ISSUE 5 • June 2014 Lee Hsien Loong Greg Clark Singapore

Chua BengHuat Isher JudgeAhluwalia OPINION Suzhou CITY FOCUS Peter Lacy&YnsedeBoer Jeremy Bentham & ElyssaLudher Pablo Vaggione ESS Medellín Yokohama Singapore CASE STUDY Greg Clark Lee HsienLoong INTERVIEW

AY ISSUE 5 • June 2014

A biannualmagazine published by Advisory Panel Image Credits Dr Liu Thai Ker (Chairman) Accenture: 85, 88, 90 Chairman Agencia de Cooperación e Inversión de Medellín y el Área Centre for Liveable Cities Metropolitana: 62 (below), 64, 65, 66 Dr Isher Judge Ahluwalia Bilbao International, Bilbao Ekintza: 68-69 bram_souffreau: 72 (below) CC by-SA 2.0 Chairperson, Board of Governors Cabinet Office: 26 CC by-NC-ND 2.0; edited, 30-31 Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations Carlos Andres Mesa Giraldo: 74 CC by 2.0 Bindu N. Lohani Chua Beng Huat: 105 Vice-President for Knowledge Management and Sustainable Development City of Yokohama: 47, 48 Asian Development Bank Daniel Latorre: 62 (above) CC by 2.0 Darren Chan – www.flickr.com/thesingaporeidler: 34-35 Yumiko Noda Department of Publicity of Suzhou Industrial Park: 70 (above), Partner and Head of PPP, Infrastructure & Government, Asia-Pacific 92-93 PricewaterhouseCoopers Diane Griffiths: 28 CC by 2.0 Tan Gee Paw Gui Hua (归华): 98 Chairman Iris Taani, SUN Development, VPUU: 72 (above) PUB, Singapore’s National Water Agency Isher Judge Ahluwalia: 100 jacksim.asia: 19, 23 Prof Marilyn Jordan Taylor Jim Moran: 29 CC by-NC-ND 2.0 Dean of the School of Design Marcin Wichary: 71 CC by 2.0 University of Pennsylvania Milton Correa: 70 (below) CC by 2.0 Ministry of Communications and Information: 21 Editorial Team Omar Uran: 60-61 CC by 2.0; edited Dinesh Naidu Phil Long: 31 CC by 2.0 Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong: 20 Joanna Yong Robert Huffstutter: 42-43 CC by 2.0; edited Nicole Chew Shell International BV: 77, 78, 79 Source: Lianhe Zaobao © Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Design Consultant Reproduced with permission: 24 Green House Design + Communications Pte Ltd Suzhou City Park Management: 95 Taku: 73 CC by-NC-ND 2.0 Editorial Consultant ume-y: 46 (below) CC by 2.0; edited University of Sheffield AMRC: 32 Tuber Productions Pte Ltd Urban Redevelopment Authority: 36, 38, 39, 40 Waterways Watch Society: 52-53, 54, 56, 57, 58 Advertisement Sales Ye Jun (叶军): 94 MultiNine Corporation Pte Ltd Yokohama Convention & Visitors Bureau: 46 (above) Advertisement sales enquiries: Trevor Teh Yoshikazu Takada: 44 CC by 2.0 T +65 6281 8888 E [email protected] Yu Da Bo (郁大波): 96, 97

CC by 2.0 is a biannual magazine published by the http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode Centre for Liveable Cities. CC by-SA 2.0 E-version: www.clc.gov.sg/Publications/urbansolutions.htm http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/legalcode CC by-NC-ND 2.0 Set up in 2008 by Singapore Ministry of National Development (MND) and http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/legalcode the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, the Centre for Liveable Cities (CLC) has as its mission “to distil, create and share knowledge on Some original images have been edited for page layout liveable and sustainable cities”. CLC’s work spans three main areas – purposes. Every effort has been made to trace the copyright Research, Capability Development, and Promotions. Though these activities, holders. The publisher will correct any omission of due CLC hopes to provide urban leaders and practitioners with the knowledge acknowledgement in the online version, and in any and support needed to make our cities better. www.clc.org.sg subsequent printing.

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Cover: Historic canal in Suzhou, recipient of the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize 2014. Opinions expressed in URBAN SOLUTIONS do not necessarily Photo courtesy of Pingjiang Historic District Preservation & Restoration Co., Ltd. represent the views of CLC. While the publisher has taken reasonable care in compiling the magazine, it shall not be URBAN SOLUTIONS welcomes feedback from readers. liable for any omission, error or inaccuracy.

Contact Dinesh Naidu T +65 6645 9574 E [email protected] 45 Maxwell Road #07-01, The URA Centre, Singapore 069118 Contents

From the Executive Director 16

INTERVIEW Lee Hsien Loong 18 Greg Clark 26

CASE STUDY Draft Master Plan 2013 34 SINGAPORE Minato Mirai 21 42 YOKOHAMA

42 Contents

CASE STUDY Waterways Watch Society 52 SINGAPORE A Better City Through Mobility 60 MEDELLÍN

ESSAY What Lies Behind Successful, Liveable Cities 68 PABLO VAGGIONE & ELYSSA LUDHER Why Compact Cities are the Future 76 JEREMY BENTHAM

68 Contents

ESSAY The Seven Steps to Sustainability 84 PETER LACY & YNSE DE BOER

CITY FOCUS Suzhou 92

OPINION Viewpoint: The Case for “Shared Solutions” 100 ISHER JUDGE AHLUWALIA Counterpoint: The Limits to “Shared Solutions” 104 CHUA BENG HUAT

100 From theExecutive Director

This special issue of focuses on the Compact-Accenture CEO Study WORLD CITIES SUMMIT in June A highlight of the Summit is on Sustainability, and propose 2014 and its theme “Liveable the LEE KUAN YEW WORLD a seven-step roadmap for and Sustainable Cities: Common CITY PRIZE, and our City Focus effective action. Challenges, Shared Solutions”. section spotlights this year’s We explore major challenges that laureate, the beautiful city Finally, our Opinion section today’s cities face, and proven of Suzhou. The two Special interrogates the Summit’s theme solutions from around the world. Mention cities – Yokohama and of “shared solutions”. Indian We also ask how the public, Medellín – are also profiled in urban expert Dr Isher Ahluwalia, private and people sectors, as well our Case Study section, alongside who is a Summit speaker and as different cities, can learn from Singapore studies that showcase a recent CLC Visiting Fellow, and collaborate with each other. collaboration within and across persuasively makes the case that the public and people sectors. it is both possible and important In our Interview with Singapore’s for cities to share and learn from Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, An Essay by Centre for Liveable each other. Eminent Singaporean the Opening Ceremony Guest Cities (CLC) researchers, sociologist Professor Chua Beng of Honour, learn what liveability analysing how cities overcome Huat then provides a provocative means personally to him, and their challenges to achieve and necessary counterpoint – what he thinks Singapore can advances in liveability, is adapted highlighting the serious, and learn from others. In another from their chapter in a new occasionally comic, limits to Interview, UK Minister of State book on the CLC Liveability such sharing. for Cities and the Constitution Framework that we will launch and Summit plenary speaker at the Summit. Elsewhere, Whatever your geographical, Greg Clark calls for cities to “lead plenary speaker Jeremy Bentham organisational or ideological from the front”, and explains how draws on Shell’s research with background, we welcome all Britain is pioneering “City Deals” CLC and others to advocate of you in the business of urban to enable this. resource-efficient compact cities, planning, development and and how dynamic governance governance to join us – at the can enable their development. WORLD CITIES SUMMIT or here in In another Essay, Peter Lacy – as we learn and Ynse de Boer reveal urgent from, and inspire, each other to findings from the UN Global keep doing better.

Khoo Teng Chye Executive Director Centre for Liveable Cities “You must be able to play well — which means a green environment, and opportunities for leisure, culture, the human spirit. “

Lee Singapore Hsien Loong FULFILLING THE HUMAN SPIRIT

n this interview on 3 April 2014 with Executive Director Khoo Teng Chye and I Koh Buck Song of the Centre for Liveable Cities, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong gives his take on urban liveability and describes his hopes for his country 100 years ahead. He also reveals which other cities he looks to, and what tips Singapore might offer on sustaining a liveable city that meets everyday needs while also fulﬁlling the human spirit.

Of all the many aspects of liveability, which are the ones You must be able to play really close to your heart? well – which means a A liveable city is a place where green environment, and people can live, work and play, and opportunities for leisure, fulﬁl the human spirit. You want to be able to live well – good homes, culture, the human spirit. good neighbourhoods, orderly and safe streets and environment. You must be able to work well – there must be jobs, opportunities, economic growth. You must be able to play well – which means a green environment, and opportunities for leisure, culture, the human spirit. To bring them all together, you must have the governance to make the “big software” work, to pull it all together so that when people come to this place, they say: “Yes, I want to be here.” “You must be able to play well — which means a green environment, and opportunities for leisure, culture, the human spirit. “

19 interview June 2014 June 2014 • • ISSUE 5 ISSUE 5

Mr Lee, during his interview at the Istana. Does the fact that Singapore has a dense urban environment as well as lots of greenery give you a different perspective on the major concerns in the world today on enhancing the liveability of cities? Our problems are easier because we are a city in a country, and the country is surrounded by water. It’s a controlled environment. If we decide to do something, we can make it happen in all of Singapore. The other side of it is that in Singapore, the city is what we have. You can go off on weekends somewhere else, but it’s some other country already. That makes it more important for us than other 01 countries that we make Singapore a liveable city.

Is there a personal anecdote, What are the adjustments 01 Mr and Mrs Lee something that really struck dancing with in governance which Singapore members of the you in your early life or needs to make to meet future Country Line career, that comes close to challenges? Dance Association the heart of liveability? Singapore, whom Population is a long-term issue. they encountered I often spend my holidays in while walking But we must also tackle more around Marina Bay Singapore, walking around immediate issues. People need in December 2013. Marina Bay, our nature reserves, housing, public transport, utilities 02 Mr Lee at the MacRitchie Park, and I’ll often working well, jobs, and to have their National Museum find something new, a corner economic needs seen to. If you plan of Singapore, during Singapore of Singapore I haven’t been. in isolation, population goes one HeritageFest 2013. I particularly like the park way and your infrastructure goes connectors, which we are still another way, you’ll have a problem. building. My wife and I once Even if you plan together, it’s walked all the way down the not easy because of very different Kallang River from Bishan- timescales. Population or economic Ang Mo Kio Park to Marina Bay. trends can go up and down very It’s quite a long walk but very quickly. Foreign workers can come interesting. It’s urban, but at the and leave. To build a new city, same time, we have the greenery one needs 20–30 years to reclaim and water. I don’t think many the land, and you want to create cities can contrive that. possibilities so that your successors 21 interview will have choices. That means you Are the softer aspects need very competent people, and of liveability becoming a lot of information – “big data” – more important? and you must be able to pull it all Yes, certainly. It is a continuing together to make sense of the data trade-off because you can’t live in and to respond to it, in real time a museum, frozen in time. You or strategically over the long term. want pieces of the past preserved, upgraded or adapted to new uses What is your vision and so you can look at them and say: We want dream for Singapore, say, “It’s the same, yet different.” We’re to keep in 100 years into the future? doing that to the City Hall and the How would you describe Singapore a former Supreme Court building – Singapore at that time? putting them to a new use, turning good mix of You cannot imagine what the them into the National Gallery. The history, of world will be like 100 years from National Museum [of Singapore] is the past and now. I hope Singapore will still be restored very beautifully in front. If a country which is prospering, at you go behind, you see the modern present. peace with its neighbours, modern extension integrated harmoniously and yet maintaining a history of into the old building. We can’t fix where it came from. A historic everything in place, and we can’t city must have many layers. If it say that no tree once grown will is all built at once, like some of ever be cut down, but we want to the synthetic planned capital cities, keep in Singapore a good mix of it will lack that richness and history, of the past and present. depth. But if it grows over the years – you have Chinatown, pre-war flats from the Singapore 02 Improvement Trust period, Housing & Development Board new towns and public buildings reflecting different periods in history – I think that is a city you can explore and savour, and which will hold many memories for the population. June 2014 • ISSUE 5 What is your take on a case like redeveloping the Bukit Brown Cemetery? Is it a sacrifice we have to make along the way? The Bukit Brown NGOs [non- governmental organisations] are pressing for preservation, and I respect their point of view, but Are there cities around the I think in Singapore, we have to world that you look to? make choices. We’ve done it in Bishan, which used to be a large I think that cities like New cemetery, and today we have a very York, even Seoul, their city vibrant town. Even along Orchard management is in many respects Road – if you’re old enough, you more advanced than ours. When remember that we used to have Michael Bloomberg was Mayor of Ngee Ann Kongsi graves. They’re New York, he made an enormous When people all gone now. Would we have been effort to upgrade the city services, better off if we had kept all those making sure the maintenance was see a hole in as cemeteries, and then squeezed well done, the schools all up to the road…there our city into little plots of land scratch, and the neighbourhoods should be an in between? I don’t think so. It’s safe; and monitoring the city with painful; we have to adjust, to give a network of sensors and cameras, app that lets something up. with information coming in so you them just upload know if there is a flood, an accident Today, you can keep a significant or fire, what the status is, so you the information part of such history in virtual form can react. by smartphone. – you can record all the graves, have a 3-D computer model, a We don’t have a similar city control virtual tour. We should also make room in Singapore, and we can do the effort so that some significant a lot better. Video cameras today bits are preserved and integrated are so cheap, you can connect them into the new development so people up easily via the Internet, you’ve know what was there before. I think got 4G everywhere. We should be that’s necessary. It’s important to able to put them all over, in public have young people learn something places, so when something happens about their own history. we don’t have to scramble. In Little India, when the riot took place last year, we didn’t have enough cameras, and we were looking on YouTube and the Internet to see what people had posted. 23 interview When people see a hole in the road, of the population out so it’s not a light not working, an accident, so crowded; they’ve cleaned up there should be an app that lets the river that surrounded the them upload the information by city, so now you can sail on it. smartphone. Someone will sift They’ve cleared up the slums, through all this information, and and the behaviour of the people react promptly to fix the problem. has changed. Now you’ve got If you can harness the population Starbucks-type places. People in this way, you get a much better dress up and go out, and there response and the population will are many cultural amenities. feel much more engaged. They built a new cultural centre outside the city on Jinji Lake, in Is there a top-of-mind the Suzhou Industrial Park. It’s example for you from other a remarkable transformation. cities on softer aspects such as heritage? I think Singapore helped to start it moving, because we built the Suzhou has become a [UNESCO] Industrial Park, and that got World Heritage Site; they are this investments in and gave them some year’s winner of the LEE KUAN YEW revenues. Also, it opened a window WORLD CITY PRIZE. I have visited 01 Mr Lee (right) for them on the world. The degree Suzhou over the last 20 years and with CLC Executive to which the Suzhou population Director Khoo Teng seen the great changes in the city. now is connected to the world Chye at the They have systematically upgraded was unimaginable 20 years ago. their city. They’ve moved some interview. They know what’s happening; they travel.

01 June 2014 • ISSUE 5 When people from around the world ask you what tips they can pick up from Singapore, what do you tell them? I tell them I’m just solving my own problems in Singapore. It may be interesting to you; come take a look. If you think it’s relevant, we are happy to share the knowledge because there are no secrets in these matters. That’s what we did in Suzhou. We went, we tried to build an industrial park that also included housing, infrastructure, urban development, commercial areas, as well as industrial estates, which would bring in investments. It 01 was not that we were teaching a class and disciples took notes. This was a model which was working, What do you think is the and other ofﬁcials, mayors, party biggest challenge to enhancing 01 Mr Lee visiting the China- Singapore Suzhou Industrial secretaries came from all over liveability in the future? Park in September 2010. China. They took a close look, took We are, in Singapore, just a city inspiration, went back to their own in one country. And the country cities and provinces, and now there is the city. We have to keep are industrial parks all over China. this city up there, at the same I think they all picked up something standard as the great cities in the from what they saw in Suzhou. world. That means you have to We are happy keep on maintaining a very high standard of performance – not to share the just the government, but also the knowledge… population; to be able to work That’s what we together and make the system work. Then you can raise did in Suzhou. standards gradually, and the level will continually improve, year by year, step by step. Park Won-Soon was elected in October 2011 as the 35th Mayor of Seoul, South Korea.

UK Minister of State for Cabinet Ofﬁce (Cities and Constitution), Greg Clark. United Kingdom Greg Clark 27 DEVOLUTION IS THE SOLUTION interview

he Rt Hon Greg Clark MP has been the United Kingdom’s Minister of State for T Cabinet Office (Cities and Constitution) since October 2013, and the Conservative Member of Parliament for Royal Tunbridge Wells since 2005. Before he became MP, he was Director of Policy for the Conservative Party. Mr Clark was born in Middlesbrough and studied economics at What are the two or three Cambridge before getting his PhD from the most pressing challenges facing London School of Economics. In this interview the world’s cities today? with , he talks about the UK Given the economic crisis that the government’s process of decentralisation to give world is still recovering from, I cities more autonomy to shape their future. think the first challenge has to be the economy. The battle for growth – for each country’s economic future – will be won or lost in cities. One of the ways in which cities can offer a comparative advantage is in the ability to cope with complexity. According to the Harvard economist Ricardo Hausmann, “The difference in wealth and income between nations is closely related to the ability of firms to take on complex tasks.” Hausmann notes that in America, the average employee collaborates in some way with 100 co-workers while in India, the equivalent figure is just four. Cities are engines of complexity: June 2014 June 2014

their raison d’être is to facilitate • • human interaction to a degree that would not be possible anywhere ISSUE 5 ISSUE 5 Cities are engines of complexity: These challenges call for leadership. Nineteenth-century Britain was the birthplace of the modern city, with the rise of great leaders like Joseph Chamberlain in Birmingham charting a course for his city and not waiting on national government to provide the answer. We need to rediscover that spirit, where cities, in Britain and elsewhere, lead from the front, harnessing their dynamism and providing stable direction in the face of change. The city is one of the rising forces of the 21st century. I want all our cities to be thriving places, living up to their full economic potential, matching growth with greener ways of living and doing business. When our cities do well, our countries do well.

01 What is the strategic value else. A city that succeeds will of the WORLD CITIES SUMMIT have a faster exchange of money, in addressing such challenges? information, ideas and all the The role of policymakers is to other interactions that fuel a civic provide the best possible conditions dynamism. for those who innovate – the The second challenge has to be entrepreneurs, artists, scientists and sustainability – and not just in the technicians – to create new products environmental sense. It’s about and generate employment for all. preparing for and dealing with For cities, the highest priority must change: accommodating rising be to attract these innovators – to populations; resilience in the face become the place where the most of events; the globalisation of supply mobile and dynamic people in the chains and that role of place in world choose to live and work. In that system. This has been good doing so, the challenges facing our for some cities – especially centres cities is to combine their two great of global trade, but bad for others advantages: complexity and 01 A memorial plaque – particularly centres of industries proximity. Doing this successfully commemorating where competitive advantage has surely requires an in-depth Birmingham Mayor knowledge of the people and places Joseph Chamberlain’s moved elsewhere. All of these critical leadership. can be a shock to urban residents, each city brings together. The Summit provides a good platform to 02 Cities like Manchester who have seen their lives become have had to adjust as more uncertain. learn from one of the best at this – industries have moved elsewhere. 29 interview

Singapore – while also being able to share and learn from the experience of other cities. Cities are not islands; they function within national and, indeed, international systems of cities. At home I am the sponsor of the Future of Cities project that is taking a long look at these dynamics to see where UK cities will be in 25 and 50 years. The Summit will allow cities in Britain and elsewhere to get a sense of their place in the global system – what they can contribute and where they ﬁt in. The Summit will allow cities to make their own linkages, allowing them to make their own responses to shared challenges. There is also the issue of proﬁle – getting people everywhere to know where you are, who you are and what you stand for. The Summit is one for global city leaders – civic champions who have made a mark in and beyond their place – as well as for cities to stand up and share with others their solutions and successes. Cities can be very 02 competitive with each other. In Britain, the national government is granting more autonomy to local leaders to develop their cities. Which For cities, the highest priority areas of development do you must be to…become the place think city leaders should take where the most mobile and over, and why? dynamic people in the world The answer to that will depend on the place and the context. In Britain choose to live and work.

over the past couple of years, we have June 2014 launched a series of “City Deals” • – city-led devolution initiatives. ISSUE 5 In many ways, this turns the established order on its head, but this is as it should be. To attract To attract entrepreneurs to our entrepreneurs to our cities, city leaders must themselves be cities, city leaders must themselves entrepreneurial, acting proactively be entrepreneurial…to constantly to constantly improve the liveability improve the liveability and and workability of their communities. They must come, not as supplicants workability of their communities. as in the past, but as equal participants in an open and This is why we are not being constructive deal-making process. prescriptive on what powers or areas Many of our cities have struggled of development cities should take with long-term challenges, both over; it is up to them. social and economic. After the long, What can the UK government slow decline of the mid-20th do to give greater autonomy to century, many of England’s cities local cities? have begun to take real steps forward, of their own accord. Having inherited the legacy of They’re recognising that instead of decades of centralisation, the UK only developing and improving government has had to drive the downtown city centres, they need to process of decentralisation from recognise how cities really work by the centre. By deﬁnition, only observing the ﬂow of people, jobs, those that have power can give ideas and income between the it away. But with the progressive centre (or centres) and the periphery. empowerment of our communities, Forward-thinking leaders are we need to think about already facing up to the urban decentralisation in a very different challenge, making their cities places way. In particular, cities should where people want to live, work, have an ever bigger part to play shop and play. in shaping the process of change.

01 31 interview

City leaders should be able to put forward their own proposals, and they have to develop for themselves the talent and capacity to take those proposals forward. It goes back to what I said earlier about leadership – leadership counts. Nations, corporations, teams, schools, cities – all can be well led or poorly led. And in each case it makes a big difference whether they are or not. In helping our cities to flourish, it seems to me we should do what we can to 02 improve the rewards to strong leadership; this does not guarantee success – but it helps. Strong, Could you give one or two visible, accountable leadership is examples of how the national key; those leaders need to be able government has worked with to set a vision for their city – one city leaders to harness their cities’ potential? that is distinctive. It’s self-evident Strong, visible, to us that what’s good for Liverpool Manchester – home to both the isn’t necessarily good for Glasgow, world’s first commercial railway accountable and we have to recognise those and the first canal, essential leadership is key; differences. Each city has different elements in the movement of goods those leaders strengths and weaknesses, and and people – has pioneered a huge development strategies should be step forward in our devolution need to be able tailored according to their strengths. agenda. At the heart of this deal to set a vision is a £1.2 billion (US$2 billion) for their city… revolving Infrastructure Fund to drive growth, coupled with a formula that allows the city to “earn back” a portion of the increased tax revenue generated from that growth. This will enable the city to shape its own future, 01 Mr Clark and UK Prime with an innovative approach to Minister David Cameron economic investment that has meeting with Local transformed the city’s incentive Enterprise Partnership

Chairs in Manchester. June 2014

to grow. • 02 Manchester’s “City Deal” involves innovative financing for urban infrastructure. ISSUE 5 The Future of Singapore: World’s Smartest City 1. 2. Singapore’s objective is clear. It aspires to be—and in many ways already is—the smartest, most innovative and sustainable city on the planet. Singapore is also one 01 of the world’s safest urban environments, Singapore 2014 Sheffield – the city of steel – and it intends to stay that way. is taking forward a new approach to skills, allowing city officials to Anticipating new safety and op- 3. 4. tailor provision to the needs of the erational challenges, Singapore is city rather than to what people needs of key sectors. Sheffield City turning its attention to enhanced hundreds of miles away in the Region’s Skills for Growth and situational awareness, and capi- capital specify as the needs of the Employment Partnership enables talizing on the prevalence of sen- nation. They created a local skills business leaders, skills providers sors and their interconnectivity funding model, addressing local and local authorities to oversee skills gaps in key growth sectors the delivery of adult training and commonly known as the Internet such as advanced manufacturing. of Things. apprenticeship for employees in CityMIND delivers real-time situational The city will use a pooled budget the region. These are freedoms awareness to relevant government agencies to invest in skills and to incentivise and flexibilities that cities have Steadily since its independence, colleges and providers to respond been crying out for a generation the government of Singapore has 5. 6. quickly and flexibly to emerging or more, at long last within their actualized ambitious plans to its citizens, critical assets and grasp. I believe we have enabled - sensors and citizens’ smart phones. cities such as these to realise their reduce traffic and human conges infrastructure, all while improving Applying advanced analytics, tion, safeguard vital installations potential by letting them articulate - and improve quality of life for operational efficiency. CityMIND delivers real-time situ their own needs and aspirations, ational information to all relevant and putting power in their hands. its citizens. Dubbed CityMIND, the solution government agencies, alerting Now it has partnered with the connects and integrates data them to unusual behaviors and consortium of AGT International, from a range of sources, including events, and arming them with the behavioral recognition sensors, 01 Sheffield’s Skills for Hitachi and O’Connor’s to test- necessary information to take swift Growth and Employment bed a multi-agency, intelligent an- social media intelligence (WEBINT), action in response to a multitude of Partnership facilitates adult training and alytics solution that will enhance urban unmanned aerial vehicles incidents and daily occurrences apprenticeships. Singapore’s ability to protect (UUAVs), smart environmental typical of a complex city.

www.agtinternational.com www.oconnors.wearnes.com www.hitachi.com Draft Master Plan 2013 Singapore ENVISIONING A GREAT CITY

he Draft Master Plan 2013 is Singapore’s latest blueprint for T development over the next 10 – 15 years. Urban Redevelopment Authority Chief Planner Lim Eng Hwee explains it is the result of close inter-agency collaboration to support a vibrant economy and create a green, healthy and connected city for its residents.

01 With population growth, Singapore planners face new challenges, like strains on urban infrastructure. Draft 35 Master Plan case study

The Challenge 2013 In January 2013, the Singapore government released its White Paper on Population, highlighting ENVISIONING the challenge of a shrinking and ageing resident population and A GREAT CITY the need to supplement it in order to sustain reasonable economic growth. Accompanying this White Paper was the Land Use Plan, which outlined broad strategies to support a population scenario of up to 6.9 million. Some of these strategies – development of our Now there are new significant land reserves, land reclamation challenges, including a diminishing and redevelopment of low-intensity land bank, rapid urbanisation land uses – address enduring and intensification, strain on our challenges such as land scarcity public transport system and other and growing land demand. infrastructure, and the public’s increasing desire to have a say in how we develop our future. For planners, these new challenges require innovative urban solutions that provide for a quality living environment while retaining Singapore’s unique social fabric and cultural roots. June 2014 June 2014 • • ISSUE 5 ISSUE 5

01 01

The Solution With the last Master Plan review envisioned the DMP13 as people- 01 An artist’s impression centric and relevant to the everyday of high-density yet undertaken in 2008, it was highly liveable and imperative that the latest Master concerns of residents. While the car-reduced housing Plan Review responded to the plan caters for the needs over the in Marina South. potential demographic challenges next 10-15 years, the exhibition faced going forward. Building on highlighted development plans over the strategies of the Land Use the next ﬁve years. The Master Plan, the Urban Redevelopment Plan focused our strategies in six Authority (URA) released the Draft key areas: Housing, Economy, Master Plan 2013 (DMP13) last Transport, Recreation, Identity year with the aim of striking a good and Public Spaces. balance in supporting growth while New housing areas will be opened continuing to improve the lives of up. The public can expect a variety residents and future generations. of living options, including homes As a statutory land use plan, the closer to nature (Bidadari), more Master Plan is reviewed every ﬁve waterfront precincts (Punggol years to accommodate changing Matilda), and even new car-reduced needs and demand. It is also an housing areas (Kampong Bugis, important strategic platform for the Marina South). Towns will also coordination of the work of our be more walkable, with amenities development agencies to ensure close to homes and more one-stop that the necessary infrastructure will community hubs. Public spaces will be provided to adequately support also double-up as social areas to existing and new developments. facilitate community bonding and ageing-in-place. As older towns On 20 November 2013, the URA rejuvenate, their unique heritage exhibited the DMP13 for public elements will be retained. feedback. Themed “Our Future, Our Home”, the exhibition 01

Sufficient land has been safeguarded Access to recreation and greenery to grow the economy while bringing is an important aspect of a quality jobs closer to home. While the life. More parks will be introduced Central Business District will near homes, including a continuous continue to be the heart of 25-kilometre Green Corridor along Singapore’s financial sector, new the former railway land, and a regional employment centres and 150-kilometre linear park that growth areas (e.g., the North Coast loops along the coast round the Innovation Corridor) are strategically island. More waterways will be distributed islandwide as part of an progressively opened up for public overall decentralisation strategy to enjoyment, and more nature areas ease traffic flows into the city centre. (Jalan Gemala, Beting Bronok and Pulau Unum) have been In public transport, more integrated identified to safeguard Singapore’s transport hubs for seamless transfers biodiversity. New and upgrading and an extended network of covered of town and regional sports centres linkways have been planned to have been planned for by 2030, enhance the comfort and convenience while more school sports facilities of commute. The rail network is will be opened up for public use. also set to double. In addition, the National Cycling Plan aims to grow As Singapore develops, familiar the cycling route network, improve surroundings and landmarks have the cycling infrastructure to further become markers of identity for enhance mobility and encourage an residents and need to be conserved. active lifestyle. More than 70 buildings will be conserved under the DMP13, 39 case study

02 adding to the over 7,100 buildings stakeholders and interest groups to 01 Recreation and greenery already protected. Three new get early feedback and buy-in from improve liveability and mitigate urban stress. Identity Nodes – Holland Village, the local community on some of the 02 An artist’s impression Jalan Kayu and Serangoon Garden key development proposals. of a more pedestrian- – have been recognised. In addition, For sensitive areas, plans were friendly Queen Street new heritage trails in various estates in the Civic District. presented in greater detail with will be developed by 2014, including 03 Early feedback and care taken to explain the planning a heritage walk as part of the future support were sought approach to mitigate potential from interest groups like Bidadari Estate. concerns. We also developed this cycling focus group. Finally, more public spaces will 26 Planning Area Brochures for be set aside for community spaces towns with residential areas. These that would help create new shared brochures gave residents a more memories. Hence the URA intimate understanding of how the launched “PubliCity”, an initiative DMP13 strategies would translate that involves the community to into immediate development plans celebrate meaningful public spaces at the local level. and enlivens public spaces through 03 good design and programmes. For instance, the rejuvenation of the Civic District will result in a more pedestrian-friendly precinct with elegant street furniture and extensive public spaces. A calibrated communications plan was adopted for the DMP13.

Together with relevant partner June 2014 agencies, extensive public • engagement sessions were held

with Members of Parliament, key ISSUE 5 The Outcome The DMP13 exhibition was well received by both the public and private sectors. Nearly 71,000 visited the exhibition with about 1,500 surveys completed, most of By 2030, at least eight in 10 which were complimentary about households will be within a the plan and its presentation. The 10-minute walk to an MRT station dedicated DMP13 website was also because of the doubling of the rail popular with some 158,000 visits network, and more than 90% of and about 611,000 page views. households will live within 400 Lim Eng Hwee is About 20,000 copies of the Planning metres of a park because of more Chief Planner and parkland and enhanced accessibility Area Brochures were downloaded. Deputy Chief Executive The public submitted about 400 to green spaces. We would be able Ofﬁcer of the URA. written suggestions. All the feedback to support future growth yet He has extensive received were studied carefully for maintain a good quality of experience in urban reﬁnement of the DMP13 before it living environment. planning, urban design, was to be gazetted by mid-2014. and implementation of These outcomes would only be land use policies and Building on this strong support and possible with close collaboration development initiatives. interest, the URA and other agencies between public agencies and the Mr Lim graduated with will now aim to roll out the following community to make Singapore a a Bachelor of Planning projected tangible outcomes. great city to live, work and play in. from the University of Auckland in 1989 and a Master in Public Administration from Harvard University in 1997.

01 Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and grassroots activists at the exhibition; DMP13 implementation builds on support and feedback received at such 01 engagement platforms. 41 June 2014 • ISSUE 5 Minato Mirai 21 REVITALISING THE CITY

okohama’s liveability, competitiveness and identity declined historically as it became an Y extension of Tokyo and waterfront industries divided, polluted and congested the city-centre. Mayor Fumiko Hayashi explains how “Minato Mirai 21” revitalised the area, resulting in Yokohama receiving a LEE KUAN YEW WORLD CITY PRIZE Special Mention in 2014.

01 Yokohama’s industrial waterfront, 1962. 43

Yokohama, Japan case studycase study case studycase

The Challenge During the 1950s and ’60s, when Tokyo experienced a strong inflow of population, neighbouring Yokohama became a target of its metropolitan expansion. The city became an extension of Tokyo, functioning as its commuter town and industrial zone. Consequently, pollution worsened, greenery and farmlands diminished in size and importance, and the city fragmented, losing its identity. This trend continued throughout 01 the 1970s. Even as the city grew, its urban centre remained weak and uncompetitive, while its suburban areas became less liveable. Yokohama’s Central Business District (CBD) had its own issues. The Coastal Zone of the CBD was occupied by a shipyard and industries, which prohibited public access to the waterfront. The traditional business districts of Kannai and Kangai and the active transportation hub of Yokohama Station were divided into two segregated areas. Worsening the situation was the large volume of traffic going through the CBD to the port. A multi-objective solution was required to enhance the business function of the CBD, reunite the two districts to create new business opportunities, revitalise the city, and mitigate traffic congestion and pollution. June 2014 June 2014 • • ISSUE 5 ISSUE 5 The Solution The project “Minato Mirai 21 helped in realising the development (MM21)”, which means “Future plan for this coastal city centre. Port for the 21st Century”, Designed as an integrated package commenced in 1983 to redevelop of projects, MM21 was implemented 186 hectares (1.86 square with full coordination between the kilometres) of waterfront and city’s stakeholders. Infrastructure reclaim 74 hectares (0.74 square and public facilities were kilometres) of land. In redeveloping constructed mainly by the public this area, the aim was to establish sector. Speciﬁc project activities a business, commercial and cultural included the following: hub for the city. A rejuvenation of the waterfront would also restore Transportation and Yokohama’s cultural identity. A Infrastructure Development shipyard, which used to divide The expressway which had been Yokohama’s two main business originally planned by the central districts, was relocated to the government as an elevated structure Kanazawa reclamation area along was built underground to avoid the coast of Yokohama City. This creating an urban blight in the 01 People enjoying Red controversial yet historic decision to Brick Warehouse landscape. In addition, a new relocate the shipyard signiﬁcantly park, with MM21 urban railway line was constructed skyline behind. to connect MM21 with other areas in the city and with the Tokyo Metropolitan Area.

Heritage, Greenery and Urban Design The Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse, which, in 2010, was the ﬁrst in Japan to receive the UNESCO Asia-Paciﬁc Heritage Award of Distinction; the Dockyard Garden, which is the oldest commercial dockyard in the country; and the training ship Nippon Maru, which was launched in 1930, are three of the historic monuments at MM21, serving as witnesses to the city’s glorious past.

01 01

In addition, a pedestrian network, comprising streets, malls, parks and waterways, was developed to create a safe and pleasant space for pedestrians. Efforts at urban design were made as well, with the creation of MM21’s skyline, unification of colours for structures, and restrictions on advertisements. Living Environment Environmentally friendly housing with a good living environment was developed, along with the introduction of new technologies such as community air-conditioning, a multipurpose underground utility conduit, Comprehensive Assessment 02 System for Built Environment Efficiency (CASBEE), etc. Multifunctional Urban Activities This new urban centre attracted new investments, including by Japan’s leading firms, allowing workplaces and residences to be located close together. International MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, exhibitions) events such as Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) were held at Pacifico Yokohama, a 01 The MM21 project included the multifunctional convention complex, & restoration of the Yokohama 02 Red Brick Warehouse and further attracting business activities Nippon Maru. from overseas. 03 This landscaped pedestrian network was a result of the MM21 project. 04 The new Minato Mirai 21 (MM21) area, after redevelopment. 47 case study

Sharing the Financial Burden The total amount spent on MM21 up to 2012 was JPY517.3 billion (US$5.05 billion). The city shared the financial cost with various sectors, including the national government and the public agency which undertook land readjustment programmes. So far, the city has borne only 16% of the total cost of this urban redevelopment project. Urban Management The private company MM21 Co. Ltd. (currently Yokohama Minato Mirai 21 Corporation) 04 was established and undertook planning, promoting, marketing The Outcome and coordination for locations of investments and their activities. The MM21 revitalised Yokohama’s “Basic Agreement on Machizukuri CBD, becoming an engine of (community planning)” under growth and enhancing the city’s MM21 Co. Ltd. was formulated, image. As of 2013, 93,000 were and this agreement, which indicates working at MM21, and annual the rules for a coordinated and tourists (business and recreational) harmonised development, was to the area totalled 72 million. voluntarily signed in 1988 by About 1,720 firms have their offices both landowners of MM21 and at MM21. The city earned about Yokohama Minato Mirai 21 Co. JPY14.6 billion (US$140 million) Ltd. The agreement is enforced by worth of taxes from the area in the MM21 Town Building Council. 2012, and the estimated cumulative

economic effect is as large as June 2014 JPY2.7 trillion (US$30 billion) • ISSUE 5 01

for construction activities and JPY1.8 trillion (US$20 billion) for business activities annually. strategic and integrated. There Ultimately, the project aims to was effective coordination between create a district where 190,000 the city and central governments, people work and 10,000 people live. among developers, and between Fumiko Hayashi MM21 and all stakeholders. The has been Mayor of Today, MM21 has become a partnership between the private Yokohama since 2009. readily recognisable CBD and sector and city government Before assuming ofﬁce as cultural centre, attracting businesses, Mayor, she served as resulted in innovative funding museums, MICE events and tourists President of BMW Tokyo mechanisms. Finally, the value from all over the world. The area Corp., Chairperson and added by MM21 attracted is also disaster-resilient, utilising CEO of The Daiei, Inc., investments and associated activities. various disaster-proof technologies Operating Ofﬁcer of such as quake-resilient quays, Now the city has set a new Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. underground utility tunnels, etc. long-term goal to make MM21 In 2005, she was selected as one of Forbes Magazine’s The success of MM21 can be a showcase for the future city. “The World’s 100 Most attributed to various factors. The city has launched various new Powerful Women” and The city government remained urban development measures under received the Harvard committed to its long-term vision the scope of the Minato Mirai 2050 Business School and policy, which stakeholders also Project, with the aim to realise the Businesswoman understood. In response to changes smartest future environmental city Award in 2006. in socio-economic contexts, urban in the world, the centrepiece of planning and management was global attention.

01 View of the redeveloped MM21 district. Housing Waterways for All AFFORDABLE HOMES Watch THROUGHSociety HYBRID KEEPING VALUE SINGAPORE’S CHAINS India WATERS CLEAN

or years, littering has contaminated Singapore’s waterways – the chief source of its drinking water. F The Waterways Watch Society, an independent organisation of volunteers, is determined to raise awareness of the problem and to build a culture of environmentally responsible behaviour. Eugene Heng, the Society’s Chairman, explains how they do this.

01 53

Singapore case studycase study case studycase

The Challenge Over the years, there has been a rise in the pollution of Singapore’s waterways. All of its waterways are interlinked through extensive Singapore government. Building networks of shallow drains that the framework and infrastructure lead to deeper canals, large for a clean environment falls to the rivers and eventually, the present government, but sustaining it and 17 reservoirs island-wide. ensuring the responsible use of Precious water collected is then such facilities falls on the people. treated before being supplied as Formed in 1998 to raise public ready-to-drink water to taps in awareness on the importance of 01 homes and buildings. keeping Singapore’s waterways Littering is the main cause of such clean, the Waterways Watch Society pollution. The costliest evidence of (WWS) is an independent volunteer this is the clean-up of the Singapore group that also rallies the public River in 1987, which spanned 10 to help clean up the waterways. years and cost about S$300 million Instead of aggressively recruiting (US$239.4 million). Now the rivers members, we focus on spreading and canals are relatively clean, the message of environmental but littering and illegal disposal of awareness and cleanliness to waste are still taking place. In view attract passionate, like-minded of the economic and environmental individuals to join us. So far in costs of pollution, effective the course of our work, we have management of the environment interacted with about 150 schools ranks as a key concern for the out of over 400 locally, and some 100 companies out of thousands in Singapore. What’s worrying is that 90% of our participants do not have prior knowledge of the litter problem affecting our drinking water in the reservoirs. This means that an even larger population group may be unaware of this problem. June 2014 June 2014

01 Litter in one of the • • rivers monitored by the Waterways Watch Society. ISSUE 5 ISSUE 5 01

The Solution Over the years, the WWS has diversiﬁed its activities to include boat, bicycle and kayak patrols; beach clean-ups; environmental camps; water-monitoring programmes and customised programmes like Learning Trails for schools and corporates. In 2013 alone, our programmes expanded to include the Marina Bike Learning Trail, the Eco-Kayak 02 Learning Trail and the Waterways Watch Explorer programme. This diversiﬁcation of activities enables us to reach out to people with different backgrounds, interests and needs. It also offers our volunteers different avenues to contribute to our environment.

01 Kayak patrol volunteers removing litter. 02 Youths learning how to test water quality. 03 Participants in the Waterways Watch Explorer programme. 03 We strongly believe in the Sourcing for funding is also a importance of partnerships with continuous challenge for us. The government agencies, schools, good news is that we have recently corporates and other organisations gained approval as a charity with to effectively raise awareness an Institution of Public Character about, and encourage participation status, which enables us to accept in, environmental and water tax-deductible donations from conservation. We share observations the public. of water issues with PUB, the We also face persistent challenges national water agency, and land in our daily work. Often, we see pollution issues with the National events held around our reservoirs Environment Agency (NEA) and where participants leave litter, the National Parks Board (NParks). expecting public cleaners to pick Since 2013, we have been sending up after them. We are continuously select members who have shown increasing our engagement via dedication and commitment to their social media to spread awareness WWS volunteer duties for training about the problems of littering and as community volunteers with the pollution, and how they adversely NEA. Upon successful completion affect our waterways. We strongly of this programme, such members advocate a national policy to are empowered to warn and issue support good social behaviour and ﬁnes to members of the public who kindness to the environment. are caught littering. We rely on the collective expertise of small working committees within our society to develop, test and implement our programmes. As the majority of our volunteers have day jobs, this means programmes can take a longer time to develop. New programmes also take time to gain traction with our existing and potential community partners. As most of our programmes involve the outdoors, our programmes can be affected by inclement weather, the most impactful being the recent bouts of severe haze. 57 case study

The Outcome

Our approach to volunteer recruitment has garnered us steadfast volunteers who are passionate about environmental issues and actively participate in our programmes. From just 30-odd members when we started out, the WWS today has about 350 member volunteers. The growth in our membership and programmes has spurred the opening of our ﬁrst branch at My Waterway@Punggol 01 in March 2014. At Punggol,

02 we hope to spread the message of keeping our waterways clean to more residents in the heartlands. We will also conduct brieﬁngs and organise patrols of the Punggol waterways. Our work has been endorsed by PUB, the NEA and NParks over the past decade. Our environmental programmes have garnered us recognition from the public, the inaugural President’s Award for the Environment (2006) and the inaugural PUB Watermark Honorary Award (2007).

01 The Society depends on volunteers to develop, test and

implement its June 2014 programmes. • 02 Gardening is one of the Society’s activities ISSUE 5 that promotes hands- on involvement by participants. 01 To promote a culture of cleanliness, the Society has engaged some 150 schools in diverse ways, like the River Monster Programme.

01 Eugene Heng is the DCESS ESDENCES For each programme, we strive For us, the continuing challenge founder and current Chairman of WWS, to leave a lasting impression with is to get more people to become which has received the the participants by providing aware of the extent of the littering President’s Award for the opportunities for hands-on issue and more importantly, to form Environment and PUB’s involvement and facilitating a culture of cleanliness. However, Watermark Honorary a holistic understanding of our awareness programmes are not Award. Mr Heng is a conservation issues. Some enough. There need to be more member of the Public participants subsequently joined initiatives and even mandatory Hygiene Council and us as WWS members. As climate requirements to inculcate Singapore Water change becomes more pronounced environmentally responsible Network. He has served and the effects more directly felt, behaviour. Time is not on our side. on advisory committees our programmes are ever more such as the Ministry of the Environment and NE relevant. However, we still face Water Resources’s Focus problems such as the lack of Group on Water. funding. While there is always t , we are committed to making every one of our developments strong ﬁnancial support for helping a TEIECE. This unwavering focus has enabled us to gain the poor, sick, underprivileged, international recognition with awards like the I sia wards, unfortunate or elderly, environment ga han ward for rchitecture, FICI ri dEcellence wards, care is often perceived to be the rban and Institute wards for Ecellence, kyrise reenery government’s responsibility or wards and residents esign ward ingapore. something that will take care of itself. We make this committment to ecellence as a tribute to your partnership. N CENG

101 Thomson Road #33-00 United Square Singapore 307591 Tel: (65) 6255 0233 www.uol.com.sg A Better City Medellín, Colombia THROUGH MOBILITY

rom its dark past of drugs and violence, Medellín today F is Colombia’s best example of remarkable recovery. The city’s transformation in recent years has attracted global attention. The Urban Land Institute, City Group and Wall Street Journal declared Medellín “Innovative City of the Year” in 2013, and it received a LEE KUAN YEW WORLD CITY PRIZE Special Mention in 2014.

01 Medellín’s rugged geography left slums physically isolated and prone to many serious problems. 01 61 case studycase study case studycase

The Challenge The second half of the 20th century was paramount in shaping Medellín today. During this period, the city became the industrial capital of Colombia. Unfortunately, as a result of an economic and institutional crisis, Medellín during this time also experienced its darkest moments, ranking among the most violent cities of the world (381 homicides per 100,000 people in 1991) as a result of drug trafficking. The problems of drug trafficking and violence, combined with the needs of the community and the traditional challenges pertaining to urban sustainability, posed huge hurdles to the government’s efforts to provide better opportunities to the population in terms of living conditions, public utilities, health care, education and safety. The poor then were living in slums ruled by drug lords and criminals, and isolated from the city centre. Cut off from areas of economic vitality, they faced problems such as low income, social exclusion and insecurity due to lack of state presence. Medellín understood it needed to improve social inclusion and social justice while ensuring modernisation and

competitiveness. The aim was June 2014 June 2014 to boost development and avoid • • social gaps. ISSUE 5 ISSUE 5 01

The Solution to access jobs, amenities and 01 Beyond mass opportunities across the city, transport, the Metro During the mid-’90s, a project aimed to improve beyond their slum neighbourhoods. urban spaces around deﬁned the transformation and stations. This is why Medellín today has resilience that the city has displayed 02 The Metro helped since then: the Metro. Besides a multi-modal ground mass modernise the city providing mass public transportation transportation system which and promote social services, this company has also been is constantly developing and inclusion. making urban interventions since its improving. The different modes of inception. The idea was to enable transport that contribute to the city’s easier and faster commuting, while environmental sustainability are: the building stations that would make Metro (electric train with two rail their surroundings friendlier and lines); Metrocable (electric gondolas safer. Hence, the Metro sparked with three lines in operation and the idea of raising the quality of two under construction); Metroplus life with urbanism. No wonder its (Bus Rapid Transit systems and corporate slogan states: “Metro: integrated bases operated by gas Quality of Life”. with two active lines, 25 routes and the implementation of seven lines Mobility, for any government, underway); and Tramway (electric always represents a challenge. trams under construction). However, the case of Medellín is special because mobility has 02 provided the city with remarkable beneﬁts that surpass mere transportation, particularly since 2004. Besides helping to modernise the city, the Metro has been pivotal in consolidating social inclusion as it allowed the once economically and socially disadvantaged a newfound mobility and freedom 01

Subsequently, Medellín has focused on making deep changes to its poorest neighborhoods, for example, by providing additional and improved public spaces where citizens can gather. These well-designed areas offer security and restore dignity to the people. They are also easily accessible – for those who have to walk long distances, given the city’s rugged geography. Consequently, the hard-to-reach areas, mainly remote settlements, today have proper schemes for mobility by foot. The use of trails, bridges and staircases in optimum condition, meeting the most urgent needs of the populations and the geographic conditions of each area, and based on the aforementioned, adds to the remarkable model of social innovation of Medellín. A good example of this is the world’s ﬁrst mechanical stairs for public use. This solution helps about 10,000 people climb a steep mountain that is equivalent to a 15-storey building every day. In addition, the ﬁrst public bicycle system of Colombia, known 02 as EnCicla, will have 1,500 bicycles in service by 2015. Both of these systems 01 Footpaths, stairs and complement our Mass Transportation & bridges were built in 02 poor neighbourhoods Integrated System, contributing like Juan Bobo. to modernising public space and 03 Three Metrocable environmental sustainability. (electric gondolas) lines are in operation, with another two under construction. 65 June 2014 • ISSUE 5

03 01

Juan David The Outcome Valderrama López is the Executive Medellín has managed to Director of the Agency commission a clean, adaptable of Cooperation and and modern integrated mass Investment of Medellín That same perception prevails in transportation model that solves its and the Metropolitan the rest of the city, given that the current needs and is suited to the Area. He was advisor to reputation indexes of the Metro city’s geographic conditions. the president of Grupo have surpassed 92% since the year EPM in 2008 and 2010, Mobility has been paramount to 2009. Likewise, in the past five where he coordinated the city’s transformation given that years, users have gained savings the implementation of it has improved social issues that in time of 30 hours per week and special projects such seem unrelated, such as security. more than 90% of the users are as Tarjeta Grupo and A study conducted by Universidad from strata 1, 2 and 3 – the poorer Aldeas, which have advanced community Autónoma Latinoamericana segments of the population. development in Medellín research group GINVECO in Lastly, it is worth noting the most and other municipalities 2011 revealed that “97% of the recent mobility projects of Medellín. of Antioquia, Colombia. population of Commune 1 – where Metroplus mobilised 14.2 million He also worked as the the first Metrocable operates – passengers during its first year Private Secretary to perceive that their quality of life the Mayor’s Office of operation in 2012 and the has improved with the system, of Medellín in 2009 Tramway, currently being built, while 86% state that the system and 2010. estimates an investment close to increased the presence of the city’s 610,000 million Colombian pesos administration and hence, peace”. (US$315,263). Also, the pilot project of the EnCicla system represented an investment of 1.1 billion pesos (US$569,497) to build a programme that offers 145 bicycles free of charge for the citizens registered 01 The mechanical stairs, or escalators, provide to the system. access up steep mountainsides. WHAT LIES BEHIND SUCCESSFUL, LIVEABLE CITIES?

ow have some cities overcome challenges to become places that people enjoy inhabiting? H Centre for Liveable Cities (CLC) researchers Pablo Vaggione and Elyssa Ludher analysed many such cities using the CLC Liveability Framework for their chapter in the book Liveable and Sustainable Cities: A Framework, co-published by CLC and Singapore’s Civil Service College in June 2014. Here are some insights.

The United Nations estimates that by 2030, ﬁve billion people will live in cities, up from 3.6 billion in 2011. The challenge of accommodating the thousands that move to cities daily is acute to avoid the cities becoming hotbeds for social inequality and fragmentation, dis-economies of scale and environmental degradation. Urban challenges are often complex and seem insurmountable. Yet some cities are, incrementally but surely, overcoming them and turning their cities around. How did they do it? Based on its research into Singapore’s extraordinary development experience, the CLC 01 Visionary leaders developed the CLC Liveability turned Bilbao from a Framework. This suggests the declining industrial city into a gleaming conceptual foundation that cultural hub. permeated Singapore’s leadership, 69 SUCCESSFUL, institutions and governance Aim High and Wide structures, which enabled the In a 2011 interview with the CLC, effective management of Singapore’s then-CEO of JTC Corporation complex challenges and rapid LIVEABLE CITIES? Manohar Khiatani said: “Dare to growth. We used this Framework dream... One day we want to make to analyse successful cities around aircraft engines, man-on-the-moon the world, and found three statement[s], but we don’t know underlying parallels. One, these when we will get there. Even if we cities have a vision of what they don’t get there, maybe we’ll get a would like to achieve; second, consolation prize – it’s still very there is a comprehensive plan on good... Sometimes they say, ‘This how to achieve them; and last, fellow is damn naive!’ But it is okay there is institutional support to because what is naive today, 20 carry out these plans. years down the road, it might still happen because technology changes.” This characterises many of Urban challenges are often complex Singapore’s policies. and seem insurmountable. Yet Bilbao’s leaders, too, had the audacity to dream. In the 1980s, some cities are, incrementally but delocalisation of the heavy steel surely, overcoming them... and shipbuilding industries led to the loss of half of industrial jobs; 01 unemployment reached a record 25% by 1985. Long years of industrial action, sometimes violent, ensued, followed by population decline and intense physical decay. Against this backdrop, Bilbao launched its urban revolution that led to one of the most miraculous transformation stories in recent history. A holistic and integrated approach was devised to deliver 25 interventions over 25 years covering high environmental, cultural, social and economic goals, including the regeneration of the contaminated river, regeneration of derelict inner city space, improving neighbourhood June 2014

spaces, and introducing new • architecture highlighting Bilbao as a centre for arts and culture. ISSUE 5 01

While Suzhou has experienced By adopting the Copenhagen 2,500 years of successive rise and devastation culminating with rapid Climate Plan in 2009, the city has industrialisation, it has conserved its committed to a comprehensive set historic city and gardens, and of 50 initiatives… become a first mover in inclusive social policies and environmental 02 restoration. Over the last two decades, residents have enjoyed a nearly twenty-fold increase in annual per capita disposable household income to 41,143 yuan (US$6,600 in 2013), and the city has achieved 42.3% city green coverage. It has introduced free compulsory education and increased social welfare benefits, thus improving the quality of life for residents and non-native residents alike. Suzhou’s transformation is remarkable for the wide-ranging and ambitious standards it has worked to achieve. Copenhagen is audaciously planning its future by committing to be the world’s first Carbon Neutral Capital by 2025. By adopting the Copenhagen Climate Plan in 2009, the city has committed to a comprehensive set of 50 initiatives that would reduce motorised transport, replace fossil fuel energy/ heat generation with alternatives and adopt green building standards. 71

Plan Comprehensively Without planning, visions remain on paper, and agencies lack clarity to move forward, resources are not allocated adequately, and development is imbalanced. Planning must be strategic, tangible, realistic and dynamic. To create liveable cities, it must integrate all aspects and sectors of society. A city’s challenges are often complex; a coordinating body 03 is thus important to keep view of the various cross-dimensional initiatives, arbitrate across agencies, PlaNYC’s goal of achieving a and monitor goals. greener and greater New York City, structured in 10 categories from In the early 1800s, needing to waterways and transportation to address poor street layout and air energy and climate change, contains circulation, New York’s Common metrics to assess progress. Over Council concurred that a long-term 97% of the 127 initiatives were framework was indispensable to launched within one year of the manage growth. It produced the commencement of the plan and 1811 Commissioner’s Plan which almost two-thirds of the milestones has deﬁned Manhattan until today. in 2009 were achieved or mostly Two centuries later in 2007, achieved, according to the PlaNYC the city released PlaNYC Progress Report 2012. For example, to again address the complex planning regulations have been needs and raise its urban vitality. adopted for over 20 transit-oriented PlaNYC considers a 30-year time schemes with the aim of making frame, and is to be updated every 87% of new housing units 400 four years, coordinated by the metres from a public transport 01 Suzhou has set, and achieved, Ofﬁce of Long-Term Planning stop by 2030. Another target is high living and environmental and Sustainability. that 85% of New Yorkers would standards. live within 400 metres from a park. 02 Copenhagen commits to be To meet this target, more than the world’s first Carbon Neutral Capital. 200 acres (0.8 square kilometre)

03 Thanks to PlaNYC, 74% of New June 2014

of parkland were created, ensuring • Yorkers live within a 10-minute that over 74% of residents now live walk of a park. within a 10-minute walk of a park. ISSUE 5 Plans have to be adaptive and contextualised to local needs. While it is less risky to adopt tried and tested policies, innovation not only keeps cities competitive and vibrant, but also dynamically addresses challenges. Melbourne managed to turn its “empty, useless city centre” (as described in The Age in 1978) to the lively, 24/7 city that it is today 02 because of its bold decision to reinvent the city to be built around The city of Cape Town, facing high strong communities and liveable crime and violence in its expansive public spaces. Through its Places for shantytowns, introduced Violence People programme devised by Prevention through Urban architect Jan Gehl, the city Upgrading, a public-private upgraded its promenades, laneways partnership project in Khayelitsha and meeting points, and installed in 2006. Rather than use a top- public art. A 10-year goal was set to down approach, the partnership A 10-year goal increase the city’s liveability and to chose to create safe and sustainable establish benchmarks to measure its neighbourhoods by reducing social, was set to increase progress. Within a decade, the city cultural, economic and institutional (Melbourne’s) reported that there were 275% exclusions. It adopted a multi- liveability and more cafes (1993-2004) and 830% solidarity methodology, based on more residents in the inner city the local concept of Ubuntu. to establish (1992-2002). Thousands ﬂocked to Comprehensive community benchmarks Bourke Street and Swanston Street consultations raised novel proposals to measure its at all hours, raising safety as well as that adapted local resources and the vitality of the city. Melbourne is innovative design solutions. The progress. now consistently named as one of beneﬁts were multifold; not only in the most liveable cities in the world. the physical upgrading of the environment, but also community 01 empowerment, funding retention and local socio-economic improvement. The city’s courage to 01 More downtown residents, undertake new approaches not only cafes and public art led to better understanding of the helped make Melbourne complex issue of safety, but also more liveable. surfaced new design principles 02 Community consultation which are being replicated has produced multifold benefits in Cape Town. throughout Cape Town and other 03 Hong Kong prosecuted South African metropolitan regions. 247 public officials in its anti-corruption crackdown. 73

Let the Roots of Support Grow The best intentions in planning amount to nothing if not supported Sound agencies are another vital by a sound urban governance ingredient for a sound urban system. Projects may remain governance system. The Well known for uninitiated, be derailed, completed trustworthiness of its administration her hands-on shoddily, or bring long-term harm is a principal asset for a city, to the city. Urban governance providing a climate for long-term approach — she refers to the manner in which value creation, investment, jobs is often found public leadership interacts with and partnerships. In 1974, against picking up litter citizens and other stakeholders to a backdrop of rampant corruption, make decisions on and have the Hong Kong government from the streets — oversight of how a city plans, initiated the Independent Mayor Risma has develops and manages its physical Commission Against Corruption helped to transform and environmental resources to (ICAC). Within three years, the achieve outcomes. ICAC had eliminated all Surabaya… government syndicates and A visionary leader is often a key prosecuted 247 government catalyst for sound urban officers. Hong Kong’s high level of governance. Surabaya’s Mayor transparency continues to contribute Tri Rismaharini, is one such to not only citizens’ trust in its catalyst. Well known for her institutions, but also economic hands-on approach – she is often vitality as corporations choose to found picking up litter from the base offices there. New York City, streets – Mayor Risma has helped too, has a long-term vision for to transform Surabaya, a port city data transparency, based on the of three million in East Java and conviction that public knowledge Indonesia’s second largest city, brings the accountability needed from a dirty city into a green and to empower the city’s delivery- clean city, where quality of life is focused planning. being visibly raised. Not only has the green cover increased to 20% Creating a liveable city is a huge (target is 30%), her e-procurement and complex undertaking, and its system has saved the city 13%- public institutions need the support 24% of its budget; and the newly of the city’s people and private introduced waste management sectors. This also ensures all have measures have formalised the a stake in the city’s growth, together income for sorters and delivered contributing to the long-term good socio-economic benefits to the of the city. city’s poorest. Bogotá’s Como Vamos (BCV)

(“Bogotá, how are we doing”) is a June 2014 • prime example of how governance can be supported by the grassroots. ISSUE 5 03 Formed in 1997 to track local election promises, it calls for citizens to exercise social oversight of public administration and budgeting. It analyses public data on areas such as health care, housing and education against citizen perception surveys. Findings, along with proposed solutions, are fed back to policymakers and experts, as well as disseminated to the public via mass media. In addition, BCV works with the Bogotá district governments 01 to monitor the development, implementation and execution of the Bogotá Development Plan through forums and roundtables. A Framework for Development So what lies behind successful, liveable cities? History suggests that cities that have successfully Pablo Vaggione is Elyssa Ludher, an overcome periods of decline have dedicated to resolving urban and regional had a key tool in common the challenges of rapid planner, has 10 years urbanisation. He was of experience in public – a framework for development. the Lead Author of and private sector in This allowed them to plan with UN-HABITAT’s guide Australia, China and purpose and develop the systems Urban Planning for City Cambodia, including needed to implement such plans Leaders. He has worked Brisbane City Council, and operate accordingly. on projects for the World CORDE (Cambodian Bank, Inter-American Organisation for The CLC offers its Liveability Development Bank, CAF Research, Development Framework as a lens through which (Development Bank of and Education) and city leaders can view their cities and Latin America), Asian SKM consulting. She analyse the actions or approaches Development Bank, now conducts research open to them to achieve high Siemens AG and the at the Centre for liveability and sustainability. How Economist Intelligence Liveable Cities to these principles can be applied must, Unit. An architect by continue to understand naturally, respond to each city’s own training, he studied urban and share solutions governance structures, priorities and planning at Harvard and on how cities manage resources. However, cities that are sustainable development increasingly complex able to deﬁne their framework are at the United Nations social challenges in University. our globalised world. best placed to undertake complex and far-reaching initiatives to be one step closer to becoming successful, liveable cities. 01 Bogotá citizens organise themselves to monitor government and hold it accountable. WHY COMPACT CITIES ARE THE FUTURE

ith a rapidly increasing urban population, cities have to tap limited natural resources more efﬁciently than W ever. Jeremy Bentham from the Shell Scenarios Team draws on Shell’s latest research to explain why resource-efﬁcient compact cities are necessary for the future.

The number of people living in urban settings is expected to almost double to over 6 billion by 2050, which will intensify the pressure on More than half of global primary vital natural resources, particularly energy ends up wasted as food, water and energy. This will place enormous additional demands lost heat...City planning can on services – both municipal and signiﬁcantly improve this... commercial – that use and supply resources, and require fundamentally new, more efﬁcient, affordable and adaptive delivery models. almost entirely in cities, especially 01 Impact of urban density on

in regions entering phases of CO2 emissions per person in The Shell Scenarios Team has been rapid urbanisation. Toronto. researching these trends to better 02 Urban density and transport- understand the challenges and Our new publication New Lenses on related energy consumption. opportunities for our business and Future Cities – to be launched in the world. In a previous article for Singapore during this year’s WORLD (“Future Cities CITIES SUMMIT – highlights the in a Resource Constrained World”, value of compact city development Issue 1, July 2012), I shared insights for resource efﬁciency. In this from our research on energy use in article, I focus on how the effective cities. Our analysis suggested that management of urban change and the amount of energy used in cities infrastructure options could improve as a proportion of global energy resource efﬁciency. I also highlight use would rise from around 66% a possible model for compact in 2010, to around 80% by 2040. development in existing Chinese It also indicated that the increase cities to accommodate the country’s in global energy consumption over anticipated phenomenal urban that period would be concentrated growth between now and 2030. 77

THE FUTURE Well-planned Cities are Resource-efficient 01 An estimated US$57 trillion will be spent on urban infrastructure between 2013 and 2030. The degree to which this growth is well managed and planned will be a central factor in determining how efficiently the world uses vital resources in the future. More than half of global primary energy ends up wasted as lost heat, particularly in the transport and power sectors. City planning can significantly improve this, reducing long-term costs and energy consumption. 02 Compact and densely populated cities use less energy per person in transport because residents live closer to jobs and amenities. Our research shows that compact city design can reduce average annual car use nationally by as much as 2,000 kilometres per person compared to countries with low density development. Reliable public transport networks and the use of smaller electric or hydrogen- powered cars well suited to shorter distances cut energy demand further. Compact housing and more stringent design and energy efficiency standards also significantly reduce energy use in buildings.

Power sector efficiency can be improved by combining heat/ cooling and power generation facilities, which capture waste June 2014 energy from electricity production • and use it in other industrial, ISSUE 5 and pumping can be met more efficiently. Waste products become a source of energy rather than, for example, a landfill burden. From a resource perspective, the ideal evolution is for cities to become increasingly compact with more efficient, integrated infrastructure and effective public transport. Cities such as Singapore, London, Tokyo and New York have demonstrated that compact cities can be attractive to residents. Cities such This can be done, for example, by as Singapore, providing green spaces, which London, studies have suggested produce a positive impact on mental health. Tokyo and Creating “Room to Manoeuvre” New York have demonstrated Shell partnered with the Centre for that compact 01 Liveable Cities (CLC) in Singapore to investigate the factors that cities can be commercial and residential settings. shape the capacity of cities to plan attractive to Switching from coal to gas-fired and manage growth effectively. power stations also reduces Singapore is widely recognised as residents. emissions and increases efficiency. having successfully managed rapid Gasification of fuels, such as coal, population growth whilst improving biodegradable waste and biomass, the liveability of the city. Our work produces a synthetic gas that drew on analytical tools – we call combusts at higher temperatures, them lenses – that Shell introduced generating more heat and power. in our most recent long-term If combined with carbon capture energy scenarios, New Lens Scenarios, and storage technology, the power published in 2013. it produces would be low-carbon, The lenses considered two typical and if the original fuel is biomass, institutional development routes this would actually remove carbon that evolve in response to emerging dioxide from the atmosphere. pressures and the leadership choices Through integration of water, that are made: some are able to sewerage, waste and power adapt and reform, giving them management, the substantial “room to manoeuvre”; while others cooling-water demands for power delay action until it is forced by generation and the substantial growing crisis, what we call energy demands for water treatment a “trapped transition”. 79

Our workshops with CLC identiﬁed ﬁve factors for well-managed growth:

01 Flexible long-term vision Urban planning decisions need to build in sufﬁcient capacity to adapt to reﬂect future technology trends and stresses, while allowing for micro-level changes too.

02 Invest in the future Investments into education, capacity and innovation hubs should be made continuously, anticipating skills needed to drive future economic growth, and attracting and retaining skilled citizens and migrants.

02 03 Capacity to implement Nurture highly effective implementation, Characteristics of “Room to Manoeuvre” reinforced by transparent measurement, in city development: by having the right parties involved • Visionary leadership coalitions shape growth and ﬁnding common goals between • Authorities foresee stresses and implement integrated stakeholders. Professional project land, transport, energy, water and waste planning management is crucial. • Structural energy-effective solutions, including compact city development and public transport 04 Building trust • Knowledge shared and valued Provide a stable environment, consistency in rules and regulation, Characteristics of “Trapped Transition” and a sense of fairness for all involved. in city development: • Localised market forces dominate patterns of growth 05 Collaboration • Authorities assume problems are too hard to tackle, All sections of society recognise that and too unpopular to implement working together is necessary. Incentives • Stresses ignored until city liveability is threatened and sanctions for consumers and and infrastructure is difﬁcult to re-engineer businesses should encourage smart • Ad-hoc, individual solutions growth, infrastructure, housing and transport solutions. Coordinating bodies can help overcome disagreements and avoid paralysis.

01 Compact Singapore has improved

liveability despite June 2014 population growth. • 02 Pathway lenses

– “Room to Manoeuvre” ISSUE 5 and “Trapped Transition”. Nanchong: A Compact City vibrant communities, merging living Model for China and working areas. According to the DCF, if the densities found By 2030, an additional 350 million today in China’s urban centres Chinese will inhabit cities. Hence, – already dense by international the way in which urbanisation standards – are extended uniformly occurs in China will have enormous to the edges of the less dense impact on resource efficiency industrial development zones globally. In 2011, Shell collaborated around their periphery, China with urban research and design could accommodate all 350 million group, the Dynamic City new urbanites within existing urban Foundation (DCF), to study how zones by 2030. China might achieve sustainable urbanisation by 2030. The To show how this would work DCF developed a model, which in practice, the DCF developed progressively transforms existing a template and case study for low-density industrial zones into Nanchong, a city in Sichuan 81 essay province between Chongqing and Chengdu, with 600,000 inhabitants in the urban core area. Nanchong was selected because the formation of the Chongqing- ...“eco-promenades” provide Chengdu Special Economic Zone flexibility for public transport (SEZ) in 2011 promises accelerated to evolve over time, making the urban and economic growth in the region, creating ideal conditions to construction of future roads showcase an innovative and scalable unnecessary. model for sustainable development. The first step is to conduct a an upgrade to a Bus Rapid Transit detailed inventory and analysis of system becomes feasible. Eventually, the city, reviewing its ecological, an elevated subway or light rail geographical, industrial, economic, system can be introduced if spatial usage, energy, climate and necessary. The corners of the new other characteristics, identifying urban blocks created by the eco- areas requiring immediate promenades are curved to facilitate remediation. Flexible rezoning use of track-based transport like is then applied to locate heavy trams and allow travel speed to be industries near industrial transport maintained throughout the journey hubs and free up areas for – saving time and energy. Where densification, residential and rounded corners meet, star-shaped commercial development while parks and squares naturally arise, completing existing transport and ensuring a continuous flow of green road network gaps. High standards space across the city and providing for the efficiency of building better water management capacity. construction and operation A “time-oriented development” are enforced. approach could ensure flexible “Transit-oriented development” integration across both space is introduced through a secondary and time. The city is divided into grid between existing major roads one-kilometre blocks and teams to accommodate future public of city planners design in relay transit infrastructures. These “eco- for different blocks for different promenades” provide flexibility time phases in their development. for public transport to evolve over Each group of planners begins by time, making the construction of designing their designated block future roads unnecessary. At first, for today’s conditions. The groups regular buses are used as a flexible, then swap blocks and work on cheap option that can adapt to the another team’s block for a different

existing unfinished road system. time phase, e.g., 2020. They then June 2014 As the grid is completed and swap again and create a plan for • density begins to accumulate, 2030, etc. This method encourages ISSUE 5 developers to collaborate to create be developed as a single project. integrated plans that are adaptable Moreover, in many instances, plots and prepared for changes in on either side of the road can be future conditions. developed together. This promotes bridging and elevated structures, Micro-zoning is used to promote as in Hong Kong. mixed-use in neighbourhoods, recognising that, by 2030, many In order to create a truly of China’s cities will have moved sustainable urban landscape, Jeremy Bentham leads towards a more service-oriented China’s new eco-city developments Shell’s Global Business economy. Stacked factories ensure must also regenerate the urban core. Environment team, a more efficient use of space and In later stages, the eco-promenades core corporate strategy resources. Star-shaped parks create and parks will penetrate the old city. activity best known quiet areas particularly suitable Densities are maintained as outside the company for for residential use. This is offset old buildings are replaced by developing the Shell by concentrating high densities taller structures. In the final stages, Scenarios. He graduated on top of transportation nodes, the centre is fully integrated from Oxford University, and joined Shell in 1980 geared towards commercial use. with a dense, modern and following post-graduate Combined with a public transit retrofitted downtown. experience at the system that is always within walking Collaborating for the Future California Institute of distance, parking requirements Technology. He also can be cut by half. In between the Today’s successful cities will grow holds a Masters degree eco-promenades, a micro-grid can rapidly, bringing new opportunities in management from the be introduced specifically designed and adding significant strains to Massachusetts Institute for pedestrians and bicycles, paved existing infrastructures. Tomorrow’s of Technology, where with a soft, permeable surface to success will depend on how well he was a Sloan Fellow. help manage storm water and these are managed and how quickly During his time at Shell, prevent pollutants from entering the government, business and civil Mr Bentham has worked in research and water table. The micro-grid ensures society improve their collaboration technology development, today and enhance the wellbeing that even in the densest areas of managed refineries, the city, all buildings are easily of residents. The importance of delivered corporate accessible by foot. the interplay between these sectors strategy analysis, and of society is a recurring lesson The smallest scale intervention is joined the leadership from our New Lens Scenario work, team of Shell’s global at the level of individual micro- and details of this are once again technology company. plot divisions. An extra fine system emphasised when we place He subsequently served of plot divisions is introduced to the scenario lenses on cities. as chief executive of encourage diversity in building Shell Hydrogen before size and ownership. Where larger becoming head of buildings are needed, a limited Shell Scenarios. number of adjacent plots can

THE SEVEN STEPS TO Sustainability

s fast-growing economies continue to expand and urbanise over the coming decades, A sustainability challenges will only become more intense. While governments seek to improve the living standards of their citizens through cleaner growth and smarter infrastructure, businesses need to step up and play a bigger role too. Peter Lacy and Ynse de Boer explain how this can be done.

The global economy is on the But sustainability is firmly on wrong track, and CEOs know that their agenda: 97% of CEOs business is not yet playing its full we interviewed believe that the part in forging a sustainable future. management of sustainability issues This is the striking finding from our will be critical to the future success recent in-depth study of more than of their business – even as they 1,000 global CEOs’ attitudes to express a sense of “frustrated sustainability. The study holds ambition” with the pace and lessons for businesses, of course, scale of change on sustainability. but also for municipal, city and Besides internal initiatives – on national governments worldwide. energy efficiency, for example – Of the business leaders surveyed in CEOs believe that more is required the latest triennial UN Global to accelerate progress. They identify Compact-Accenture CEO Study a need for greater ambition and on Sustainability, just 32% believe better collaboration with consumers, that the global economy is on track investors and, importantly, to meet the demands of a growing policymakers, to enable business population within global to uncover solutions to the world’s environmental and resource most pressing challenges. constraints, and over two-thirds admit business simply isn’t doing enough to address global sustainability challenges.

The Scale of the As governments seek to improve Challenge in Asia the living standards of their citizens through cleaner growth and smarter Asia is the world’s largest and most infrastructure, the innovations of inefficient resource user: it requires businesses will play a critical role. three times as much energy input per earned dollar of GDP, and on Indeed, leading companies are ...a two speed its current trajectory is forecast to already finding ways to turn world is emerging triple its carbon emissions by 2050. sustainability to their advantage. ...with a small Furthermore, many Asian We have been able to investigate economies face a “trilemma” of links between CEOs’ attitudes and group of challenges: rising affluence and approaches to sustainability, and “Transformational consumption, growing resource the financial and sustainability Leaders” scarcity and environmental performance of their companies. pressures, and ongoing urbanisation Our analysis suggests that a beginning to at a rapid pace. These conditions two-speed world is emerging on drive business are characteristic of most emerging sustainability, with a small group advantage through economies – but the sheer scale of “Transformational Leaders” of the region commands attention: beginning to drive business sustainability... of the 10 largest countries by advantage through sustainability, population, half are in Asia moving beyond mitigation and (China, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh incrementalism to harness and Japan). The potential for sustainability as an opportunity transformation in Asia is formidable. for growth and differentiation. The challenge of sustainable So the good news is, leading urbanisation, in particular, companies are proving to investors

presents a compelling opportunity and to regulators that there doesn’t June 2014 for leading companies to step up have to be a trade-off between • their efforts in driving competitive sustainability and business growth.

advantage through sustainability. ISSUE 5

The Seven Steps future growth in providing solutions to Sustainability to sustainability challenges, and to target strategies to achieve it. At the heart of this new approach is a commitment to harnessing Daiwa Securities, for example, one sustainability as an opportunity of Japan’s largest financial services to drive value creation through companies, is an industry leader in new approaches to tackling global the provision of socially responsible challenges, from environmental investment. Between 2008 and 2010 protection and energy provision it launched eight impact investment to health, education and inequality. bond products to enable both Transformational Leaders are not Japanese and overseas issuers just approaching sustainability to invest in sustainable initiatives through the lens of mitigation in the fields of clean energy, Transformational and incremental improvement – microfinance, reconstruction, Leaders are not but investing at scale in solutions development, healthcare and just approaching directly targeted at sustainability education. Daiwa has handled challenges. In Asia, more than US$4.6 billion in impact sustainability anywhere else, these investments investment bonds since 2008. yield returns that are immediate through the lens 2) Growth and Differentiation of mitigation and close to home. Rather than simply reacting From our research, we see seven and incremental to external expectations key themes emerging that are for sustainability strategies, improvement – enabling these Transformational Transformational Leaders view the but investing at Leaders to achieve both value urgency of sustainability issues as creation for their companies, and scale in solutions... an opportunity to differentiate their greater impact on global challenges. products and services, and thereby 1) Realism and Context access new markets and industries. To harness sustainability as a force Leading European electronics for transformation, organisations firm Philips, for example, has must first understand the scale invested in the development of a of the challenge and the extent green product portfolio directly of the opportunities it presents. targeted at customers’ sustainability needs. These Green Products now Companies taking the most represent more than half of the ambitious action on sustainability company’s total sales, compelling are also the most realistic: they are evidence that sustainability is acting more likely to acknowledge that as a spur to innovation and growth. the world is not on track to meet the needs of a growing population 3) Value and Performance – and admit that business is not From carbon emissions to water doing enough. Understanding the footprints, tracking environmental challenge allows these companies measures is now commonplace to appreciate the opportunity for across industries.

87 essay

For companies seeking to go productivity; or it can have beyond such incremental change, intangible impact by boosting the challenge is twofold: not just brand value, creating future to measure and manage metrics demand or aiding competitiveness of reduction and mitigation, by reducing exposure to risk. but also to quantify the value One example is Siemens’s of sustainability to the company valuation approach, which was and to track their impact on the speciﬁcally designed to target and communities in which they operate. measure the revenue generated Broadly, there are three ways a by its environmental portfolio. sustainability initiative can generate So Siemens can tell you that in return to investors: it can contribute 2012, over 40% of its revenue to revenue; it can contribute to came from products that “play the bottom line through things like a central role in environmental cost reductions or greater employee and climate protection”.

A MEMBER OF DJB GROUP OF COMPANIES Ventura View Ceylon Point Built on a foundation of over 30 years, the reputation of DJB Group of Companies is rooted in our international experience and expertise. Starting out as a construction company, we expanded into a real estate development entity, concentrating mainly in boutique residential developments.

Currently, we are firmly established in Singapore, and we are looking forward to embarking on promising business opportunities and entering new industries across Asia, particularly India. One thing for certain is that while we spread our wings, our commitment to excellence and reliability remains steadfast. Because at the DJB Group of Companies, keeping our legacy intact is our priority.

Our real estate developments utilise a combination of traditional and advanced construction techniques that follow methods and materials, which are more popular in Europe. In particular, the use of prefabricated materials assists in reducing material waste, while saving on time and manpower costs.

We have been involved in development projects June 2014

in Singapore and New Zealand, and are currently • looking to expand and enter other markets.

MOOVENUSS HOMES PTE LTD ISSUE 5 A MEMBER OF DJB GROUP OF COMPANIES 8 Ubi Road 2 #08-07 Zervex Singapore 408538 • T +65 6636 9600 l F +65 6636 9800 l www.djbhgroup.com 4) Technology and Innovation As ever-greater challenges demand ever-greater solutions, our data suggest that leading companies are turning to innovation and technology to provide the tools with which to address sustainability challenges and secure business advantage. From investment in renewables, to intelligent infrastructure enabled by machine- to-machine communications technology, to new closed-loop business models, leading companies are securing business advantage through innovative R&D and deployment of technologies ranging from industrial solutions to “smart” information communication technology such as cloud computing and analytics. Communications technology company Ericsson, for example, is driving the transition to a low-carbon economy in Sweden through their leadership of the Smart Communication project in Stockholm Royal Seaport. Through innovation and smarter technology, the company is helping Stockholm reach its goal to be climate-positive by 2030 by mobilising a more connected city, focused on

CO2 reduction and sustainable transport options. 89 essay

5) Engagement and Dialogue Thailand’s PTT Public Company Limited said: “We have a Business leaders are more responsibility to bring our industry conscious of the need to establish a peers on-board and move together constructive, two-way dialogue with on sustainability initiatives in consumers and local communities, order to create the level of desired regulators and policymakers, impact and raise awareness investors and shareholders, throughout society.” employees and labour unions. Rather than simply acting and 7) Partnerships and Collaboration then communicating, CEOs are In the context of intensifying actively engaging stakeholders to pressures and flagging efforts, CEOs negotiate the role of their business ...business leaders’ more readily acknowledge the role in addressing global challenges. advocacy and of collaboration and partnerships Mining companies, for example, in meeting their ambitions on public commitment recognise that engagement and sustainability. Business can lead dialogue with local communities is are integral to the way, they believe, and can integral to success: with substantial further progress. maximise companies’ impact investments over long time frames, through close partnerships with leading companies in the sector governments, policymakers, are paying particular attention industry peers, consumers and to actively negotiating their role non-governmental organisations. in bringing employment and Global banking giant HSBC, prosperity to local communities. for example, has embarked on 6) Advocacy and Leadership its Water Programme, a five-year, US$100 million partnership with To ensure businesses can lead the World Wide Fund for Nature way in defining and delivering new (WWF), WaterAid and Earthwatch sustainability solutions, business Institute. Working with WaterAid, leaders need to provide a blueprint the programme is reaching for change. From developing new 1.1 million people with safe water measures of success, to engaging and 1.9 million people with with public policymakers and sanitation across Bangladesh, leading calls for free and open India, Nepal, Pakistan, Nigeria markets, business leaders’ advocacy and Ghana. The impact of and public commitment are providing universal access to safe integral to further progress. As water and sanitation in the BRIC Ramakrishnan Mukundan of countries – Brazil, Russia, India Tata Chemicals told us, “There is and China – alone is predicted to no choice for businesses but to get generate annual economic benefits on the road to sustainability: it is of US$125 billion, or 1% of their unsustainable to be unsustainable.” collective 2010 GDP, boosting the June 2014 Dr Chuchottaworn Pailin of • economic health of new markets critical to the bank’s future growth. ISSUE 5 Pathways to Transformation: The Role for Governments Through finding new ways to combine sustainability impact with business advantage today, leading companies are seizing an early advantage in the race to be the leaders of tomorrow. But there is of course, still a huge role Peter Lacy sits on the Ynse de Boer is for governments: at city and steering committee of the Managing Director of WORLD CITIES SUMMIT Accenture’s Sustainability national level. YOUNG LEADERS selection practice in Southeast CEOs are demanding greater committee. He is Asia. He has worked for collaboration between business, Managing Director over a decade with senior governments and policymakers, of Strategy and executives from a range according to our study: 42% of Sustainability Services of private and public respondents now list governments for Accenture in the sector organisations on Asia-Pacific region, sustainability, strategy among their top three stakeholders an Advisor to the UN and execution. His in sustainability, a rise from 32% Global Compact and industry sector experience in 2007. Meanwhile, 83% of was a founding signatory spans energy, waste, respondents think more efforts by of the UN Principles for utilities, logistics, governments to provide the enabling Responsible Management advertising and high-tech. environment will be integral to the Education. Mr Lacy is Mr de Boer holds a private sector’s ability to advance also a Business Fellow Master’s degree in sustainability. Specifically, 85% at Oxford University’s Mechanical Engineering demand clearer policy and market Smith School of from Delft University of signals to support green growth. Economics. He tweets Technology. He tweets This will certainly be food for at @peterlacy at @ynsedeboer thought as this year’s WORLD CITIES SUMMIT gets underway, and we look forward to what further collaboration 2014 may bring. Jinji Lake Central Business District, Suzhou. 93 city focus June 2014 June 2014 • • ISSUE 5 ISSUE 5 Suzhou, China

01 ayor Zhou Naixiang explains the innovation and transformation M of Suzhou over the years. Suzhou, located right at the centre of the Yangtze Delta and south of Jiangsu province, is known for its many scenic water bodies. The city of more than 10 million citizens is also praised for its beautiful gardens and efforts in preserving its ancient cultural heritage. Meanwhile, Suzhou continues to advance with innovative technologies and strategies that promote rural and urban integration, talent cultivation and sustainable development. Suzhou was conferred the LEE KUAN YEW WORLD CITY PRIZE in 2014. 95 city focus

Suzhou, a renowned cultural vitality, thanks to its development 01 Pingjiang Historic District city in China with a history of principles of innovation and preserves Suzhou’s ancient cityscape. over 2,500 years, has witnessed transformation. Besides taking 02 Residents enjoying sustained development throughout advantage of the various opportunities the promenade along the ages. The city has long been history has presented it, Suzhou the city’s restored reputed in China as “paradise on has been closely following a Stone Lake. earth”, with its well-developed people-oriented approach and agriculture, prosperous economy, the guidance of urban planning. regional culture and scenic beauty. The city is dedicated to sustainable In the past three decades, Suzhou development so as to strike has enjoyed rapid socio-economic a balance among the people, developments and evolved to be between man and nature, as well one of the most innovative cities as between residents and the city. June 2014 in China with strong economic • ISSUE 5 01 97 city focus

Strenuous efforts have been made of “repair the old, retain the old, 01 Recreational fishing in the industrial optimisation in workable steps”, Suzhou has at Dushu Lake. and upgrading of Suzhou. The well preserved the original layout 02 Amenities are conveniently clustered city boasts 12 national economic of the ancient city, bearing in at the well-planned development zones; by facilitating mind its historical and cultural Suzhou Industrial Park. the establishment of featured value, and promoted its protection industrial parks, innovation and restoration in an orderly parks and demonstration manner. The renewed Pingjiang zones for intellectual property Historic District still maintains the rights protection, Suzhou has traditional urban layout of “water tremendously enhanced the added and land in parallel, river and value and level of technology in street in neighbour” and the local its economy. And such industrial architectural style of “small bridge, parks and demonstration zones are flowing water, whitewashed walls actually transformed into multi- and black tiles”. Being a miniature functional new urban districts. of “life in Suzhou style”, the district Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP) is received the Honourable Mention one of the best examples. High- Prize of the UNESCO Asia-Pacific tech industries and modern service Heritage Awards for Cultural industries now play dominant Heritage Conservation in 2005. roles in the Park and the Jinji Lake Central Business District Amidst its rapid urban development, construction makes SIP the Suzhou has always attached great undisputed, revitalised “paradise on significance to the protection and earth” for both living and working. optimisation of landscape, ambient air and the ecological environment Suzhou has also been approved in order to create a high-quality by the Ministry of Housing and living environment. In Suzhou, Urban-Rural Development as the there are green “wedges” on four exclusive demonstration area for corners, namely the Sanjiaozui June 2014 the protection of a historical and area in the northwest, the Stone • cultural city in China. For a long Lake and Shangfang Mountain in time, by observing the principles the southwest, Dushu Lake in the ISSUE 5 Zhou Naixiang, 53, graduated from the Nanjing Institute of

01 Construction Engineering and the Wharton Business School, University of 01 The city’s new southeast and Yangcheng Lake Pennsylvania. Previously, metro system, in the northeast of the city. The he was the Director- Suzhou Rail Transit. Stone Lake Scenic Project is now a General of Jiangsu citizens’ favourite, after a series of Provincial Tourism Bureau in March 2008 and lakeside landscape construction that Party-Secretary of Jiangsu restored the lake and green land Provincial Housing and from farmlands and construction, Construction Department and improved water quality. in July 2010. Since he became mayor in March It is through innovation and 2012, Suzhou has transformation that Suzhou has accomplished remarkable managed to achieve great progress achievements. in economic development, cultural prosperity, environmental protection and social well-being. Hopefully these could provide some inspiration for other cities in the world seeking further urban development.

01 VIEWPOINT The Case for “SHARED SOLUTIONS” by Isher Judge Ahluwalia

ities face common challenges and therefore are able to learn from one C another and share solutions, argues Dr Isher Judge Ahluwalia, Chairperson, Board of Governors, the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations. The economist is also a member of the National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (India), and was a Visiting Fellow with the Centre for Liveable Cities in March 2014. After writing several books on growth in India, Dr Ahluwalia’s latest work Transforming Our Cities: Postcards of Change is a collection of stories on the innovations across the country’s urban landscape. 101 opinion

Whether it is water and sanitation, integrated planning of land use and transport, public housing or mobility within the city through last …learning what not to do from the mile connectivity, the challenges experiences of certain countries is of Indian cities and towns are no different from what most other also a shared solution. countries are facing or have faced at a comparable stage in their Alandur, a small town outside of development. The experiences of Chennai in Tamil Nadu, set an Singapore, Phnom Penh, Bogotá example by putting in place 100% and Curitiba are only some of the of a sewerage network in a short many which are of direct relevance period between 2000 and 2005. to the challenges that Indian cities Chandigarh near Punjab, Navi and towns are currently facing. At Mumbai in Maharashtra, and the same time, learning what not to Surat in Gujarat are close to fully do from the experiences of certain treating their waste water. But this countries is also a shared solution. is in an overall context where only Recently, some Indian cities and 30% of Indian cities are covered towns have begun to share their by a sewerage network, and only solutions to the common challenges 15% of the waste water in urban of bridging the infrastructure India is treated. Even in Singapore investment deﬁcit and improving as late as 1971, only 57% of the service delivery, often deploying population was served by the main new technology instruments of public sewerage network. But by Geographic Information Systems 1990, Singapore had implemented (GIS), Global Positioning System its Used Water Master Plan with (GPS), General Packet Radio a 100% sewerage network and Service (GPRS) and Supervisory six water reclamation plants, one Control and Data Acquisition for each zone. This solution can (SCADA) and software packages be replicated in India, though the for e-governance in the delivery scale of the effort will be much of consumer services. This learning larger. Similarly, the clean-up of and sharing may not be fast enough, the Singapore River between 1977 or often enough, but the process and 1987 provides a good example has begun. to study in the search for a holistic solution to the cleaning up of river Yamuna in Delhi and river Ganga in Varanasi. There are challenges of funding and inter-state jurisdiction,

but these would seem less daunting June 2014 if the planning and governance • aspects were addressed effectively. ISSUE 5 Again, Singapore provides and examined these plants and an example for Indian cities later set up three such plants in …the Bus looking for holistic solutions in Guwahati. Kerala’s government is Rapid municipal waste management and also actively exploring this option. environmentally friendly waste- In another example, Pammal, a Transport to-energy options. Beginning with small town in Tamil Nadu with a System…in an emphasis on waste reduction resident population of 85,000 and Ahmedabad and recycling, Singapore has put a floating population of 15,000, has in place a mix of outsourcing of shown the power of community was inspired waste collection for households action to transform its solid waste by the systems under a regulated, uniform fee- management scenario. Its 500 in Bogotá paying system; licensing of waste green ambassadors serve Mangadu collectors engaged by industrial (a temple town in Tamil Nadu), (Colombia) and commercial waste generators, Panipat in Haryana, Sangareddy in and Curitiba for whom collection fees are Andhra Pradesh, and Kamarhatty (Brazil)… market-driven; and consolidation and Panihatty in West Bengal in of waste collection by reducing the adapting their model of solid waste geographical sectors from nine to management to local needs. six. Incineration of the waste with In the area of providing potable due placement of filters to ensure water, Malkapur, a small town in environmental protection has Maharashtra with a population of been found to be the cost-effective 40,000, has provided continuous solution for the disposal of waste water supply through piped in Singapore. network to all its residents within India’s solutions for waste a financially viable framework management have to be through concrete reforms conditioned by the local context, undertaken by the city government including the physical and and support from the Maharashtra chemical characteristics of its Jeevan Pradhikaran, a state municipal waste. The relatively government entity. In doing this, high proportion of biodegradable Malkapur drew inspiration from matter in the total waste warrants Badlapur, a city in Maharashtra. segregation of wet waste and In 2008, ECO-Asia (the its treatment in a decentralised Environmental-Cooperation manner. Pune, the second largest Asia programme by the United city of Maharashtra, was one of the States Agency for International first cities to attempt segregation Development) had facilitated a of wet and dry municipal waste water operator partnership between at source and improve working Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikaran conditions for rag-pickers to and Ranhill Utilities of Malaysia recover recyclables. The Chief to implement a 24 x 7 pilot project Minister of Assam personally visited in Badlapur, with emphasis on Pune with his expert advisors reducing non-revenue water. 103103 opinion

Malkapur’s success replicates what implementation of BRTS is not the Phnom Penh Water Supply associated with integrated planning Authority did in Cambodia, when of land use and transport to harness it radically transformed a decrepit the full benefits of the transport and war-torn water system known system. Indian cities have also for its missing water and missing generally not made extensive customers. At the state level, a and effective use of Floor Space state-wide reform programme Index (FSI) in urban design and on water and sanitation in planning, although Hyderabad, Maharashtra has been facilitating Ahmedabad and Bhopal are its cities and towns to develop attempting to integrate land use solutions to their challenges of planning with transport planning water and sanitation. through a flexible FSI approach and unlocking land value. A much A number of public-private bolder and holistic approach is partnerships (PPP) for drinking needed across the urban landscape. water in Hubli-Dharwad, Gulbarga …cities have and Belgaum have successfully A major game changer in the demonstrated the technical Indian urban environment in developed feasibility of providing water the past decade or so has been a spirit to 24 x 7 to all their residents in the Jawaharlal Nehru National compete; the pilot zones of these cities, but Urban Renewal Mission, which up-scaling has been slow because was launched by the Indian they are of the challenges of cost recovery. government in December 2005 with increasingly… Nagpur is using PPP for integrated a commitment to finance urban looking for water management to deliver infrastructure and channel the 24 x 7 water, while trying to funds to city governments through inspiration address the challenges of state governments, provided beyond national recovering costs. these governments also put in borders. their specified share of financing In transport, the Bus Rapid and agree to carry out certain Transport System (BRTS) has reforms to improve their planning, emerged as a lower-cost solution administration and finances. in medium-sized developing The Mission has created an cities that are not able to make environment in which cities have large investment in underground developed a spirit to compete; they metro railway systems. BRTS in are increasingly paying attention to Ahmedabad was inspired by the what is happening around them, systems in Bogotá (Colombia) and and looking for inspiration beyond Curitiba (Brazil), and adapted to national borders. suit local requirements. Other Indian cities such as Bhopal and

Indore are following the example June 2014 of Ahmedabad, although the • ISSUE 5 COUNTERPOINT The limits to “SHARED SOLUTIONS” by Chua Beng Huat

ingapore may be a popular model Every new arrival to Singapore, of development for many developing whether as a tourist or someone S cities, but there are limits to how taking up residence, is immediately well other cities can adopt Singapore’s urban visually impressed – by its green solutions, argues Professor Chua Beng Huat, lushness, orderliness, smooth- who is Provost Chair Professor at the National functioning transport system University of Singapore’s Faculty of Arts and and, beyond the city core, its Social Sciences. He also heads the university’s high-rise public housing estates. Sociology department and is Research Leader, Singapore’s successes in economic Cultural Studies in Asia Research Cluster, at development, urban planning the Asia Research Institute. Prior to joining and management and a national the university, he was director of research at public housing programme, which the Housing & Development Board. houses practically the entire nation, have received frequent praise and accolades internationally. As it becomes more and more apparent that, with few exceptions, European and American cities do not face the same level of density as Asian cities and, therefore, hold few lessons for a rapidly urbanising and economically rising Asia, urban planners, developers and politicians in Asia are turning increasingly to their own continent for points of references in their professional practices. Singapore has emerged as an eminent point of reference. 105105 opinion

Singaporean urban planning and governance practices have thus travelled internationally to developing economies. In this travel and ...since the historical knowledge transfer, the Singaporean experience, which was wrought conditions are not replicated under specific historical conditions, (nor are they replicable) particularly at the point of its political elsewhere, only the skills and independence, had to be disassembled into its technical and social-political technologies can be, and are, dimensions. However, since the transferred… historical conditions are not replicated (nor are they replicable) elsewhere, only the skills and technologies can be, and are, transferred and reassembled in the new locations. The result is that only the physical and material structures that resemble the Singaporean “model” are realised. The political and social dimensions of the Singaporean “model” have to be, perforce, deleted. The result is something quite different from what is going on in Singapore. Take, for example, the high-rise housing estates that Singaporean architects and developers are producing in the region. In Singapore, it is a solution that is comprehensive and highly efficient in land use and energy consumption, because of the reduced necessity to travel far to access daily needs and routine services. Singapore’s planned new towns also accommodate a cross- June 2014 • ISSUE 5 Singapore in a new development, to sheer rhetorical invocation. For …in its developing example, the developer of Citra neighbours…the Raya in Surabaya, Indonesia, was so enamoured with Singapore’s social redistributive urban planning, he reproduced aspects of the the national icons of Singapore, Singapore public including the statue of Raffles, the colonial founder of Singapore, and housing programme… the Merlion, a tourist attraction, have completely in the housing estate. A different disappeared… example involves a former mayor of Bangalore. After a visit to non-replicable Singapore in 1970, he tried to spur under different local developers to collaborate with political regimes. the city, to transform Bangalore into the “Singapore of South Asia”, but without a programme of actions to produce concrete results. section of the national population Regarding referencing Singapore, in terms of social class, race China deserves particular mention. and status. But in its developing The late Deng Xiaoping visited neighbours, such high-rise housing Singapore in 1978. He was so estates reappear as relatively impressed with what he saw small-scale, gated communities that in 1992, during his famous for the privileged new rich. The “southern tour”, he instructed social redistributive aspects of the Chinese bureaucracy thus: the Singapore public housing “Singapore’s social order is rather programme, which are so critical good. Its leaders exercise strict to social and political stability and management. We should learn the legitimacy and longevity of the from their experiences, and we ruling government, have completely should do a better job than they disappeared – it is not so much do.” This may be read as a ignored as it is non-replicable under shaming and chastisement of the different political regimes. Chinese bureaucracy and its actual A place can also become a point performance on the job. of reference through other ways, from extreme adulation that leads to the “cloning” of parts of 107107 opinion

Deng’s remarks were, arguably, the background to the development of the Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP), which adopted industrial and residential planning guidelines developed in Singapore. Although its success is a qualified one, it was apparently very well received by “Singapore as reference” mayors all over China. According to Singapore Prime Minister ...should be taken as an Lee Hsien Loong, during his visit evocation of the possibility of a to China in 2010, in every city better future and a provocation he visited, “the local Chinese government leaders want an SIP- to achieve it… like park of their own.” In recent years, Singapore government- linked companies have been active in collaboration with their Even as the Singaporean model Chinese counterparts in developing travels to other cities via public comprehensively planned industrial and private parties, “Singapore as cities, including an Eco-city in reference” should best be not taken Tianjin and a Knowledge City in too literally as a “reproduction” of Guangzhou. Both private and state- the city, even in small measures. owned Singaporean architectural Rather, it should be taken as an and urban planning companies evocation of the possibility of a have also benefited, receiving better future and a provocation to commissions and consultancy work, achieve it, by and for others – if from stand-alone building projects Singapore, a small island-nation to planning of entire housing without natural resources could estates, from not only the region succeed, “we” should be able to do but further afield, in the Middle the same, if not better. East and Africa. That, I believe, is the spirit of Deng’s exhortation to the Chinese bureaucrats. June 2014 • ISSUE 5