1st Edition
Designing Smart and Resilient Cities for a Post-Pandemic World Metropandemic Revolution
Are pandemics the end of cities? Or, do they present an opportunity for us to reshape cities in ways making us even more innovative, successful and sustainable? Pandemics such as COVID-19 (and comparable disruptions) have caused intense debates over the future of cities.
Through a series of investigative studies, Designing Smart and Resilient Cities for a Post-Pandemic World: Metropandemic Revolution seeks to critically discuss and compare different cases, innovations and approaches as to how cities can utilise nascent and future digital technology and/or new strategies in order to build stronger resilience to better tackle comparable large-scale pandemics and/or disruptions in the future.
The authors identify ten separate societal areas where future digital technology can impact resilience. These are discussed in individual chapters. Each chapter concludes with a set of proposed "action points" based on the conclusions of each respective study. These serve as solid policy recommendations of what courses of action to take, to help increase the resilience in smart cities for each designated area. Securing resilience and cohesion between each area will bring about the metropandemic revolution.
This book features a foreword by Nobel laureate Peter C. Doherty and an afterword by Professor of Urban Technologies, Carlo Ratti. It provides fresh and unique insights on smart cities and futures studies in a pandemic context, offers profound reflections on contemporary societal functions and the needs to build resilience and combines lessons learned from historical pandemics with possibilities offered by future technology.
Foreword: Pandemic Lessons – What the Future Can Teach Us
PETER C. DOHERTY
Outline: Overview
1. Introduction: Pandemic Resilience in Smart Cities – The Metropandemic Revolution
PART I: Appeal
2. Attractiveness: How to Make a Smart City Revitalise Its Charm during and after a Pandemic
3. Labour: The Smart City and Pre-and Post-Pandemic Job Opportunities
4. Housing: Past and Future Living
PART II: Facilities
5. Infrastructure and Travel: Travelling Safe in the Future
6. Welfare and Healthcare: The View on Health and Wellness in the Future
7. Global Hubs: Setting Up and Sustaining International Businesses in Smart Cities in Times of Pandemics
PART III: Durability
8. Digitalisation: Optimising a Pandemic and Post-Pandemic Smart City
9. Safety and Security: Identifying and Addressing Crime in a Pandemic Smart City
10. Sustainability: Ensuring Urban Sustainability for Smart Cities during and after Pandemics
Conclusion
11. Cohesion: The Metropandemic Revolution and Beyond
Afterword: Lessons for Our Future Cities
CARLO RATTI
Biography
Anthony Larsson is an author, editor and researcher. He currently serves as Research Fellow at the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce, Sweden.
Andreas Hatzigeorgiou is the CEO of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce, Sweden, and is an affiliated researcher at the School of Architecture and the Built Environment, KTH Royal Institute of Technology.
"Crises such as pandemics can be devastating, but also of opportunities for innovation. In this book, the authors give historical examples of both and apply forward thinking to show how the COVID pandemic has shown the power of both the biotechnological revolution to tackle the challenge and offer much hope for the future response to health crises. Similarly, the digital revolution empowered effective communication from a distance and offers many opportunities for future improvements. This is an optimistic book, but firmly based on recent experiences and great technological advances. A very good read!" — Sir Richard J. Roberts, Distinguished University Professor, New England Biolabs, Massachusetts, USA, Laureate of the 1993 Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine"Anthony Larsson and Andreas Hatzigeorgiou have given us a well-written and comprehensive view of the challenges facing cities in the aftermath of a pandemic, as well as ideas about strategies they can use to move forward. It will be a valuable resource for both scholars and policymakers". — Robert E. Lucas, Professor of Economics (Emeritus), University of Chicago, Illinois, USA, Laureate of the 1995 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences
"I am very impressed with this timely book on smart cities. So many cities are in need of regenerative marketing. Branding is not the first step. The first is to make the city better. Then communicate the new positives of the city. If I were a city mayor or manager, I would assign the chapters to my respective managers of housing, labour, sustainability – asking them to bring back a set of new ideas and recommendations for improving their sector". — Philip Kotler, Professor of Marketing (Emeritus), Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, Illinois, USA, Author of Marketing Places
"Now more than ever, the world needs smarter, healthier, more sustainable and resilient cities and metro areas. Larsson and Hatzigeorgiou provide the guidebook for making the transition to a better post-pandemic world". — Richard Florida, Professor of Business and Creativity, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, Canada, Author of The Rise of the Creative Class
"The COVID-19 pandemic had a massive negative impact medically, economically, and socially, but thus far, there’s little agreement as to what 'next steps' should be. Throughout the pandemic, state, national and international organisations struggled to implement interventions at the local level with variable degrees of success. Anthony Larsson and Andreas Hatzigeorgiou, in Designing Smart and Resilient Cities for a Post-Pandemic World: Metropandemic Revolution, provide a cogent, practical, stepwise approach to prepare our cities for their essential role in the next national/world crisis. Each chapter identifies a critical quality or competency that together, define a resilient city. Anyone with a leadership role or simply a strong interest in good municipal government should read their book. It will have a powerful impact on how we view our cities and our ability to advocate for creating positive change". — Francis Andrew Gaffney, Professor of Medicine (Emeritus), Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Tennessee, USA, Astronaut, NASA (Retired), Guest Professor, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
"Designing Smart and Resilient Cities for a Post-Pandemic World: Metropandemic Revolution is more than just a must-read book; it is a window into the future that leaves few stones unturned. With their unique combination of engaging storytelling and analytical precision, the authors offer an innovative, balanced and factual insight of possible future technological developments aimed at strengthening our cities' resilience and safety in a post-pandemic world". — Björn Eriksson, President of Interpol (1994–1996), Honorary Doctor of Philosophy, Linköping University, Sweden
"Those looking for an insightful account of tomorrow's digital technology and how it can be used to foster future pandemic resilience in our smart cities will find great inspiration from this comprehensive, but easily digestible guide by Larsson and Hatzigeorgiou". — Nicholas Fortugno, Video game designer and educator, Playmatics, LLC, New York City, USA
