Conscious Coastal Cities: Sustainability, Blue Green Growth, and The Politics of Imagination

328 Pages·2016·6.149 MB·English

by  Voula P. Mega (auth.)

Voula P. Mega
Conscious
Coastal Cities
Sustainability, Blue Green Growth,
and the Politics of Imagination
Conscious Coastal Cities

Voula P. Mega
Conscious Coastal Cities
Sustainability, Blue Green Growth,
and the Politics of Imagination
after a special authorisation by the European Commission
Voula P. Mega
PhD in City and Regional Planning
and Policy
Brussels , Belgium
[email protected]
The author retains the copyright to all Watercolour illustrations.
ISBN 978-3-319-20217-4 ISBN 978-3-319-20218-1 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-20218-1
Library of Congress Control Number: 2015953832
Springer Cham Heidelberg New York Dordrecht London
© Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016
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In memoriam Professor Sir Peter Hall
Disclaimer : “The views expressed are purely those
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I magination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to
all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire
world, and all there ever will be to know and understand
Albert Einstein
Want of foresight, unwillingness to act when action would be simple and
effective, lack of clear thinking, confusion of counsel until the emergency
comes, until self-preservation strikes its jarring gong, these are the features
which constitute the endless repetition of history
Winston Churchill
T he greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and fall-
ing short, but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark
Michelangelo
With every drop of water you drink every breath you take, you ‘reconnected
to the sea. Health to the ocean means health for us.
Sylvia Earle
All things move and nothing remains still …
Heraclitus
vii

Pref ace
T ry to imagine the world without cities. It would be like a world without sea, with-
out excitement. As humanity progressively and irreversibly becomes urban, the
future of the planet is more and more decided in cities. It seems that, in the noblest
adventures of the century, cities will lead and countries will follow. Most of the
globe’s economic activity is funnelled through cities and especially coastal and
maritime cities. They have the opportunity and the responsibility to lead the world
towards sustainable development.
T he sheer size of cities is crucial, but also their potential to generate and capture
positive synergies, their capacity for creativity and innovations and the intercon-
nected local political leadership which heralded the era of urban geopolitics. Urban
democracies, advocating for citizens to be at the heart of policies, could bring an
extraordinary momentum in times of global democratic and trust defi cit.
T his book sheds particular light on coastal cities, places of exceptional opportu-
nities and tensions at the junction of marine, land, air and human ecosystems. From
seaside resorts and delta cities to maritime hubs, the spectrum of coastal cities
includes very diverse typologies. They can all generate very diverse exceptional
synergies, out of the interacting strengths and weaknesses of both cities and coasts.
The book highlights particular threats and opportunities, and underlines effective
imaginative responses that can inspire cities to address the challenges of the future
in harmonious symbiosis with the sea.
Humanity owes much of its prosperity to seas and oceans. Oceans are the ulti-
mate life support system. Water has not only been a precondition for life on earth
but it has provided vital resources to society and endowed some cities with special
assets, from fi sheries and sea transport to recreational activities, raw materials and
energy. Since the age of ancient metropolises on the sea, many port cities concen-
trated not only commercial and economic wealth, but also political and even cul-
tural power. Privileged access to the sea has often invited economies to exchange,
trade and expand. The proximity of the sea and, through maritime routes, of the
shores of the world, makes coastal cities more open and inventive, rich in experi-
ences that can be offered to both citizens and visitors.
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