Cities globally are facing complex challenges including climate change, social inequality, and economic instability. These challenges often lead to unequal and unsustainable development (Kubina et al., 2021) and prompt re-evaluation of development strategies towards resilient urban systems (Asadzadeh et al., 2022). Urban innovation plays a crucial role in enabling cities to transform their systems and rebound from major disturbances such as the COVID-19 (Ribeiro & Gonçalves, 2019; Rippon et al., 2021). A systematic literature review is established in this study on the trends of urban development and the post-COVID challenges facing cities in different geographical regions. The investigation further reviewed 13 urban awards and 15 urban indicators systems that assess urban excellence in cities innovation and transformation. Content analysis covered their evolution since 2010, with a particular focus on critical urban issues and their change over time to better understand the fundamental/paradigm shifts in urban challenges and cities development. The scan revealed an evolving broader transformation in how urban innovation efforts are recognized and celebrated, aligning with current urban issues, such as social inclusion, public engagement, and the effective use of digital platforms. The study contributes a detailed review of the learning points of the approach of awarded cities and projects, with public policy takeaways regarding cities transformation towards greater resilience.

Authors:
Jiaxuan Wang, Singapore University of Technology and Design, Singapore
Belinda Yuen, Singapore University of Technology and Design, Singapore

About the Presenter(s)
Jiaxuan Wang is currently a Senior research assistant at Lee Kuan Yew Centre for Innovative Cities, Singapore University of Technology and Design.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Saturday Schedule

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