanks to a developed public transport system, as well as through the implementation of telepresence technology. This is expected to be achieved by installing the TelePresence video service in every home, office and public institution, which will provide the ability to conduct remote meetings using video surveillance systems.
Songdo is also a green city, actively using renewable energy sources (solar and wind energy). Garbage is not thrown into a landfill, but is passed through a recycling system. This is where all the rainwater is collected and used to water street vegetation, for toilets in buildings and for washing streets.
The Korean initiative is being watched very closely in many countries, since the experiment they are conducting could potentially help solve some of the problems of most large cities. For example, New York has essentially turned into a giant conglomerate that has absorbed many small cities. 200 km of coastline, all the way to Newark, are one continuous development. Tokyo has already merged with Yokohama, simultaneously absorbing dozens, if not hundreds of other settlements, and 38 million people live in this colossal agglomeration. We don’t have such examples yet, but Moscow is already close to this. In fact, it spreads out in “tentacles” along the main highways, gradually integrating the surrounding cities. And how do you order such complex formations to be managed?
Life without octane
Smog in Beijing. The particles contained in smog can penetrate the body through the lungs, accumulate and settle in it.
It is generally accepted that the main cause of smog is motor transport. And one of the main features of cities of the future usually seems to be terrible air. Motor transport, of course, has a detrimental effect on the air. For example, everyone knows how terrible the air is in Beijing, which has become famous for its smog and the highest level air pollution. About 25% harmful substances enters the air of the metropolis precisely from transport.
It is obvious that the problem of emissions needs to be solved - there is no escape from it. This will probably be expressed in the gradual abandonment of internal combustion engines and the transition to electric vehicles or other types of environmentally friendly transport. In this sense, the example of the city of Masdar, located in the UAE, is interesting: the use of cars with internal combustion engines is legally prohibited here.
Concept of a city of the future in the UAE.
Masdar is an eco-city, powered by 50% renewable energy sources and has a sustainable ecological environment with minimal carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. They plan to populate the city with scientists working on high-tech green projects and various startups.
Masdara street, 2016
The city's budget is estimated at $22 billion. The project, launched in 2006, was supposed to be implemented in 2015, but due to a lack of investment, construction has not yet been completed. According to the new plan, Masdar will be built by 2030. Currently, about 300 people permanently live in the city, the basic infrastructure has been built and there is one store.
The Black Knight Transformer cargo quadcopter is capable of delivering cargo weighing up to 1.6 tons.
A more radical solution is to completely stop using cars for delivering small goods. This task can be assigned, for example, to cargo quadcopters. Such experiments are being carried out in many countries, including Russia: some time ago, a pizza delivery service using quadcopters operated in Syktyvkar. True, the world is not yet quite ready for the mass introduction of quadcopters, but the very fact of such experiments suggests that in the future microrotorcraft will occupy certain niches.
There is another way to make the air in cities cleaner - get everyone on bicycles. From the point of view of costs and efficiency, this is a much more convenient transport, and in terms of environmental friendliness it can only be rivaled by walking. Of course, it won’t be possible to completely abandon public transport and force everyone to pedal. In addition, despite the good example of Europe, where bicycles are turning into mass transport, we will not be able to fully adopt their experience for a number of reasons, one of which is the climate in many regions of Russia. But still, in fairly warm latitudes, this is a completely feasible scenario, if you take care of building the appropriate infrastructure for cyclists and promoting this type of transport.
Cities with a predominance of bicycles will be fundamentally different from “classic” ones. However, a more likely scenario is the transition to electric vehicles or cars fuel cells. Today we cannot even imagine a city without cars. According to experts, soon there will be 2 billion cars on the roads all over the world at the same time. So it is necessary to solve the “exhaust pipe problem” as soon as possible.
Link between city and village
This popular political slogan of the 1920s in our country perfectly describes the approach to city construction, which implies the active use of green spaces. The idea is not new - similar experiments were carried out 100 years ago, and futurists have been drawing plans for park cities since the 19th century. But today this extremely attractive idea is being crushed by the harsh urban realities: as the population grows, land in cities quickly becomes more expensive, so every square meter of lawn or, God forbid, park in the city center is the object of close attention from the builders of shopping centers, parking lots and office complexes . Unfortunately, money usually wins.
Nevertheless, any city dweller would prefer to live in a green city rather than in a concrete jungle. One of the ways to resolve contradictions between the interests of business and people is to use the so-called vertical farms. In fact, these are extensive buildings consisting of several tiers, on which are placed both park areas, and hydroponic greenhouses for growing food.
The world's largest vertical farm is currently being built in an industrial area of New Jersey. About 900 tons of lettuce will be grown annually on an area of 6.5 thousand m2. Sunlight here is replaced by special energy-saving LED lamps, and the earth is replaced by reusable fabric. The farm uses half as much fertilizer and has completely eliminated the use of pesticides.
Today, primarily agro-industrial companies are showing interest in such innovation. Naturally, they are most actively experimenting in this direction in Asia, where they know firsthand about the problem of land shortage and overpopulation. The advantages of vertical farms lie not only in the efficient use of urban areas, but also in their independence from climatic conditions, which is especially important for Russian realities. Naturally, such objects should be as computerized and automated as possible. And the fact of their location within the city limits forces architects to pay more attention to the harmony and appropriateness of the external appearance.
High Line Park, New York.
Man does not live by vegetables alone. There are a number of bold projects that involve integrating full-fledged park areas inside office and residential buildings, including skyscrapers. And in Singapore there is already a hotel with a large park on the 56th floor. For us, this is still too exotic, but the experience of New York is worth considering and, perhaps, taking into account: in this city, a wonderful park was laid out on an abandoned city railway line.
Concept of Zaryadye Park, Moscow.
However, Russia also has something to be proud of in terms of landscaping projects. Thus, “the most expensive wasteland in the country,” located a stone’s throw from the Kremlin, on the site of the demolished Rossiya Hotel, is now being transformed into a unique park, divided into several natural landscape zones characteristic of our country. The park will feature a birch grove, low-growing and creeping tundra plants, meadow grasses, subtropical plants, coastal forest and steppe. The opening of Zaryadye Park will take place in September 2017.
Goelro XXI
Fujisawa, Japan.
In addition to oil and gas, modern civilization rests firmly on the third “needle” - electricity. And all kinds of future innovations will require even more electricity. So, in addition to the exciting task of turning cities into cleaner and more comfortable ones, we have to solve the issues of increasing electricity generation and improving energy efficiency. One of the possible approaches has been tested in Japan: not far from the capital, the experimental town of Fujisawa was built, in which all kinds of technologies are tested. At first glance, there is nothing remarkable, it looks like a typical American suburban block, but this impression is deceiving.
Firstly, each house is equipped with solar panels and a mini-power station, which made it possible to significantly reduce the total consumption of supplied electricity, carbon dioxide emissions decreased by 70%. If the external electricity supply is turned off, the town will be able to function for another three days thanks to the accumulated electricity.
Secondly, automation inside homes is very widely used. Washing machines choose the washing program themselves, determine the degree of contamination of items and the required amount of powder depending on the load. If viewers move away from the TV, then after a while it turns off on its own. When a pedestrian walks dark time days on the street, the lights shine brighter, and then go back to economical mode. By the way, all cables and communications are mounted hidden.
In this town it is also not customary to use cars with internal combustion engines. If necessary, you can rent an electric car or electric bicycle. The streets are equipped with numerous cameras and sensors, thanks to which it has been possible to reduce the number of police officers while maintaining a level of security. This year, the city will test a system of self-driving taxis. The experiment will be carried out on the basis of several Toyota Estima hybrid minivans.
Conclusion
According to the World Health Organization, by mid-century the urban population will account for 70% of the population - over 6 billion people. So, in any case, we will have to learn to effectively solve the numerous problems of managing huge urban agglomerations. Yes and "ordinary" big cities will only benefit from the introduction of new technologies that make the lives of citizens more comfortable and safer.
Fortunately, most of the actual projects being implemented have nothing to do with dystopian visions of the world. The era of cyberpunk with cities, the very sight of which plunges you into severe depression, has either already ended, remaining on the pages of books and in film frames with special effects, or has been postponed to the distant future, the development scenario of which is associated with unpredictable events.