Cities are ageing. This observation applies to the physical infrastructure of cities - their built environment and urban systems – and also to their economic and social structures, to their populations and to their more intangible assets such as place identity. A major component of ageing is in the life cycle of the hard infrastructure – the materials that make up the physical structures, some of which is dealt with under routine maintenance and some which requires more ad hoc and radical solutions. Cities also ‘age’ in relation to changing societal goals and technological change which may be more difficult to anticipate. For example, many cities that were designed around mobility through the motor car now need to adapt to more sustainable modes of transport. And cities age in relation to their ‘soft infrastructure’ - their social, economic and cultural systems. Cities which were constructed to meet the needs of heavy industry may need to change to facilitate economic restructuring to include more service based jobs. The urban cultural heritage of cities may be important for place attachment but it requires careful conservation and adaptation.
Ageing brings costs and benefits. On the positive side, systems may operate more effectively and a strong sense of shared identity may emerge. But many effects of ageing require intervention and maintenance, often at great cost, especially where elements of the city ‘come to an age’ at the same time, as in new towns. There can be no ‘future-proofing’ of the city, but it is certainly possible to plan and build cities that are more adaptable to unanticipated demands.
The many smart city, intelligent city and eco-city strategies around the world are responses to the common core challenge which is to give new life to ageing hard and soft infrastructure, to transform existing ageing districts and to plan and create more adaptable environments.
Ageing affects both fast developing regions of Asia, and the established and relatively stable cities of Europe. In the Pearl River Delta the unprecedented magnitude of new construction in infrastructure and housing has led to rapid expansion and restructuring of city regions. Attention is now turning to questions of upgrading and transformation of the first waves of urbanization. In the Netherland, especially in the core metropolitan region of the Randstad, urban renewal and regeneration have been at the forefront of debate for many years. In both regions urban transformation in response to ageing cities is seen as an opportunity to improve their prosperity and sustainability.
The two conferences on “Ageing Cities” consider the current and future challenges of transforming the built environment to repair ageing structures, to accommodate change and to anticipate and plan for more adaptable cities. The viewpoints come from the academic, practitioner and government sectors and range across many disciplines: materials science, digital design, urbanism, planning, architectural design, civil engineering, technology policy and urban management, and more. They discuss the challenges and new ways of planning, design construction and maintenance concerning the adaptability and resilience of the built environment. They propose new technologies that will improve the durability of materials, buildings and infrastructure, as well as new management models dealing with complexity and uncertainty in the transformation of ageing cities.
城市在老化。这体现在城市的基础设施 – 它们的建成环境和城市系统 - 经济和社会结构,人口和更多的无形资产,如地方的身份。老化的主要部分是在硬件基础设施的生命周期 - 物理结构的组成材料,其中一些被例行维护,另一些则需要更多特别和彻底的解决办法。城市的老化与不断变化的社会目标和技术相关,这可能更难以预料。例如,为机动车设计的流动性城市现在需要适应更可持续的交通模式。城市的老化也和“软件基础设施”相关 – 它们的社会,经济和文化体系。为满足重工业需求的城市可能需要转变为促进经济结构调整,以提供更多的服务性岗位。城市的文化底蕴可能对地方依附很重要,但它需要精心的保护和适应。
老化带来了成本和效益。从积极的方面看,系统可以更有效地运作,并可能出现较强的共同身份意识。但是老化的很多负面影响需要采取措施和维护,往往需要付出高昂的代价,尤其是在城市元素“到了一定年纪”,在新城也同样。城市可以不“着眼于未来”,但完全可能规划和建设更适应无法预料的需求的城市。
世界范围内的很多智慧城市,智能城市以及生态城市策略都主要应对共同的核心挑战,即给软硬件基础设施以新生,转变老化的街区,以及规划和创造适应性的环境。
老化不仅出现在快速发展的亚洲城市,也影响了已建立相对稳固城市的欧洲。在珠江三角洲,新建设的基础设施和住房规模空前,导致快速扩张和城市地区的结构调整。现在注意力转向了第一波城市化的升级和转型问题。在荷兰,尤其是在兰斯塔德核心大都市区,城市改造和更新多年一直处于讨论的最前沿。在这两个地区,为促进城市繁荣和可持续发展,应对城市老化的变迁被视为机遇。
这两次“老化城市”的会议讨论了当前和未来的挑战,包括改变建成环境来修复老化的结构,适应变化,预测和规划更适应的城市。观点来自于学术界,实践者和政府部门,涉及众多学科范围:材料科学,数字设计,城市设计与规划,建筑设计,土木工程,技术政策和城市管理等。参与人员讨论了规划,设计建设和维护的挑战以及新途径,以提高建成环境的适应能力和弹性。他们提出了利用新技术来提高材料,建筑和基础设施的耐久性,以及新的管理模式,以应对老化城市转型的复杂性和不确定性。
Ageing brings costs and benefits. On the positive side, systems may operate more effectively and a strong sense of shared identity may emerge. But many effects of ageing require intervention and maintenance, often at great cost, especially where elements of the city ‘come to an age’ at the same time, as in new towns. There can be no ‘future-proofing’ of the city, but it is certainly possible to plan and build cities that are more adaptable to unanticipated demands.
The many smart city, intelligent city and eco-city strategies around the world are responses to the common core challenge which is to give new life to ageing hard and soft infrastructure, to transform existing ageing districts and to plan and create more adaptable environments.
Ageing affects both fast developing regions of Asia, and the established and relatively stable cities of Europe. In the Pearl River Delta the unprecedented magnitude of new construction in infrastructure and housing has led to rapid expansion and restructuring of city regions. Attention is now turning to questions of upgrading and transformation of the first waves of urbanization. In the Netherland, especially in the core metropolitan region of the Randstad, urban renewal and regeneration have been at the forefront of debate for many years. In both regions urban transformation in response to ageing cities is seen as an opportunity to improve their prosperity and sustainability.
The two conferences on “Ageing Cities” consider the current and future challenges of transforming the built environment to repair ageing structures, to accommodate change and to anticipate and plan for more adaptable cities. The viewpoints come from the academic, practitioner and government sectors and range across many disciplines: materials science, digital design, urbanism, planning, architectural design, civil engineering, technology policy and urban management, and more. They discuss the challenges and new ways of planning, design construction and maintenance concerning the adaptability and resilience of the built environment. They propose new technologies that will improve the durability of materials, buildings and infrastructure, as well as new management models dealing with complexity and uncertainty in the transformation of ageing cities.
城市在老化。这体现在城市的基础设施 – 它们的建成环境和城市系统 - 经济和社会结构,人口和更多的无形资产,如地方的身份。老化的主要部分是在硬件基础设施的生命周期 - 物理结构的组成材料,其中一些被例行维护,另一些则需要更多特别和彻底的解决办法。城市的老化与不断变化的社会目标和技术相关,这可能更难以预料。例如,为机动车设计的流动性城市现在需要适应更可持续的交通模式。城市的老化也和“软件基础设施”相关 – 它们的社会,经济和文化体系。为满足重工业需求的城市可能需要转变为促进经济结构调整,以提供更多的服务性岗位。城市的文化底蕴可能对地方依附很重要,但它需要精心的保护和适应。
老化带来了成本和效益。从积极的方面看,系统可以更有效地运作,并可能出现较强的共同身份意识。但是老化的很多负面影响需要采取措施和维护,往往需要付出高昂的代价,尤其是在城市元素“到了一定年纪”,在新城也同样。城市可以不“着眼于未来”,但完全可能规划和建设更适应无法预料的需求的城市。
世界范围内的很多智慧城市,智能城市以及生态城市策略都主要应对共同的核心挑战,即给软硬件基础设施以新生,转变老化的街区,以及规划和创造适应性的环境。
老化不仅出现在快速发展的亚洲城市,也影响了已建立相对稳固城市的欧洲。在珠江三角洲,新建设的基础设施和住房规模空前,导致快速扩张和城市地区的结构调整。现在注意力转向了第一波城市化的升级和转型问题。在荷兰,尤其是在兰斯塔德核心大都市区,城市改造和更新多年一直处于讨论的最前沿。在这两个地区,为促进城市繁荣和可持续发展,应对城市老化的变迁被视为机遇。
这两次“老化城市”的会议讨论了当前和未来的挑战,包括改变建成环境来修复老化的结构,适应变化,预测和规划更适应的城市。观点来自于学术界,实践者和政府部门,涉及众多学科范围:材料科学,数字设计,城市设计与规划,建筑设计,土木工程,技术政策和城市管理等。参与人员讨论了规划,设计建设和维护的挑战以及新途径,以提高建成环境的适应能力和弹性。他们提出了利用新技术来提高材料,建筑和基础设施的耐久性,以及新的管理模式,以应对老化城市转型的复杂性和不确定性。