Citizen-Centric Cities

Successful cities will be designed around the needs and desires of increasingly empowered and enabled citizens – who are expecting personalized services from the organisations that serve them.

If we are going to live in cities, then we will certainly expect them to suit our needs and desires. Cities, it seems, have always have been products, with citizens as the customers, but now the marketplace for cities is on the move. And in a big way.

The UN predicts 8.5 billion people globally by 2030, 9.7 billion by 2050 and more than 11 billion in 2100 and that by 2100, some 84% of us will live in cities. What’s more, by 2030, just under 9% of global population will be living in 41 megacities (defined as 10m+ inhabitants).

A city will increasingly need to provide for its inhabitants, attract newcomers and compete alongside the offerings of other cities. And with direction given by the collective voice of the people that live there, as cities deal with a more connected world, one that expects to have a voice. We already expect personalization, relevance and traceability of the products we use, so surely this will be the same for the city (as a product)?

Cities face a complex stakeholder environment and will need to demonstrate an ability to work across systems and boundaries while improving co-operation and trust. The connectivity of people, governments, decision-makers and the IoT will enable each to contribute to a city as a product. In Sydney, Australia, the provision of bike parking and end-of-trip facilities for cyclists within new developments is now obligatory. In an era where the public voice is easier to access and harder to suppress, it becomes more difficult to generate support for new initiatives without taking public views into account. FixMyStreet is a rudimentary expression of this in the UK today, where citizens report local issues (like graffiti, fly tipping, broken paving slabs, or street lighting) which are then forwarded to the appropriate local council.

So what will we want as global city dwellers? The familiar issues of feeling safe, good jobs, parks and recreation, and arts, culture and nightlife – it is the interaction of these (and other) factors that make a place truly great. Some participants suggest more areas of emphasis – innovative environmental solutions, a focus on connected, healthy, efficient cities and user-friendly goods and services shaped by consumers that will transform companies and the way that cities work. We can expect that cities will become closer, more connected communities, or sets of communities that emphasise and create particulars of the environment that each community needs or wants.

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