SMArt CitIES Network for Sustainable Urban Futures (SMARTIES Net)

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In a rapidly urbanising world where more than 50% of the global population lives in cities, the way in which cities are planned, built, operated and redeveloped has increasing social, environmental and economic importance. The concentration of people in cities continues to grow and is anticipated to double by 2050 driven by internal and external economic mobility, and migration from rural environments and global conflict zones putting direct stress on housing, infrastructure and services. Governments and city governors are increasingly developing city visions which identify long-term goals for IT (connectivity/'smart' systems/digital services), infrastructure (housing /transport /water/waste/energy/goods/food) and development (green growth/livelihood improvements) but urban sustainability is challenged by social (poverty/cohesion/inclusion/diversity), environmental (extreme weather/tectonics/disease outbreaks) and economic (recession/declining labour market/oil price fluctuations) factors which frequently operate on shorter timescales and which can impact severely on cities, urban ecosystems and people. To achieve sustainable solutions to these challenges requires innovative thinking and multidisciplinary teams of talented researchers who can develop novel approaches in partnership with communities and stakeholders locally, nationally and internationally. This project brings together such a team from the UK and India to create a SMARt ciTIES Network which will develop future thinking and new approaches to increase the sustainability of selected cities in both countries. Through networking events, workshops and entrepreneur competitions we will focus on addressing the big issues faced by urban planners and governors including traffic congestion, affordable housing, the provision of accessible, resilient and future-proof infrastructure for clean water and sanitation, transport and energy, and waste management and recycling while ensuring all citizens have equal access to and participation in a city life which is safe, secure, inclusive, healthy and desirable.