Reimagining Urban Planning for Greater Flexibility

Through the years, there have been animated debates on the future of cities, on how they will look, and on the role of tech solutions in making them more habitable and attuned to individual ambitions as well as collective aspirations.

From and high-rises which became a conspicuous symbol of bustling, cities, to the move towards re-greening, and rethinking the idea of city to be more in sync with the changing social, economic and ecological zeitgeist, a lot of transformation is underway in the realm of urbanism.

Helene Chartier is the Director of Urban Planning and Design at C40, a consortium of mayors of 40 cities around the world that focusses on making cities more livable, sustainable, people-friendly, and resilient shocks and disruptions. Helene has been an advisor to Ann Hidalgo, the mayor of Paris, on government initiatives in the development of greater Paris metropolitan area.

“A lot of cities across the world are trying to develop a workable strategy for replanting, removing impermeable soil, fighting urban heat. There’s a need of spatial data so that a concrete climate strategy can be implemented. Instead of decadal master plans, there is a need for more flexible approach to planning”, says Helene in an exclusive interview with Geospatial World.

What are some of the key C40 projects to curtail greenhouse emissions and advance smart mobility?

C40 is an organization that was founded in 2005, initially by the Mayor of London. The idea was to deliberate with mayors across the globe on initiatives to tackle climate change. We include experts on topics that relate to climate change, such as adaptation flooding, urban heat, urban mobility, buildings and urban planning. We try to cover a large spectrum of topics at the political as well as the technical level to share expertise between cities, helping them to accelerate concrete policies and actions.

For instance, we have been working closely in Latin America on a program called ZEBRA, which is about developing electrical buses in the cities. So far it has been very successful in providing zero emission transport solutions. We are also trying to accelerate advanced active mobility and transform public spaces. Ever since the pandemic, there’s a conscious shift among cities to move to more people-centric urban spheres.

Urban planning and design are key for climate actions. Post-World War II, the urban planning vision largely promoted sprawl, car-oriented planning, over specialization of city neighborhoods with residential areas separated from central business district, commercial areas etc. and all of them connected by transport infrastructure that was either car-oriented or mass transit.

This model has increased the need to travel, it generated long commute, lack of amenities and poor quality of life in many neighborhoods. Due to these urban planning patterns, we see a lot of issues that arise with the modern cities such as congestion and increase of GHG emissions and air pollution.

In many North American and European cities, there are nascent movements to curb urban sprawl, and focus regeneration and infill policies. But of course, the challenge is vastly different in rapidly booming cities in Asia and Africa.

A lot of metropolises today are bursting at the seams due to high population density, and at the same time rural communities are turning into decrepit settlements. How can this chasm be bridged, and what do you think is the future of cities in an era marked by increasingly volatile disruptions, workplace shifts, and climate change?

I think it is very important to limit consumption of natural land, and therefore, when possible, limit urban sprawling. In that sense we must first concentrate our efforts to regenerate existing cities, and in that sense secondary and thirdlevel cities, that are often less dense than the large metropolitan cities, have a lot of potential especially with the development of more flexible work practices. There’s a need of a strategy to accelerate the regeneration of secondary, and third-level cities.

In addition, in regions of high urban growth, it is also sometime necessary to develop new greenfield areas. And in this case, it is key to promote a better model of urbanization. The latest IPCC report highlights the importance of integrated urban planning to reduce emissions.

The report states that achieving compact and resource-efficient urban growth through location of higher residential and job densities, mixed land use, and transit-oriented development could reduce GHG emissions between 23-26% by 2050 compared to the business-as-usual scenario.

What do you think is the role of location intelligence and spatial technologies in making cities more resilient?

Cities need data, which is definitely very important, especially for urban planners who need accurate information for example for developing complete neighborhoods, also called ’15-minute neighborhoods’ where people can find key amenities and services close to where they live. We see a lot of different cities across the world trying to develop this approach and assess their neighborhoods in detail in that sense.

For instance, Madrid and Vancouver, are engaged in such projects. Land usage is also important, as we know that green and blue infrastructure is instrumental in terms of improving quality of life in cities and better adapt our cities to climate change. One of the key takeaways from the pandemic has been that cities’ public spaces need to be people-friendly, resilient spaces.

We are seeing across the world that a lot of cities are trying to develop a workable strategy for replanting and increasing permeable soil to fight urban heat and flooding. Melbourne, for example, has got tools and strategies to monitor each tree in the city so that replanting, when needed, can be done swiftly.

There’s a need to gather spatial data to know about the state of infrastructure and the different services, so that a concrete climate adaptation strategy can be implemented. This is one examples where data and technology are crucial. They allow us to identify problem spots, and act better to transform urban spheres.

Spatial data are also essential to assess where climate hazards and air pollution are high and to adapt planning accordingly to limit the impact for the local population. For example, in Paris, where I live, some construction restrictions on the construction of housing and kindergarten have been decided next to a highly polluting ring road.

Another example is the evaluation and visualization of GHG emissions generated by each building in an area. This is something that New York is developing, so that the energy efficiency of each building can be determined, and necessary retrofitting can be prioritized and planned.

What are some of the most remarkable smart cities in the world today, and why?

There are cities working on specific projects, for instance, Medellin in Colombia is pioneer in bringing nature back. There are similar planned initiatives in a lot of cities. Paris is leading on urban planning with the 15-minute City model and mobility shift. The Nordic city of Oslo has been among the first to pave the way to reduce embodied emissions from construction activities. A lot of other leading examples are there all across the world.

Urbanism has always been centered on civic participation, citizen engagement, and an intangible albeit strong sense of belonging. How do we renew this bond for connected cities in the age of hyperconnectivity and automation? I think that the approach to planning needs to be more flexible, instead of fixed master plans for say two decades. There needs to be constant engagement, feedback mechanism, and mutual information exchange on projects.

A shift towards flexibility is needed. A representative from the City of Madrid recently told me that, in order to circumvent the cumbersome process that is legally required in Spain for the revision of a land-use masterplan, Madrid has developed a parallel strategic planning methodology. This strategic planning consists of organizing public consultations in each neighborhood of the city to collect the specific needs and aspirations of the local communities, get their inputs and feedback on the main planning orientation and then prioritize key projects for the neighborhood.

This is an interesting bottom-up approach that works well if local communities can be provided with comprehensible assessments and data that can inform their contributions.

Big cities were initially either clustered around manufacturing units, or served as nodes of commercial transit. With the digital economy growing at an exponential pace, what kind of transformation is need in urban spheres so that they can reflect aspirations of diverse array of people? The development of digital economy and flexible works practices will accelerate the way we plan our cities. It makes the case for a polycentric development of city with multiple ‘complete neighborhoods’ aligned with the 15-minute City model. We must promote mixed land-use and more adaptable and multi-functional spaces.

I also think it is important to relocate certain industries. When the pandemic struck; everyone was looking at localizing the production of strategic goods. In France, we totally decentralized the production of a lot of goods. To be more resilient to crises, as well as to reduce emissions related to the transport of goods, it is necessary to ensure the local production of food and other essential supplies. There’s a need for incorporating these changes, alongside making space for new industries.

Interviewed by: Aditya Chaturvedi