A Guide for Sustainable Urban Development of the 21st Century

Shanghai Manual – A Guide for Sustainable Urban Development in the 21st CenturyCHAPTER 3 -- TRANSFORMING THE URBAN ECONOMY 1To Pursue Inclusive and Balanced Growth…Cities should balance economic growth and social development; seek to achieve an optimal relationshipbetween social equity and economic efficiency; strive to create an institutional environment of sharedrights and interests, equal opportunity, and fair competition; and work to reduce inequities in income.They should enable all residents to share the fruits of urban development and fully realize their personalgrowth.…And Balanced Urban-Rural DevelopmentCities should coordinate balanced development with rural regions through the provision of services andinfrastructure. Cities should strive to reduce the urban-rural gap, take into consideration the interests ofdisadvantaged social groups, and encourage and aid the integration of rural populations into the city.More efforts should be taken to improve and optimize urban-rural linkages as well as regional networks.Cities should actively initiate urban-rural dialogue to achieve harmony in their interactions.Shanghai Declaration on Better Cities, Better Life1. ISSUES AND CHALLENGESCities represent the most powerful economic engines in the world. The transformation of cities tosustainable economic development will be critical to the 21 st century global state of affairs.As a Mayor, you have many options that you might exploit to transform a city’s economy.Energy use, which has a commensurate impact on carbon emissions, presents a strong lever foraddressing global climate change. Alternatively you may choose to focus on other sectors asurban needs for water, materials and infrastructure are increasing at exponential rates. Cityofficials and traditional urban planners are struggling to sustainably grow their economies and1 This chapter was authored by Warren Karlenzig, with valuable input and contributions from Zhou Zhenhua andMohan Peck.1