Girding up for adaptive living

THIS WEEK’S TOPIC: What do you see as the most important change cities must make, to be resilient to future shocks?

I believe that the greatest change that cities can make is to instil a culture of innovation among its citizens. The advantages of doing so are numerous. When we look back at how the world’s gross domestic product has grown over the years, we will notice a marked uptick in the last 200 years. This started with the first industrial revolution which saw the advent of steam power and mechanised production. Today we are in the fourth industrial revolution which deals with digital and technological frontiers.

Besides the obvious economic prosperity that innovation brings, it is important to note the more subtle, but no less important, result – sociocultural change. People start to embrace opportunities, think outside the box and understand they can pivot and solve problems quickly. These are important outcomes to build resilience on both the individual and organisational levels.