As urbanization continues to accelerate, the need for cities to become more productive, efficient, and sustainable has never been greater. Innovative approaches and technologies are essential to address challenges such as resource management, transportation, and quality of life.
Here are five elements that cities need to embrace for a more sustainable future:
Electrify everything
The most significant source of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere is the burning of fossil fuels. Thankfully, energy sources feeding into the electric grid are increasingly transitioning to cleaner forms of energy production, including photovoltaic solar, wind, hydroelectric, and geothermal. Therefore, municipal policies and business efforts to transition transportation and the built environment to a clean electricity powered system will be critical.
Supporting these individual, targeted efforts by broader investments in clean energy production, the retirement of fossil fuel plants, and the development of a modern grid to supply all clean electricity will also be key.
Don’t waste waste
The current “Make/Use/Waste” model is the status quo, but regarding our economy and culture of consumption, it’s inherently limited and reflects our pitfalls as a community in assigning value to the outputs of our lives. Our means of defining what constitutes waste are typically not designed to drive behaviors toward reducing it. This includes our choices about the materials we utilize, such as purchasing cheap, throwaway, single-use items that degrade into microplastics or produce potent greenhouse gases in landfills. This also includes how we sort, collect, treat, and ideally reduce and repurpose waste.
Sustainable from the ground up
We are at a pivotal moment in our sustainability journey as there are numerous options and opportunities to rethink how we design, build, and use everything around us. New developments can support the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and increase resilience against an increasingly volatile climate.
Some municipalities have already begun to prohibit developers from installing fossil-fuel-powered equipment in new builds, and many businesses have begun investing in clean energy production either at their sites or through a virtual power purchase agreement. Suppliers are also developing lower impact options, such as carbon-sequestering concrete.
Don’t throw out the old for the sake of the new
Retrofitting existing sites can greatly improve the efficiency of lighting, heating, and cooling. These improvements hasten the transition away from burning fossil fuels and toward electrification of the built environment to support overall business and domestic activity.
Local municipal policies can incentivize site owners and operators to invest in energy audits. These audits help identify wasted heat and energy while highlighting opportunities for improved insulation, energy-efficient lighting, and the replacement of fossil-fueled heating with electrically powered high-efficiency heat pumps.
Local community considerations
When initiating major changes or decisions around sustainable practices, it’s crucial to begin with a genuine desire to engage and understand the community. This approach not only aids in understanding the most widespread and significant needs and concerns of the community but also greatly increases the likelihood of gaining buy-in.
Whether you’re looking at health, education, safety, commerce, environmental, or transportation, it is essential to understand what all stakeholders deem important and involve them in the process to support long-term solutions to complex, intersecting challenges.
This blog is an excerpt from an interview with Ryan Lynch and was originally published as an article on Medium under the title “Cities of the Future: Ryan Lynch of BSI On How to Create Cities That Are More Productive, Efficient and Sustainable.” Read the full blog for more insights on building sustainable cities.
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