One of a series of excerpts from the 2014 State of Green Business report (download here).
There's a revolution taking place in cities — or maybe it's an evolution. Whatever it's called, it represents a significant shift in how cities
One of a series of excerpts from the 2014 State of Green Business report (download here).
There's a revolution taking place in cities — or maybe it's an evolution. Whatever it's called, it represents a significant shift in how cities are designed and managed, and the experience of those who live, work and play there. And it is creating a wealth of new opportunities for companies.
The (r)evolution we're seeing is the result of a convergence of several factors, including the nature of cities themselves. Unlike states or provinces, let alone nations, cities are run by public officials who typically live close to the citizenry whose lives they impact, and who experience daily life much the same way as taxpayers and voters. There can be more collaboration among city councils and mayors, unlike the polarized world of national politics. Cities also operate at a manageable scale — large enough to enjoy economies of scale for new technologies or ideas, but small enough to be innovative and adaptive.
There's also cities' sheer scope. As SustainAbility's Mohammed Al-Shawaf notes, cities account for 70 percent of global GDP and consume 75 percent of the world's resources and 70 percent of its energy. And that share will grow: By midcentury, 70 percent of the world's population will live in cities, up from just over 50 percent today.
We see hopeful innovations springing up in cities around the world. Many result in sustainability improvements that reduce environmental impacts while improving lives. Together, these represent an exciting time for the urban landscape.
As Al-Shawaf writes: "Many large metropolitan areas, in the United States and elsewhere, are attempting to rise to the occasion. They're acting as first responders to system-level challenges colliding on their doorsteps. These include escalating consumer waste, water scarcity, 'food deserts' and de-carbonization of the electricity grid, as well as to how to re-envision and repurpose land."
Big data provides big opportunity
Some of these innovations are tied to the explosion of data — Big Data, in many cases, but not always. Cities long have held large quantities of digital information — about buildings, people, operations, traffic, transit, utilities and more. Now, that data is being turned into solutions, some via consumer apps that improve the lives and experiences of people and businesses.
For example, in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, New York City officials used an app called Gasbuddy, which locates cheap gas station prices based in part on crowdsourced data to locate functioning gas stations. That, along with interviews with gas station owners, provided city officials with a more accurate assessment than the one provided by federal agencies. Similarly, the city gathered data from utilities and residents on which neighborhoods were affected by lost power and gas service after Sandy.
A growing number of cities are collecting energy dat