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Future Cities |
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Projects Future Cities -
Towards Sustainable Cities Future Cities - Guangzhou: A
Partnership for Urban Sustainability (2000, 2001) Future
Cities - Guangzhou: A Partnership for Sustainable Urban and Regional
Development in the Pearl River Delta (2002)
Principal
Investigators MIT: L.Glicksman, Q.Chen, L.Norford,
F.Moavenzadeh, J.Dorsey UT: K.Hanaki, T.Matsuo,
S.Murakami ETH: P.Baccini, J.Gay, M.Hugentobler, A.Henz,
W.Kroger, A.Moser, P.Rittmeyer, C.Binder, D.Eberle University of
Hong Kong: J.Beisi
Developing countries are faced with two
major urban sustainability challenges. The first is rapidly growing
population, concentrated mostly in urban areas. Second, the resource
demand for consumption and production is increasing in cities, which
are simultaneously the centers of economic growth and of social
inequalities. The combination of such pressures leads to
environmental problems on a local, regional and global scale. Cities
also depend on resources produced elsewhere, and put pressures on
the regional environment through resource depletion and solid waste
generation.
The focus to address these environmental concerns
has started to shift from end of pipe technologies to early problem
recognition, and resource recovery and reuse. However, fast growing
cities often lack the tools and resources to introduce
environmentally sustainable technologies and innovative policy
approaches. This research aims to address such urban sustainability
challenge from technological and political perspectives, focusing on
water, transportation, and village renewal in Guangzhou, China. The
research has been carried out in three phases.
Phase I:
Future Cities - Towards Sustainable
Cities
Goals/Objectives The objective of the
initial project was to bring together scholars who have worked
extensively in areas related to sustainable development within the
urban and buildings context. Specifically:
- Resource Efficient Urban Developments: to conduct surveys of
four cities to identify factors affecting residential energy
intensity, analyze the market for energy efficient investments,
and generate practical policy recommendations
- Resource Efficient Buildings: to develop sustainability
indicators which optimize energy and materials use in buildings as
well as reduce emissions
- Indoor Air Quality: to understand health effects of building
materials on the indoor
environment
Results/Findings Two publications
elaborate on key findings:
- Future Cities: Dynamics and Sustainability, part of the AGS
Book Series
- Articles in the Journal of Urban Technology, Special
Edition
Phase II: AGS Future Cities - Guangzhou: A
Partnership for Urban Sustainability (2000,
2001)
Goals/Objectives The goal of the project was
to support the city of Guangzhou in addressing problems related to
urban transportation, housing, waste and water management through
the application and adaptation of technical, social and policy
analysis tools developed. Specific objectives included:
- To provide approaches for developing and assessing policy
measures to reduce air and water pollution
- To assist in developing recommendations for sustainable
policies related to land use and property development
- To assess the wastewater treatment system and suggest methods
for improvement
- To assist in the development of a concept and process for
sustainable urban development planning
- To provide and apply a multi-system analysis for sustainable
development in housing construction and renovation and in other
selected areas of urban planning
- To develop a research partnership toward capacity building,
specifically focused on improved decision-making and
implementation
Results/Findings Key findings
of three subprojects include:
- The subproject “Developing Sustainable Urban Transportation
Systems and Policies” identified urban transportation policies,
technologies, and strategies to cope with the increasing traffic
congestion.
- The subproject: “Sustainable Water Environmental Resource
Management” addressed pollution control and sustainable management
of water resources.
- The subproject: "Improvement of the Residential Environment in
Zhu Village" aimed to develop a model for sustainable urban
renewal in older villages that have become a part of Guangzhou
metropolitan area.
Phase III: Future Cities -
Guangzhou: A Partnership for Sustainable Urban and Regional
Development in the Pearl River Delta
(2002)
Goals/Objectives Building on the cooperation
and research developed to date, this project focuses on outreach and
multi-disciplinary, cross-cultural and trans-disciplinary
cooperation. Three subprojects focus on various administrative
levels (regional, district, residential areas) within the Guangzhou
region.
- The "Sustainable Regional Transportation" subproject, headed
by MIT, examines the transportation issues faced by the city of
Guangzhou and the Pearl River Delta region.
- The "Integrated Water Management: Panyu Water management",
headed by UT, focuses on the Panyu district, which is a large
residential and commercial area that has recently become part of
the Guangzhou municipal territory.
- The "Urban Renewal: A model for Sustainable Village Renewal"
subproject, headed by ETH with the University of Hong Kong,
explores an alternative approach to urban renewal, using the Zhu
village as a case study.
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