EN 
Cities of 
tomorrow 
Challenges, visions, ways forward 
October 2011 
EN 
Cities of 
tomorrow 
Challenges, visions, ways forward 
October 2011 

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© European Union, 2011 
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. 
ISBN: 978-92-79-21307-6 
doi:10.2776/41803 

European Commission, Directorate General for Regional Policy 
Unit C.2 - Urban Development, Territorial Cohesion 
Wladyslaw Piskorz 

E-mail: regio-urban-territorial@ec.europa.eu 
Internet: http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/conferences/citiesoftomorrow/index_en.cfm 
Unit B.1 – Communication, Information, Relations with Third Countries 

Raphaël Goulet 
Avenue de Tervuren 41 
B - 1040 Brussels 

Fax: +32 22966003 
E-mail: regio-info@ec.europa.eu 
Internet: http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/index_en.htm 

The opinion expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission. 


Cities of 
tomorrow 
Challenges, visions, ways forward 
Cities of 
tomorrow 
Challenges, visions, ways forward 

Cities of tomorrow -Challenges, visions, ways forward 

Preface 



More than two thirds of the European population lives in urban areas. Cities are 
places where both problems emerge and solutions are found. They are fertile 
ground for science and technology, for culture and innovation, for individual and 
collective creativity, and for mitigating the impact of climate change. However, 
cities are also places where problems such as unemployment, segregation 
and poverty are concentrated. 

We need to better understand the challenges that different European cities will 
face in the years ahead. This is why I decided to bring together a number of 
urban experts and representatives of European cities to think about the future. 
This report is the outcome of that reflection. 

It raises awareness of the possible future impacts of a range of trends, such as 
demographic decline and social polarisation, and the vulnerability of different 
types of cities. It also highlights opportunities and the key role cities can play 
in achieving EU objectives – especially in the implementation of the Europe 
2020 strategy. It presents some inspirational models and visions. It also confirms 
the importance of an integrated approach to urban development. 

The ‘Cities of tomorrow’ reflection process will provide inspiration for policymakers 
and practitioners involved in urban development, whether at local, 
regional, national or European level. 

Looking ahead and developing visions of the cities of tomorrow is becoming 
increasingly important at all levels. The development of our cities will determine 
the future of Europe. 


Johannes Hahn, 
Member of the European Commission in charge of Regional Policy 



Contributors 


We would like to thank all the contributors to the Cities of tomorrow reflection process, whether 
as participants and presenters in the three workshops that were organised in May, June, October 
and December 2010, or through written contributions in the form of issue papers or responses 
to our expert consultations.* 

Isabel André University of Lisbon 
Thierry Baert Agence d’urbanisme de Lille métropole 
Alessandro Balducci University of Milan 
Catalin Berescu ‘Ioan Mincu’ University of Architecture and Urbanism, Bucharest 
Fiona Bult Bilbao Metropoli-30 
Antonio Calafati Universita Politecnica delle Marche 
Pierre Calame Fondation Charles Léopold Mayer pour le progres de l’Homme 
Jennifer Cassingena Malta Council for Science and Technology 
Patrick Crehan CKA Brussels 
Philippe Destatte The Destrée Institute 
Jean-Loup Drubigny URBACT Secretariat 
Dominique Dujols CECODHAS Housing Europe 
Martin Eyres City of Liverpool 
Elie Faroult Independent consultant 
Sonia Fayman ACT Consultants 
Birgit Georgi European Environment Agency 
Grzegorz Gorzelak Warsaw University 
Sir Peter Hall University College London 
Tomasz Kayser City of Poznañ 
Krisztina Keresztély ACT Consultants 
Clemens Klikar Stadt Menschen Berlin 
Vanda Knowles EUROCITIES 
Moritz Lennert Université Libre de Bruxelles 
Bernhard Leubolt University of Vienna 

* 
This report was prepared by Corinne Hermant-de Callatay and Christian Svanfeldt under the supervision 
of Wladyslaw Piskorz and Santiago Garcia-Patron Rivas, European Commission, Directorate General for Regional 
Policy, 'Urban Development, Territorial Cohesion' unit. 

Cities of tomorrow -Challenges, visions, ways forward 

Heinrich Mäding ex-Director Deutsches Institut für Urbanistik 
Gérard Magnin Energy Cities 
Karel Maier Czech Technical University Prague 
Torsten Malmberg City of Stockholm 
Simon Marvin University of Salford 
Frank Moulaert Katholieke Universiteit Leuven 
Rémy Nouveau City of Lille 
Andreas Novy University of Vienna 
Stijn Oosterlynck Katholieke Universiteit Leuven 
Beth Perry University of Salford 
Yaron Pesztat Member of Brussels Parliament 
Angelika Poth-Mögele Council of European Municipalities and Regions 
Anne Querrien URBAN-NET 
Francisca Ramalhosa Porto Vivo, Sociedade de Reabilitaçao Urbana 
John S. Ratcliffe The Futures Academy 
Joe Ravetz University of Manchester 
Stefan Rettich KARO*, Leipzig 
Gerda Roeleveld Deltares 
Karl-Peter Schön 
Federal Institute for Research on Building, 
Urban Affairs and Spatial Development, Germany 
Antonio 
Serrano 
Rodriguez 
Universidad Politécnica de Valencia 
Manfred Sinz Bundesministerium für Verkehr, Bau und Stadtentwicklung 
Uno Svedin Stockholm University 
Roey Sweet University of Leicester 
Ludìk Sýkora Charles University in Prague 
Nuria Tello Clusella EUROCITIES 
Jacques Theys 
French ministry of ecology, energy, sustainable 
development and regional planning 
Iván Tosics Metropolitan Research Institute, Budapest 
Ronan Uhel European Environment Agency 
Michaël Van Cutsem The Destrée Institute 
Jan Vranken University of Antwerp 
Martin Zaimov City of Sofia 
Marie Zezùlková City of Brno 


Executive summary 


Cities are key to the sustainable 
development of the European Union 

. 
Europe is one of the most urbanised continents in the world. 
Today, more than two thirds of the European population lives 
in urban areas and this share continues to grow. The development 
of our cities will determine the future economic, social and 
territorial development of the European Union. 
. 
Cities play a crucial role as engines of the economy, as places 
of connectivity, creativity and innovation, and as centres 
of services for their surrounding areas. Due to their density, cities 
offer a huge potential for energy savings and a move towards 
a carbon-neutral economy. Cities are, however, also places where 
problems such as unemployment, segregation and poverty are 
concentrated. Cities are, therefore, essential for the successful 
implementation of Europe 2020. 
. 
The administrative boundaries of cities no longer reflect the 
physical, social, economic, cultural or environmental reality 
of urban development and new forms of flexible governance 
are needed. 
. 
In terms of aims, objectives and values, there is a shared vision 
of the European city of tomorrow as: 
. 
a place of advanced social progress with a high degree of 
social cohesion, socially-balanced housing as well as social, 
health and 'education for all' services; 
. 
a platform for democracy, cultural dialogue and diversity; 
. 
a place of green, ecological or environmental regeneration; 
. 
a place of attraction and an engine of economic growth. 
. 
Cities play a key role in Europe’s territorial development. 
There is a consensus on the key principles of future European urban 
and territorial development which should: 
. 
be based on balanced economic growth and territorial 
organisation of activities, with a polycentric urban structure; 
. 
build on strong metropolitan regions and other urban areas 
that can provide good accessibility to services of general 
economic interest; 
. 
be characterised by a compact settlement structure with limited 
urban sprawl; 
. 
enjoy a high level of environmental protection and quality 
in and around cities. 
The European model of sustainable 
urban development is under threat 

. 
Demographic change gives rise to a series of challenges that differ 
from one city to another, such as ageing populations, shrinking 
cities or intense processes of suburbanisation. 
. 
Europe is no longer in a situation of continuous economic 
growth and many cities, especially non-capital cities in Central and 
Eastern Europe, but also old industrial cities in Western Europe, 
face the serious threat of economic stagnation or decline. 

. 
Our economies in their current form are unable to provide jobs for 
all – weakening links between economic growth, employment 
and social progress have pushed a larger share of the population 
out of the labour market or towards low-skilled and low-wage 
service sector jobs. 
. 
Growing income disparities and the poor getting poorer 
– in some neighbourhoods, local populations suffer from a 
concentration of inequalities in terms of poor housing, low-quality 
education, unemployment, and difficulties or inabilities to access 
certain services (health, transport, ICT). 
. 
Social polarisation and segregation are increasing – the 
recent economic crisis has further amplified the effects of market 
processes and the gradual retreat of the welfare state in most 
European countries. In even the richest of our cities, social and 
spatial segregation are growing problems. 
. 
Spatial segregation processes – as an effect of social polarisation 
– make it increasingly difficult for low-income or marginalised 
groups to find decent housing at affordable prices. 
. 
An increasing number of 'society dropouts' may lead to a 
development of closed sub-cultures with fundamentally hostile 
attitudes to mainstream society in many cities. 
. 
Urban sprawl and the spread of low-density settlements is one 
of the main threats to sustainable territorial development; public 
services are more costly and difficult to provide, natural resources 
are overexploited, public transport networks are insufficient and 
car reliance and congestion in and around cities are heavy. 
. 
Urban ecosystems are under pressure – urban sprawl and soilsealing 
threaten biodiversity and increase the risk of both flooding 
and water scarcity. 

Cities of tomorrow -Challenges, visions, ways forward 

There are opportunities to turn 
the threats into positive challenges 

. 
European cities follow different development trajectories and 
their diversity has to be exploited. Competitiveness in the global 
economy has to be combined with sustainable local economies 
by anchoring key competences and resources in the local economic 
tissue and supporting social participation and innovation. 
. 
Creating a resilient and inclusive economy – the present 
economic development model, in which economic growth does 
not equate to more jobs, raises challenges: to ensure a decent life 
for those left outside the labour market and to engage them in 
society. 
. 
The potential of socio-economic, cultural, generational 
and ethnic diversity must be further exploited as a source of 
innovation. Cities of tomorrow have to be both elderly-friendly 
and family-friendly, as well as places of tolerance and respect. 
. 
Combating spatial exclusion and energy poverty with better 
housing is key to not only making a city and its agglomeration 
more attractive and liveable, but also making it more eco-friendly 
and competitive. 
. 
Making cities ‘green and healthy’ goes far beyond simply reducing 
CO2 emissions. A holistic approach to environmental and energy 
issues has to be adopted, as the many components of the natural 
ecosystem are interwoven with those of the social, economic, 
cultural and political urban system in a unique manner. 
. 
Thriving and dynamic small and medium-sized cities can 
play an important role in the well-being not only of their own 
inhabitants but also of the surrounding rural populations. They 
are essential for avoiding rural depopulation and urban drift 
and for promoting balanced territorial development. 
. 
A sustainable city must have attractive open public spaces and 
promote sustainable, inclusive and healthy mobility. Non-car 
mobility has to become more attractive and multimodal public 
transport systems favoured. 
New forms of governance are essential 
to respond to these urban challenges 

. 
Cities of tomorrow have to adopt a holistic model of sustainable 
urban development 
. 
Deal with challenges in an integrated, holistic way; 
. 
Match place-and people-based approaches; 
. 
Combine formal government structures with flexible informal 
governance structures that correspond to the scale at which 
the challenges exist; 
. 
Develop governance systems capable of building shared visions 
reconciling competing objectives and conflicting development 
models; 
. 
Cooperate in order to ensure coherent spatial development and 
an efficient use of resources. 
. 
Governance systems need to be adapted to evolving circumstances 
and take into account various territorial (e.g. supra-urban as well 
as infra-urban) and temporal scales. 

. 
Cities have to work across sectors and not let ‘mono-sectoral’ 
visions set the agenda of what urban life should be like. 
. 
Horizontal and vertical coordination is required as cities have 
to work with other governance levels and reinforce their cooperation 
and networking with other cities in order to share investments 
and services which are required at a larger territorial scale. 
. 
New governance modes based on citizens' empowerment, 
participation of all relevant stakeholders and innovative use of 
social capital are needed. 
. 
In the context of weakened links between economic growth and 
social progress, social innovation offers an opportunity to widen 
the public space for civic engagement, creativity, innovation 
and cohesion. 
. 
Foresight is a specially relevant tool for managing transitions, 
overcoming conflicts and contradictions between objectives, 
and developing a better understanding of realities, capacities 
and objectives. 

Table of contents 


Preface . 
III 


Contributors . 
IV 


Executivesummary . 
VI 


1. TowardsaEuropean visionofthecityoftomorrow 

1.1. Introduction . 
1 


1.2. Whatdowemeanbycities? . 
1 


1.3. The growing importanceof cities . 
2 


1.3.1. Citiesplayakeyroleineconomicgrowth . 
2 


1.3.2. Citiescontributebothtoproblemsandtosolutions . 
5 


1.4. TheEuropean policycontext . 
7 


1.4.1. The‘Acquis Urbain’ . 
7 


1.4.2. TheTerritorialAgenda . 
8 


1.5. TowardsasharedEuropean visionof urbandevelopment . 
10 


1.5.1. Canweagreeuponashared vision? . 
10 


1.5.2. AEuropean visionofthe Citiesoftomorrow . 
10 


1.5.3. AEuropean visionoftheterritorialdevelopmentof cities . 
12 


1.6. Conclusions– sharedEuropean urbandevelopmentobjectives . 
12 


2. AEuropean urbandevelopmentmodel underthreat 

2.1. Diagnosis: demographic decline . 
15 


2.2. Diagnosis:economicdevelopmentandcompetitiveness underthreat . 
18 


2.2.1. European citiesfollowverydifferentdevelopmenttrajectories . 
18 


2.2.2. Askill base under threat . 
19 


2.2.3. Cities facing the crisis . 
21 


2.2.4. Competitionasazero-sum game . 
22 


2.3. Diagnosis:agrowing social polarisation . 
22 


2.3.1. Spatial segregation and housing . 
24 


2.3.2. Anincreasing number of social dropouts . 
25 


2.4. Diagnosis – depletionofnaturalresources . 
26 


2.4.1. Urban sprawl and landconsumption . 
26 


2.4.2. Urban ecosystems under pressure . 
27 


2.5. Adiverse governancesystem . 
29 


2.6. Conclusions–achallenging futureforthe Citiesoftomorrow . 
30 


3. Themain challengesforthe Citiesoftomorrow 

3.1. Introduction – whatcanwesayabout futurechallenges? . 
33 


3.2. The diverse,cohesiveandattractivecity . 
34 


3.2.1. The potential of diversity . 
34 


3.2.2. Turningdiversityintoadynamic asset . 
35 


3.2.3. Ensuringacityfor all – thecohesivecity . 
36 


3.2.4. Eradicating energypovertyandspatialexclusion . 
37 


3.2.5. Developing social innovation . 
38 


3.2.6. Adaptingthecity’seconomicand sociallifetoan ageing population . 
39 


3.2.7. Attractingtheyoungandmakingroomfor children . 
40 



Cities of tomorrow -Challenges, visions, ways forward 

3.3. The green and healthycity . 
42 


3.3.1. Aholisticapproachtoenvironmental issuesand energy efficiency . 
42 


3.3.2. Making mobilitysustainable,inclusiveand healthy . 
45 


3.3.3. Asustainablecitywithattractiveopenpublicspaces . 
48 


3.4. Creatingaresilientand inclusiveeconomy . 
49 


3.4.1. Managingtransitionstowardsaviablelocaleconomy . 
49 


3.4.2. Stimulatingjobcreation,entrepreneurshipandabroadlocalskill-base . 
50 


3.4.3. Developing socialcapital . 
52 


3.4.4. Usingtechnologytofostercollectiveintelligenceand innovation . 
52 


3.4.5. Linkingtothe global economy – cities as hubsfor global networks . 
52 


3.4.6. Theconnectivitychallenge . 
55 


3.5. ApolycentricurbanEuropewith balancedterritorialdevelopment . 
55 


3.5.1. Aharmoniousdevelopmentofthecitywithits surroundingregion . 
55 


3.5.2. Promoting the diversityand authenticityof cities . 
57 


3.6. Towardsamoreholistic modelof sustainablecitydevelopment . 
60 


3.6.1. Towardsaholistic,integrated modelof sustainable urbandevelopment . 
60 


3.6.2. Overcomingconflicts andcontradictions . 
60 


3.6.3. Abetter understandingofrealities,capacitiesandobjectives . 
61 


4. Governance –howtorespondtothe challenges 

4.1. Introduction –fromgovernmenttogovernance . 
65 


4.2. Anintegratedapproachtourbandevelopmentandgovernance . 
65 


4.3. Newmodelsofterritorialgovernance . 
68 


4.3.1. Newurbanrealities . 
68 


4.3.2. Theincreasingimportanceofthecityatregionalor metropolitanlevel . 
68 


4.3.3. Theneedforflexible multi-scalargovernance . 
71 


4.4. Buildingcapacityfor long-term visioning and strategic planning . 
72 


4.4.1. The needforasolidknowledge base . 
74 


4.4.2. Foresightasaparticipativegovernancetooltomanagecomplexity . 
76 


4.5. CollectivemobilisationaroundaEuropean urbandevelopmentmodel . 
81 


4.5.1. Residentmobilisation . 
81 


4.5.2. Localcommunity-leddevelopmentapproaches . 
81 


4.5.3. Needforcapacitybuildingtoensurefull empowerment . 
84 


4.6. Cooperationbetween citiesiskeytosustainableEuropean urbandevelopment . 
85 


4.7. Conclusions–astrengtheningoftheEuropean urbandevelopmentmodel . 
86 


4.7.1. Governanceconsiderationsforthe Citiesoftomorrow . 
86 


4.7.2. Towardssociallyinnovative,inclusiveandintegratedmulti-scalargovernance . 
88 


Conclusions . 
91 


Annexes . 
94 


Chapter1 -Annex1 . 
94 


Chapter1 -Annex2 . 
95 


Chapter2 -Annex1 . 
96 


Chapter4 -Annex1 . 
97 


Chapter4 -Annex2 . 
98 


Chapter4 -Annex3 . 
99 


Listoffigures,mapsand tables . 
100 



1. Towards a European 
vision of the city 
of tomorrow 

Cities of tomorrow -Challenges, visions, ways forward 

1.1. Introduction 
‘Our cities possess unique cultural and architectural 
qualities, strong forces of social inclusion and exceptional 
possibilities for economic development. They are centres 
of knowledge and sources of growth and innovation. 
At the same time, however, they suffer from demographic 
problems, social inequality, social exclusion of specific 
population groups, a lack of affordable and suitable 
housing, and environmental problems.’1 

Cities play a key role in the lives of most Europeans. 
Not only does a majority of the population live in cities, 
but cities also play a key role in the social and economic 
development of all European territories. It seems almost 
paradoxical that there is no common definition for ‘urban’ 
or even ‘city’, and that the European Union has no explicit 
policy competence in urban development. However, 
in this chapter we demonstrate not only the importance 
of cities, but also the crucial role that Europe has to play 
in their future. There is, in fact, an explicit European model 
of urban development. 

The ‘European model of the city’ is a fascinating issue. 
On the one hand, it captures essential features of European 
cultural history, and it is deeply rooted in the past and, 
hence, related to the identity question. On the other, 
it captures essential aspects of the political vision of 
the European Union and, hence, of the future as envisaged 
by the underlying society.2 

Before arriving at the European model of urban 
development, we briefly discuss alternative administrative 
and functional definitions of cities, and point to the 
importance of understanding urban issues in a territorial 
context. We also stress the increasing significance of 
cities, especially in meeting the objectives of the Europe 
2020 strategy, as well as those set out in the Treaty, i.e. 
the promotion of economic, social and territorial cohesion. 

Finally, we describe European policy context and introduce 
the European model of urban development, a shared 
European vision of the Cities of tomorrow and a shared 
European vision of the territorial development of cities. 

1.2. What do we mean by cities? 
There are many definitions of a city. ‘City’ can refer to 
an administrative unit or a certain population density. 
A distinction is sometimes made between towns and 
cities – the former are smaller (e.g. between 10000 and 
50000 inhabitants) and the latter larger (above 
50000 inhabitants). ‘City’ can also refer more generally 
to perceptions of an urban way of life and specific cultural 
or social features, as well as functional places of economic 
activity and exchange. 

