Wold Bank data shows a steady rise in the proportion of the world’s population that live in urban centers, rising from 36.5% in 1970, to 41.1% in 1985, to 46.5% in 2000, to 53.8% in 2015.  By 2030, this is likely to be more than two-thirds of the world’s population. In the United States, while this growth flat-lined in from 1970 to 1990 as many cities experienced social problems and economic flight, urbanization has resumed its march such that by 2015, 81.6% of the population lived in urban areas.

The rapid urbanization and urban regeneration that is happening poses both challenges and opportunities.  Contrary to the expectations of many, urban living can be much more efficient from a sustainability perspective, reducing per capita carbon emissions and lessening the impact on the environment.  At the same time, dense populations can pose a challenge to infrastructure, particularly in older cities that were not designed for the volume of people living in them.

A higher proportion of people living in urban centers also attracts resources, stimulates innovation, and facilitates the development ofpeer-to-peer platforms.  At the same time, this begets the potential to increase The Great Divides of Wealth, Health, and Technology, particularly increasing the divisions between rural and urban populations.  Even within cities we are seeing the effect of an increasing wealth divide where cities essentially become accessible only to the wealthy to actually live in, with service providers having to live outside the city and commute in as the ratio of real estate cost to average wage escalates to seemingly unsustainable levels.

This urban regeneration provides opportunities to business, with dense markets, and increased flow of resources into cities, and opportunities to create innovation centers.  At the same time, with increased abilities to communicate, and the easy access driven by close proximity, the development of peer-to-peer platforms allows the sharing economy to flourish and potentially disrupt more and more.

“The world is urbanizing at an unprecedented rate, and more than half the world’s population live in cities” (World Bank 2018). This Societal Shift explores the pace by which large numbers of people concentrate in relatively small areas. It is expected that by 2050, two-thirds of the world will live in urban areas (UN 2015). Indeed, rapid urbanization is happening and thus, it is imperative to learn where is this growth occurring and what key indicators help us foresee the cities of the future.

More than half of the world’s population lives in urban areas. Due to the ongoing urbanisation and growth of the world’s population, there will be about 2.5 billion more people added to the urban population by 2050, mainly in Africa and Asia. The world’s urban areas are highly varied, but many cities and towns are facing problems such as a lack of jobs, homelessness and expanding squatter settlements, inadequate services and infrastructure, poor health and educational services and high levels of pollution.