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Notable cities

Notable City: Tanga – Generating City-Wide Benefits by Boosting Youth Social Mobility

Through population growth and in-migration, cities are only going to increase in number and size. This presents a challenge: how do we ensure citizens’ needs are addressed adequately as urban environments sprawl at an...

d-Lab: Reviving Social Infrastructure via Architectural Design

Preserving historic architecture seems at odds with renovating buildings to meet modern sustainability standards. One Spanish university, however, is bridging these two worlds – by reviving traditional construction methods. It just so happens that...

Waste to Resources: Tampere’s Triumphs With Trash and Trade

The importance of good waste management is no secret, but how to do it can sometimes allude us. This is where the city of Tampere comes in. So, if you’re lacking innovative ideas and...

Lyon Confluence: How a District is Retrofitting Heritage Buildings

SPL Lyon Confluence is carrying out a stand-out urban renewal project in a once-deprived district of central Lyon. Project Manager Etienne Vignali describes how this offers a significantly chance to undertake a large-scale decarbonisation...

Barcelona’s Superblocks: Putting People at the Centre – Literally

A few weeks back, during an ECIU Challenge in Barcelona, I talked with the Office for Urban Ecology of Barcelona's municipality. They showed me the city's plan to win its war on cars. The plan is...

Superblocks – the Spanish Idea That Is Conquering European Cities

Giving the streets back to the people: The Spanish idea of creating city blocks where cars are only allowed as guests is spreading across Europe. But what’s the story behind the superblocks, and how...

The Secrets of Vancouver’s Rain City Strategy

Vancouver has undergone a blue-green infrastructure revolution. Its Rain City Strategy integrated nature making the city more resilient to fluctuations in rainfall. Behind it all is Melina Scholefield, a CityChanger with an impressive portfolio...

Vienna Calling: A Story of Gender Equality, Funding Structures, and School Streets

For the 10th consecutive time, Vienna was named the world's most liveable city in the Mercer Rankings of 2020. But does that also mean that the city is particularly pedestrian-friendly? We talked to Petra...

Young Leader Omar Zahran: Architecture as a Tool for People-Centred Cities

How does so much historic architecture endure the ravages of time? It’s because the architects of yore knew how to build cities to suit their environment, and they did so to meet the needs...

Cooking Up Community: Transforming a Town Square into an Open Air Kitchen

This article is part of a paid collaboration between Urban Future and Pop Up City Amsterdam, implemented in the run-up to UF24 in Rotterdam. The featured "recipe", the Open Air Kitchen, is one of...

Preventing Day Zero: Lessons from Cape Town

Day Zero: the moment a city’s water dries up completely. For Cape Town, this deadly scenario came too close, but it was averted thanks to collective action and decisive leadership. This story serves as...

From Emissions to Edens: Our Top 5 Car-Free Urban Transformations

Our cities have been constructed almost entirely around private cars. But what's happening now? Cities are realising that infrastructure for motor vehicles in urban areas often leaves them looking grey, industrial and not very...

Good Things Happen to Those Who Hustle – A Story of Cycling Advocacy in the City That Never Sleeps

When you think of New York, what is the first thing that comes to your mind? Cycling is probably not on top of your list. It seems dangerous, especially for outsiders, but this is...

From Creating Momentum for Pedestrians to Turning It Into Policy – How Rotterdam Made It Happen

It’s a long way from one person having an idea to a city fully implementing it on policy-level – Rotterdam’s story shows that it can be done, and how. We sat down with José...

Addis Ababa: Lessons in Multi-modal Transport from an African Capital

America and Europe are awash with cities putting multi-modal transport at the forefront of cities’ policy and design. The voice of Africa doesn’t feel so prominent, but that’s misleading: Addis Ababa’s progressive transport plans...

Notable City: São Paulo – Water Challenges Along the Class Divide

São Paulo is a tale of two cities. A broken relationship with water has created a litany of challenges, which hit the sprawling favelas harder than the wealthy centre. The Secretary of Urbanism is...

Spotlight on Trondheim: Shortcuts to a Walkable City

It’s simple, it doesn’t cost much, it saves time – why aren’t shortcuts more prevalent in cities that want to encourage people to walk more? Look to Trondheim: a mid-sized Norwegian city that has...

Young Leader Eva de Bruijn: How Eindhoven’s ‘Idealists’ Are Saving City Politics

Politics is one realm that can open a lot of doors to sustainability in our cities. But whether it’s because they are disillusioned, disinterested, or feel excluded, many people do not use their voices...