Sustainable Cities Reimagined

"Since the early 1990s, cities and researchers have made strong efforts to measure urban sustainability. The emerging indicator framework for Sustainable Development Goal 11 on 'making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable' provides clear guidance to governments at different levels to assess progress. This book offers a diverse set of complementary perspectives, which may inspire academia and urban practitioners alike to continue exploring the deeper assessment of urban sustainability." - Raf Tuts, Director, Programme Division, UN-Habitat

"An Indian saying states that we do not inherit the planet, but rather we borrow it from our children and generations to come. When we consider that civilization as we know it is 6,000 years old, the detrimental consequences of inhabitation, affluence, and industrialization over the past 200 years cannot be overstated. Sustainable Cities Reimagined is a meticulously researched assessment of all forms of global cities - autonomous cities, megacities, clusters, and city states. It is a much-needed resource in this tsunami of global crises, which includes exploding global population, C02 emissions and climate change, renewable energy resources in the age of peak oil, social inequities and public health, and adequate affordable housing for a burgeoning populace. Analyzing, understanding, and evaluating multi-disciplinary data sets of indicators such as economic, environmental, physical and social is crucial to ensure a sustainable livelihood for future generations. Stanislav Shmelev's extensive collection of data serves as a benchmark for all who are in a position to affect change that will impacts our communities, our cities, and our Earth home as a whole." - Dhiru Thadani, AIA, APA, FCNU, Board Member, ISOCARP, the author of The Language of Towns and Cities: A Visual Dictionary (2010), co-editor of Leon Krier: The Architecture of Community (2009) and author of Visions of Seaside: Foundations / Evolution / Imagination / Built & Unbuilt Architecture (2013)

"This book is based on an extraordinary amount of research. It shows that future-proofing the world's cities is one of humanity's greatest challenges. Now the time has come to create urban systems that are truly compatible with the world's ecosystems on whose integrity human existence ultimately depends." - Herbert Girardet, Member of the Club of Rome, co-founder of the World Future Council, the author of Cities, People, Planet: Urban Development and Climate Change, (2004 and 2008), A Renewable World: Energy, Ecology, Equality (2009) and Creating Regenerative Cities (2015)

"Fabulous collection of data on cities of the World. Successful climate policies are hardly conceivable without using those data!" - Ernst von Weizsaecker, Professor, former Chairman of the Bundestag's Environment Committee and Co-President of the Club of Rome