26-01-2009, Source: Urbanicity.org

his extraordinary increase in urban population comes mainly through the migration of poor from rural areas into urban areas that are ill prepared to absorb them. How will these urban areas provide education, food and shelter, clean water and air, energy, transportation, employment, security, and economic advancement? Scenarios range from utter chaos as the urban areas and their surrounding areas are inundated by uncontrollable masses, to an optimistic technology future in which major advances in science, technology, systems, management and policy provide the needed tools for evolving structures and institutions to provide for this massive shift.

The challenge posed by the transition to urban living is to harness the process to ensure progress towards sustainability. With this in mind, two key propositions have guided the planning of the AGS Annual Meeting 2009:

- that cities, properly managed, can be transformative arenas in which natural resources are used more efficiently and economically, contributing to a high quality of life for everyone;

- that reinventing cities offers one of the most effective ways of reducing human impacts upon the environment and achieving greater sustainability.

The goal of the meeting is to develop a research strategy to help achieve these outcomes.

Click here to view the programme. The programme includes keynotes, panel discussions, workshops, posters and demonstrations. Click here for more information on themes, moderators, panelists, etc.