In 1991 City Council issued a challenge to create a community that is sustainable: "on the south shore of false creek, develop a neighbourhood that is the model of sustainability, incorporating: forward-thinking infrastructure; strategic energy reduction; high-performance buildings; and high transit access". This webpage highlights the planning policy that responds to Council's direction, and also provides site information, guiding documents, and current planning initiatives.

One of the problems I have with a lot of what passes for smart infill development - on the whole, a good thing - is that parks and green space are treated as afterthoughts at best, and frequently ignored altogether.

Después de unos años de debilidad las soluciones tecnológicas atacan de nuevo. Todos aquellos que conocen mi defensa de la eficiencia en el funcionamiento de edificios, ciudades y territorios, puede que se sorprendan de este ataque frontal a una de las etiquetas (Smart City) que, últimamente, aparece por todas partes como la solución a nuestros males. Pero es que creo poco en que la serie de inventos tecnológicos que están apareciendo con el objetivo supuesto de aumentar la eficiencia del sistema urbano resuelvan el problema.

Hot spots is an Economist Intelligence Unit research programme, commissioned by Citigroup, which ranks the competitiveness of 120 of the world's major cities. The Economist Intelligence Unit bears sole responsibility for the content of this report. The Economist Intelligence Unit's editorial team built the Index, conducted the analysis and wrote the report. The findings and views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect the views of the sponsor. Our research drew on two main initiatives: A unique Index that compares 120 of the world's major urban agglomerations across eight distinct categories of competitiveness and 31 individual indicators. These cities collectively represent about 29% of the global economy, with a combined GDP of US$20.24tr. A detailed note on definitions and methodology is provided in the appendix. We conducted in-depth interviews with ten city experts, mayors and corporate executives, to get their insights on city competitiveness.

Macro forces continue to have an impact on the global influence of cities. Political power is rotating back from West to East, and with economic drivers having shifted from agrarian to industrial to information-based, more people live in cities than in rural areas. While New York, London, Paris, and Tokyo still rank among today's top cities, it appears that Beijing and Shanghai may become significant rivals in the next 10 to 20 years. These are among the highlights of the 2012 Global Cities Index (GCI), a joint study performed by A.T. Kearney and The Chicago Council on Global Affairs. In addition, a panel of academic and corporate executive advisors informed and challenged the study results. We've expanded this year's study; in addition to classifying the current global influence of 66 cities, we have also developed an Emerging Cities Outlook (ECO) to project which emerging-market cities may eventually rival the established global leaders for dominance. Figure 1 summarizes the 2012 results, along with the rankings from our 2008 and 2010 findings of major world metropolitan areas. (The censorship metric added in 2010 affected the positions of several emerging-market cities.) In the first section of this report, we explore the results and implications of the 2012 GCI rankings. The second section summarizes the results of our Emerging Cities Outlook, which analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of cities in developing markets by examining the rates of change and key factors that will affect their ability to capitalize on future globalization trends (see Appendix: About the Study).

Open knowledge repository (World BanK)

his section contains some practical tools for you to try and work with. They have been used in 70 cities throughout Europe and brought important and innovative results. Have a look at: Future City Game - a team-based process designed to create new thinking and action to improve quality of life in cities Urban Ideas Bakery - builds skills and shares experience on how cities 'bake ideas' - that is turn them into practical solutions, Exploratory events - a series of events to provide a forum for sharing of knowledge and ideas about creativity, entrepreneurship and innovation in urban development.

The Global City Indicators Facility provides an established set of city indicators with a globally standardized methodology that allows for global comparability of city performance and knowledge sharing. This website serves all cities that become members to measure and report on a core set of indicators through this web-based relational database.

With its sparkling harbour, enticing beaches and a climate to die for, Sydney is regularly rated as one of world's top ten most liveable cities. But from Friday the state government of New South Wales will pay residents A$7,000 (£4,500) to leave.

We are experiencing an unprecedented change in the way we live. Populations are growing and expectations changing. We need to make places of habitation that are efficient, culturally appropriate and environmentally accountable. Arup is uniquely placed to provide these places in the 21st century.