Cities are diverse, complex, and dynamic systems. How can we plan them in a resilient direction?

The UN-Habitat’s definition of urban resilience refers to “…the measurable ability of any urban system, with its inhabitants, to maintain continuity through all shocks and stresses, while positively adapting and transforming toward sustainability. A resilient city assesses, plans and acts to prepare for and respond to hazards – natural and human-made, sudden and slow-onset, expected and unexpected – in order to protect and enhance people’s lives, secure development gains, foster an investible environment, and drive positive change.” In this definition we find three key words (or rather three key concepts) that are extremely simple but at the same time particularly meaningful: assess, plan and act. In the belief that developing a resilient and sustainable city requires a roadmap of actions and activities that are both implementable and feasible, yet precise and ambitious in their expected impacts, the paper seeks to explore how we can use the resilience approach as a catalyst for sustainable urban development. Through this vision cities can be interpreted as ‘evolving places’ formed by an intertwined set of structures resulting from diverse and competing forces, cultural and natural, whose patterns vary in response to the specific context. The paper proposes three ‘meta’-themes to which to refer our design: Integrated Planning, Resilient Infrastructures and Responsive Preparedness. And so, we can imagine the resilience like a catalyst for sustainable urban development. It ensures development gains are not lost when cities face shocks and urban residents can flourish in a safe environment while addressing major challenges such as climate change and rapid urbanisation.