We are now at the dawn of the urban century. What does it mean that half the earth's people now live in cities - and that two billion more will join them over the next twenty-five years? How does this change the way the world works? As an urban nation, with nearly 90 per cent of its population living in cities, how can Australia lead the way?
In Welcome to the Urban Revolution, Jeb Brugmann offers an eye-opening new anatomy of the living city. Taking you on a street-level tour of our urbanizing planet, Brugmann challenges conventional thinking and reveals cities as the medium for revolutionary change. From Tehran to Gdansk, urban uprising have transformed global politics; from Guangzhou to Toronto, health crises such as the SARS epidemic are urban phenomena; from Bangalore to Chicago, cities are the incubators of new industries and environmental solutions.
Welcome to the Urban Revolution argues that the twenty-first century's greatest challenges can-and must-be met through new approaches to city building. Exploring the successes of cities such as Barcelona, Vancouver and Curitiba, Brugmann shows how we can transform cities into more productive, equitable and sustainable places.