Spared the same degree of civil unrest as its neighbours elsewhere in the Middle East have witnessed, Doha is part of Qatar's push to become an urban exemplar for the region, diversifying away from an oil-based economy by investing in education, enterprise, sport, transport and the quality of the public realm.
Lots of 'solutions' get presented at events like the Urban and Housing Development conference in Cape Town, but can a model be sustainable if it excludes large parts of the city?
Alan Gilbert doesn't believe there is one, but if one must speak of a global urban agenda, he would point to local private sector lobbies as the common force driving similar agendas in cities around the world.
There is much to be commended, and much to be weeded out, in Foster's vision for a new London airport in the Thames Estuary and the proposal for a new transport, utilities and data spine running the length of the country.
Bus maps can play a role in drawing people into greater engagement with the city they live in.
Transferring the national government to a new city is an escapism that won't solve Jakarta's problems.
To get the greatest efficiencies out of London's bus system, radical new technologies should be implemented, including displaying the number of passengers on each bus, smartphone apps, and optically-guided kerbside stopping for accessibility.
Zoe Green is a chartered planning consultant with Atkins Ltd, with experience in policy and masterplanning projects for both private and public…
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The Global Urbanist is an online magazine reviewing urban affairs and urban development issues in cities throughout the developed and developing world.
Its readers are drawn from the urban policy and international development sectors, and include urban planners, officers in local, national or international government agencies, civil society leaders, and researchers.
