Reimagining our cities
By 2050, two-thirds of the world’s population will live in cities. Cities contribute more than two-thirds of global emissions – and the way we build and design our urban spaces today will determine the future of our planet.
Speaking at a symposium on Building a Planetary Solution: Regenerative Architectural Strategies for a Planet in Crisis at Yale School of Architecture on 21 February, CBA CEO Marc Palahí emphasised that “we shape our cities, and then they shape us – our economy, our wellbeing and our relationship with nature“.
In his keynote speech, Marc highlighted the need to rethink urbanisation. “Reimagining our cities is a fundamental step to creating a new economy that is powered by nature and prospers in symbiosis with nature“, he said.
Cities need to be reimagined following ecological principles, nature-based solutions and biological materials – and here forests can play a key role in transforming our urban environments. Urban forests clean the air, support local biodiversity, improve drainage and cool the environment; wood-based construction stores carbon and reduces emissions; and biological design reconnects cities with nature, fostering sustainability.
Photos from the Building a Planetary Solution: Regenerative Architectural Strategies for a Planet in Crisis symposium, courtesy of Yale School of Architecture.
Panellists on the Resilient Forests, Responsive Structures: Signals from Natural Systems panel included: Marc Palahí, CBA; Andrew Waugh, Waugh Thistleton; Tanya Luthi, Timberlab; Kiel Moe, Architect; Lindsey Wikstrom, Mattaforma. The two-day symposia brought together leading international scientists, thinkers and makers to discuss a new and regenerative paradigm to reimagine the cities of the 21st century.
