As global cities face a series of challenges, including climate change, social uncertainty, and resource shortages, urban innovation is gradually becoming a key driver of sustainable development. Under these multiple challenges, many cities have exposed structural issues, prompting profound reflections on urban planning and management worldwide. Recently, Nicholas You, Executive Director of the Guangzhou Institute for Urban Innovation (GIUI) and International Consultant of the Guangzhou International Award for Urban Innovation (Guangzhou Award), was interviewed by a Southern Finance Omnimedia Corp. (SFC) reporter to explore the current state and future trends of global urban innovation, as well as how systematic thinking and cross-sector collaboration can help address present and future challenges.

Current and Future Challenges: Key Issues and Trends in Global Urban Innovation

SFC: In your opinion, in which areas have global urban innovation mainly focused in recent years? And could you share some representative success stories with us?

Nicholas: There is no doubt that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on society. During the pandemic, many cities’ structural weaknesses were laid bare, which was not surprising. Residents faced challenges in accessing essential services, cities had limited green spaces and recreational areas, and some communities experienced shortages of fresh fruit. Before lockdowns, these issues were less apparent due to the convenience of public transportation and other mobility options. However, as lockdown measures were implemented, these problems became particularly clear.

Recently, we have seen many innovative initiatives, particularly those with strong appeal, aimed at addressing these structural weaknesses and ensuring that no one and no place is left behind in the city. The Guangzhou Award has highlighted many successful practices from different cities around the world in addressing these weaknesses. For example, Gwangju, South Korea, introduced an incredibly brilliant initiative specifically designed to support elderly individuals who were unable to receive care during the pandemic. In Bontang City, Indonesia, the local government implemented relevant policies and developed a mobile application to help individuals with disabilities navigate the city more easily and access the services and support they need. Additionally, we have seen similar cases from other parts of the world, with Bogotá being particularly notable. The city launched an effective care program dedicated to supporting those who help others. During the pandemic, we realized that not only did patients need assistance, but caregivers themselves also faced tremendous challenges and pressure. Therefore, I believe there are many good cases worldwide that we can learn from, and cities can learn from each other.

SFC: Looking ahead to 2025, what key trends do you foresee in urban innovation? How do you anticipate these trends will affect different regions?

Nicholas: I believe that climate challenge is affecting everyone equally, regardless of whether you are from the Global North or the Global South, or whether you live in a rich country or a poor country. We’re all going to be more frequently and more severely affected by climate change. This is an extremely urgent issue, and I hope to see more innovative approaches to deal with climate change, as its effects on our cities are severe. We’ve seen this just in the past year, how many cities have been flooded, and how many are affected by extreme weather patterns. Not to mention the disaster that is occurring now in Los Angeles. So, these are issues that we have to deal with urgently and require entirely new thinking, new ways of identifying the problem, and new solutions.

Another significant trend is the development of artificial intelligence. Many cities around the world are using various digital tools to help them address existing as well as future challenges. I find this to be an exciting field, as it goes beyond traditional smart city tools. In the future, we will see more and more examples of cities using digital tools to help them solve their problems.

Cross-Sector Collaboration and Systems Thinking: Key to Strengthening Urban Resilience

SFC: Nowadays, environmental crises, economic fluctuations and social uncertainties have increased significantly, and cities are facing challenges, such as limited resources and complex conflicts. In this context, what strategies should cities adopt to achieve technological or economic progress while ensuring sustainability and inclusivity?

Nicholas: Whether it is climate change or global pandemics like COVID-19, I think what these challenges underscore is the absolute necessity for us to make our cities and the communities within our cities more resilient. The people, communities, community groups, organizations, and our institutions have to figure out ways to become more resilient.

One of the ways of doing this is by working across sectors, working in interdisciplinary matters, and going towards a systems approach. We can no longer look at, for example, the issue of water independently of energy, our food system, or our transport system. All of these are systems that contribute to the livelihoods of people in a city, and they have to be looked at together. We cannot just try to make a city more resilient by focusing on these areas independently of one another. We have to look at them as an entire ecosystem. So, I think this is something we are beginning to see, especially through the Guangzhou Award: more thinking, more pilot initiatives, and more attempts at adopting a systems approach to development.

SFC: Looking to the future, how do you see the Guangzhou Award further contributing to sustainable urban development globally? What are your expectations for the development and roles of the Guangzhou Award in 2025?

Nicholas: I think what is happening is a very fortunate confluence between the methodologies in our concept of what urban innovation is, together with what's happening in the real world.

What is happening in the real world today is demonstrating that we need to have mechanisms where we can share knowledge, expertise, and experience from what works in real-time. We don't have the time to look at best practices, analyze them a few years afterwards, doing a full evaluation, coming up with policy recommendations, and trying to influence what's happening on the ground. Cities have to have a means by which they can learn from each other's successes and the less-successful ones if they want initiatives in real-time. And I think we are very fortunate that the Guangzhou Award, which happens periodically every two years, enables us to disseminate the lessons learned. And I think this is beginning to be appreciated by our users, partners, the local authorities and their associations. This is the future -- To think about how can we work together to provide knowledge, expertise, and experience in real time.