This lecture was originally scheduled for Wednesday 16 September.
The (dis)advantages of continuous expansion
Part of the theme series De Stad / The City
Cities are self-organizing, adaptive systems. Pieter Hooimeijer, professor of Human Geography and Demography, discusses the interaction between the city and its residents: do cities make people or do people make cities?
In Asia, large metropolises are developing into even bigger megalopolises. These urban agglomerations play an increasingly important role in the global economy, at the expense of traditional nation-states. In Europe on the other hand, cities show only moderate growth or even face decline. What drives the success and failure of cities throughout the world and what are the (dis)advantages of continuous expansion? Hooimeijer will discuss such topics as smart specialization, the role of the new middle class and the quality of life in vibrant cities.
Pieter Hooimeijer is professor of Human Geography and Demography at the Urban and Regional Research Centre of Utrecht University. He examines the interactions between the behavior of individuals and their households and the social and physical structures at varying temporal and spatial scales, both in the Netherlands and elsewhere.