In a world currently unrecognisable in terms of changed living habits, never has it been more relevant to adopt an opportunity mindset than now. As with many challenges, there are always green ‘lightbulbs’ lurking and whilst we move into a second lockdown phase, let’s use our collective minds to bring about a landmark turning point for future sustainability and resilience.
Some of the best innovations have adapted as a force for good. The NHS, a creation of the Atlee government in 1944 and a concept still admired throughout the world as a healthcare service for all, is still heroically surviving, despite years of underfunding, creating a resilient response to the current crisis.
At these challenging times there is a call for the creative, innovative and brave to come forward, to unite across all civic, political, commercial and community boundaries and use the power of data analytics, good design and collaborative and creative thinking to shape better services, better places to live and to re-draw future habitats which are greener, smarter, circular and resilient.
During the pandemic, communities have already driven change. We have seen a resurgence of growth in smaller local economies as secondary shopping centres and villages are favoured destinations over larger towns and cities. Large conurbations have seen a considerable drop in footfall as working patterns change and travel restrictions affect our cities tourism but cities are crucial to our longer term economic recovery and world-wide influence and are striving to lead that recovery from the bottom up.
The real gatekeepers of Place, its future success and the services people will demand are surely those who know their areas best and have a vested desire to succeed. Prior to the pandemic, the world united in the climate change agenda after one young voice sought change for future generations. Of late we are seeing these same green shoots of local action where community leaders and metro mayors are taking control, re-working their future place ambitions and lobbying Government hard to re-think their positions.
Local communities, businesses and learning institutions, working with their public authorities as well as Government, can unite to re-shape their local vision for towns and cities but it needs to be locally driven with a mindset to succeed and include our youth in our place shaping dialogue. Government needs to set longer term funding solutions too with regulatory parameters that are flexible enough to allow sustainable design, innovation and continued safe growth. Now more than ever, local politicians need to look to the future and unite behind their communities’ needs, move forward with revised growth proposals, where they can, and put to one side political differences to lead on the inclusive society model for recovery.
If we can understand the balance needed between keeping communities safe but enabling continual enjoyment of places by all, which in turn promotes local, green growth and improved, inclusive wellbeing, we can adapt local places for all to thrive in new look environments that stimulate innovation, promote multi-sectoral responses and aid quicker, consensus led economic recovery. Planning for the type of district centre that our communities will demand in future not only needs their input but their trust that we will deliver.
In cities and larger towns this will be more challenging due to scale and reliance on the working economy and tourism to drive economic recovery and growth. This is unlikely to return to sustainable levels quickly. Nevertheless, the key indicators that have challenged our cities’ growth before the pandemic are still there. Re-building our cities’ futures is a key component to regional and national recovery. Tackling wealth inequalities, air quality and congestion and redesigning places with smart city concepts, needs to be driven harder than ever to create the economic growth which will move us forward again. Addressing these issues with construction and innovation led solutions has to be the catalyst for opportunity - and with all Place making challenges solutions are possible when we unite in succeeding for the communities we serve. It will also take bold and courageous decision making which may be politically costly but likely to be more socially acceptable than a few months ago.
Nobody is saying any of what we are facing at present is easy and nobody is saying we have the answers but the civic response has always had great determination to adapt and succeed whatever the challenge. Our success with effective collaborations across a wide spectrum of pioneering innovators will determine how well we move out of the current crisis to a more sustained recovery position with inclusive, innovative and creative re-design of services and places.
Karen Whelan is the former chief executive of Surrey Heath BC and a director at Henry Finall Consulting