Caves Roger W. - Livable Cities From a Global Perspective

The term livable city has become a commonly used term throughout the globe. It can be found in articles, reports, and books. We hear the term in public meetings, on the radio, on television shows, and especially see it discussed on the Internet. All levels of governments, the private sector, and nonprofit sector have addressed the term in one way or another. It is everywhere. However, for as widespread as its use is, we have many definitions for what actually constitutes a livable city. We use it interchangeably with such other terms as a sustainable city, smart city, eco-city, resilient city, intelligent city, or green city. Common attributes of each term include the need for walkability, the need for a variety of housing types, mixed land uses, preservation of open space, opportunities for civic engagement, job opportunities for all, respecting community character and local heritage, quality educational facilities, low crime rates, balanced transportation options, and so forth. These are all quality of life attributes that cities desire.

The term livable means different things to different people. Cambridge Systematics define livability in the following manner:

Livability is most often used to describe the diverse aspects of society, surroundings, and shared experiences that shape a community. Livability is focused on the human experience of place, and is specific to the place and time in question. It includes an interrelated set of economic, spatial, and social components that together are challenging to understand and measure in the defined world of planning and development. As such, it is best defined by the state, region, association, or community in question, and is best measured at a geographic scale where definitional consensus about livability can be found.

Another organization, Partners for Livable Communities, believes Livability is the sum of the factors that add up to a communitys quality of lifeincluding the built and natural environments, economic prosperity, social stability and equity, educational opportunity, and cultural, entertainment and recreation possibilities.

However we define livable, we will continue to witness debating the attributes that constitute a livable city. Areas want information. They want to know how areas go about achieving the goal of livability. They want to know the efforts that other areas have tried. Have these areas been successful? How long have they been successful? Is everyone able to enjoy the livable city or just certain groups? What are the obstacles areas face in their quests for achieving livability? These and other questions are addressed in the chapters contained in this book.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to becoming a livable city. Cities are unique. Many cities have been proactive is becoming a livable city. Others has procrastinated so long hoping that things get better without any true guidance. These are areas without direction. Areas need effective leadership if they are to become livable in the eyes of its citizens.

With the world becoming increasingly urbanized, this book aims to address how residents and areas around the world have responded to calls for developing livable cities. The book offers case studies on a broad selection of cities and examines how these cities are attempting to achieve the goal of becoming a livable city. It draws on the interdisciplinary expertise of both academics and practitioners from areas around the globe. Chapters examine the following questions:

• How is livable defined?
• Is there an official policy trying to reach it?
• How did the area get to be livable?
• What tools/techniques were used to achieve livability?
• Are there any metrics for determining livability?
• Is the area livable for everyone or certain groups?
• How do we keep a city livable?

The book commences with a strong introduction into the various dimension of livability. It discusses the concept of livability, a discussion of movements related to livable cities, a review of various ranking systems of livability and concludes with a discussion on how it relates to sustainability and to resilience.

The remainder of the book is divided into five parts, with each part containing case studies of three cities from around the globe. discusses how three areas are actually creating livability. The book concludes with final remarks on livable cities from a global perspective and a list of websites for readers to get more information on livability for the cities covered in this book.