The Executive Council of Dubai panel discussion: People-centric cities
The Executive Council of Dubai panel discussion, which
concluded Expo 2020 Dubai’s third pre-Expo thematic week on Wednesday, also discussed
how we can effectively transform our cities in order to make them more
resilient, robust and adaptable for future generations.
It
featured opening remarks from His Excellency
Dawoud Al Hajri, Director General, Dubai Municipality, with a panel that
included Mahra al Shamsi, Urban Design
Section Manager, Dubai Municipality; Honourable Mxolisi Kaunda, Mayor of Durban, South
Africa;
and Diana Alarcón González, Chief
Advisor and Director of International Affairs, Mexico City.
Hosted by Expo 2020 and delivered in collaboration with the United
Nations Human Settlement Programme (UN-Habitat) and Siemens, Expo’s Premier
Infrastructure Digitalisation Partner, Urban and Rural Development Week addressed
how the world’s population will live and grow in harmony with our planet.
THE
EXECUTIVE COUNCIL OF DUBAI PANEL DISCUSSION HIGHLIGHTS
HE Dawoud
Al Hajri, Director General, Dubai Municipality,
said: “By placing people at the centre of the urban design process, we should
be able to create outcomes that are beneficial for everyone, so that our cities
and quality of life become increasingly better over time. We are in the process
of developing the new Urban Plan 2040, which is highly focused on increasing
the wellbeing, activity and health of the nation through public-realm
interventions, including walkability, cycling, sports and the development of
socially inclusive and universally accessible designs. We are developing a city
that is vibrant, with liveable communities, by enhancing citizens’ experiences
with open public spaces throughout the city. Our vision is to become the best
city for living.”
Eng. Sanaa Al Aleeli, Director of Urban
Planning & Studies Department, Dubai Municipality, said: “At a strategic level, we are currently working on Dubai
Urban Master Plan 2040, which is a long-term plan to achieve the vision of
making Dubai the best city for living. We will place people’s happiness and
wellness at the centre of any planning initiative. We defined five pillars in a
framework for the city-centric plan – participation, choices, accessibility,
mobility and quality – which will be articulated through strategies, programmes
and performance indicators to monitor implementation.”
Speaking about the importance of the city masterplan in creating
pedestrian-friendly environments, the Hon
Mxolisi Kaunda, Mayor of Durban, South Africa said: “The promotion of
non-motorised transport is important. It reduces the travel costs of already
financially-stressed residents in our cities. It promotes health and wellbeing.
Most importantly, it reduces the emissions of greenhouse gases in urban areas… Durban
has already established a series of cycling routes within the city and surrounds.
We are currently expanding its network to accommodate both professional and
recreational cyclists… As part of our five-year plan, about 88 corridors have
been identified, of which 31 have been prioritised to have a high range of
usage that benefits large numbers of existing and potential non-motorised
transport users across the municipality.”
Diana Alarcón González, Chief Advisor and
Director of International Affairs, Mexico City, focused on the city’s people-centric approach to governance: “We
have a structure of governance where people’s participation and consulting
processes take place on a regular basis… For example, we are just starting a
very wide and broad consultation process for the long-term development plan for
the city – our Vision 2020-2040. Another example of the kind of things that
have to go through consultation includes planning permission for building
structures larger than 3,000 sqm. The consultation process will focus on the
impact this will have on the local community, who will have a say on such a
large project. Additionally, whenever there are changes in what we call
conservation land – the areas in which indigenous populations live – there has
to be a process for consultation as well.”
Discussing the impact that hosting a World Expo has had on Milan, Dr Davide Ponzini, PhD, Associate Professor
of Urban Planning, Politecnico di Milano, Italy, said: “Expo 2015 was a turning point for Milan... The
celebration itself took place on a large platform on the outskirts of the city,
which is still being redeveloped along with the surrounding district. There was
also a smaller scale set of events that was promoted in Milan under the banner
‘Expo in the City’. It was a very powerful set of more than 45,000 events
during the year of celebration of Expo 2015. Over 1,000 sites were used across
the city and were transformed in order to host these kinds of events. There has
been a long-lasting impact in terms of the change of the public realm, as well
as certain buildings to host events. Milan is now entering the planning for the
2026 Winter Olympics, which I hope will use a similar strategy of spreading the
events across the city.”
Divya Prakash Vyas, Deputy Regional
Director, South & West Asia, C40 Cities, said: “We need to have an approach that looks at humanising
infrastructure because the majority of our cities have large infrastructure
that is not very responsive to people’s needs… For instance, we have land use
plans and structure plans that have their own limitations – these plans need to
be complemented by focused, small-scale interventions, such as local area
plans, and focus on urban design, which ensures the public realm is integrated
with the surrounding development, not creating islands of excellence. It’s an
approach where public spaces are accessible to all, irrespective of the type of
development.”