Consumers as producers: This concept is already an emerging
reality with small expert groups in the open source or 'maker' movements starting
to create open access alternatives (open source ecology being a prime example).
Touching on this ideal are the prospects of food patents, technical drawings
and schematics freely available online for localised manufacturing and in the
words of architect Keller Easterling "the internet of things pre-empts a
future in which the computer has escaped the box, and ordinary objects in space
are carriers of digital signals". The 'Internet of Things Academy' (IOTA)
is one such concept by Superflux that would completely change the way in which we
transact goods and services.
The implications of such a reality would be profound and
these ideals do make a case for self-sufficient rural communities. I do believe
however it would need to be coupled with radical shifts in the values and
mindset of society particularly in the global spectrum . While it would allow
for individual communities to exists and function internally it would also spur
a great deal of worldwide collaboration. The below video by Sony Community Futurescapes presents an
interesting interpretation of such a reality.
Smart cities: While there are projects underway that look to
create the ultimately eco-city it still remains that we must re-engineering our
existing urban environments regardless of the potential success these alternative
solutions may entertain. Therefore emerging is the notion of, overlaying existing
physical infrastructure with digital information to help them function more
efficiently. According to Peter Madden (2011) "the very fabric of the city
– its roofs, waterways and roads – will be used to generate energy, distributed
through a finely calibrated smart grid. Cities will develop a collective
consciousness, built from real-time mood mapping, collaborative online platforms,
and an advanced understanding of millions of people’s everyday actions".
Indeed smart city experiments are already underway with initiatives such as
America Online and London Datastore.
I would suggest however there are several dangers to these
prospects; firstly by managing individual problems more efficiently rebound or
displacement effects may arise, particularly in relation to transport use and
mobility. Coupling smart-city strategies with sustainable initiatives such as
public transport or individual emissions tracking may be one solution to
shifting such behaviour. Secondly, I think it's plausible to foresee some
degree of compliancy in future generations, a mentality perhaps that suggests
'technology will prevent or save us from disaster, disease and famine'. A case
for this is made in the article TsunamiWarning, Written in Stone where communities did not heed the advice of
their ancestors. Notions then of using technology to communicate across
generations is perhaps a necessary and useful outcome. The below video produced in a collaborative partnership between Forum for the Future and Sony Futurescapes touches
on this idea and highlights the prospects of employing technology and a
collaborative approach to its application.
Sustainable urban enterprise: This notion is underpinned by a
question. That is, how can cities provide the right environment for sustainable
enterprise to flourish, whilst at the same time providing a high quality of
life for local communities. Cities have long been central to thriving business
environments however as sustainability is rapidly becoming a factor to forward
thinking businesses (Forum for the Future, 2012) it would reasonable to assume
that urban resilience will be underpinned by the capacity of cities to adapt to
a range of issues. A report by Opportunity Peterborough outlines the
following framework for creating a sustainable business environment:
Proximity to market - Think connectivity, rather than physical
distance.
Communications - Think access, rather than movement.
Access to resources - Think lower consumption, and higher quality of
life.
Provision of utilities - Think independent supply streams.
Land/space premises - Think systematically about the interaction
between buildings and the urban infrastructure around them.
Access to talent - Think about matching green skills to green
business needs.
Attractiveness of place - Think about designing the city for people, not
cars.
Government incentives - Think big AND small: infrastructure investments
need to be big, but community planning should be small-scale.
While these
aren't necessarily suggestions for the reality of future scenarios I do think
that they provide a good deal of thought provocation as I move forward in this
unit particularly having nominated the suburban theme as my first preference.
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