未来城市 / Cities of the Future

未来城市

鉴于中国农村人口源源不断涌入城市，且规模之大史无前例，因此可持续城市的规划和建设就变得格外重要。

12月初，保尔森中心在北京举办了“未来城市——现代中国的城市可持续性研讨会”。会上，大批国际、国内权威专家以及城市市长交流了经验和看法。有关研讨会的详情，请浏览：http://119.254.6.194:9000/cites/city/choose

保尔森中心设于芝加哥大学，由美国前财长亨利•保尔森创立，始建于2011年，旨在促进可持续经济发展及清洁环境，最初以美国和中国作为研究重点。此次在北京召开的研讨会已是保尔森中心和中国国际经济交流中心第二次联合举办的年度会议。保尔森本人一直热衷环保，曾担任大自然保护协会的负责人。

此次研讨会，我有幸在“转变行为方式”分论坛担任主持人。消费者需要对能源和水的消耗以及其他关乎环境的行为更加负责。我所在的分论坛主要讨论如何更好地教育、告知和劝导公众采取可持续环保的行为方式。

教育显然是解决方案之一。包括保尔森在内的几位嘉宾都在演讲中提到，子女和孙辈是促进家人更加注重环境的中坚力量。受过良好教育的年轻人绝对可以对长辈产生积极的影响。

我自己就能证明这一点。我女儿常为家里的水电消耗、垃圾分类和回收提出好点子。这激发了我思考如何改进工作中的相关习惯，并为所住的公寓设定了一套分拣可回收垃圾的新规则。

千里之行，始于足下。如果看到同事、亲戚或者邻居都作出了改变，人们自然也会乐意改掉自身的坏习惯。

包括北京代理市长王安顺、南京市长季建业在内的中国主要城市市长，以及美国费城市长麦克尔•纳特都出席了研讨会并参与讨论。麦克尔•纳特也是美国市长协会会长。

其他分论坛的参加者还包括城市规划大师、建筑师、能源和水专家、学者、研究员、中外非政府组织负责人、企业高管，以及中国重要的地产开发商。

许多专家一致认为，城市规划应以人为本，应提供多种交通方式——包括步行、骑车、各类公共交通——以及绿色健康的环境和充足的康乐设施。

相反，很多中国城市目前的设计都是以车为本，没有以人为先。宽阔、繁忙的街道既不方便行人，也不便于骑车。令人欣慰的是，一些中国城市已经开始试点，对某些区域进行重新设计，力求做到以人为本。其中一些项目还有外国专家参与。

中国城市要实现可持续性还面临诸多挑战，包括：城市规划、税收政策、垃圾管理、区域划分、能耗规定、市长业绩指标、居住许可等等。

麦克尔•纳特市长谈到费城自2008年设立可持续性办公室之后取得了巨大进展，这让我倍受鼓舞。

费城在美国早期历史中居功至伟，但20世纪后半叶却遭遇经济严重下滑，犯罪率居高不下，城市一片衰败。因为就算是免费度假，人们也不愿意去那里，所以费城一度沦为笑柄。

但是，费城打了个漂亮的翻身仗，不仅人口增加，大学毕业生本地就业率提高，城市清洁和绿化也取得重大进展。如今，费城实现了垃圾零填埋，取而代之的是垃圾回收再利用或转化为能源。

过去，费城每处理一吨固体垃圾需要支付68美元，而如今每回收一吨垃圾还可收入65美元。垃圾回收也创造出新的就业岗位。街道两旁安装了太阳能垃圾粉碎器，还附带有专门收集可回收垃圾的容器。这些垃圾桶每周倾倒5次。

这个故事说明，如果有领导、有计划、有决心，可持续城市既有经济合理性，也能改善人们的居住工作环境和健康状况。

2010年，人类历史上城市人口首次超过半数。对中国乃至世界来说，改善城市规划、寻找城市可持续性的途径都已不再是可有可无的装饰，而变得生死攸关了。

保尔森中心的这场研讨会产生了一系列有价值的观点和交流。明年的研讨会已在计划中，并将附带其他相关活动。

Cities of the Future

Given the ongoing historic mass migration of people from China's countryside into her cities, planning and implementing sustainable urban environments is enormously important.

In early December, The Paulson Institute organized a conference in Beijing called "Cities of the Future – Urban Sustainability in Modern China". The event featured an impressive array of Chinese and international experts and mayors to share their views and expertise. For a detailed conference program, see: http://119.254.6.194:9000/cites/city/choose

The Paulson Institute, based at the University of Chicago, is the brainchild of former U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson. It was founded in 2011 with the objective of promoting sustainable economic growth and a cleaner environment, with an initial focus on the U.S. and China. This was their second annual conference in Beijing, held in cooperation with the China Center for International Economic Exchanges. Paulson has long been an ardent environmentalist, and is a former chair of The Nature Conservancy.

I was fortunate to be able to moderate a panel discussion on bringing about behavioral change. Consumers need to become more responsible with regard to energy and water consumption, and a host of other behavioral issues which impact the environment. The question our group discussed is how best to educate, inform, and persuade the public to behave in more environmentally sustainable ways.

Education is an obvious part of the solution. Several speakers, including Secretary Paulson in his keynote address, cited personal examples where their children or grandchildren were catalysts for more responsible environmental behavior at home. A better educated younger generation does influence the behavior of their seniors in a positive way.

I can personally attest to this. My daughter has been a source of good advice in our family on energy and water consumption, waste sorting and recycling, etc. That helped spur me to think about improving related habits at work, and to suggest a new waste sorting scheme for recyclable materials in the apartment building where we live.

Big changes begin with small steps. People are far more likely to change bad habits after they see their peers, family members or neighbors changing.

Other discussions at the conference included the mayors of various important Chinese cities, including Beijing's Acting Mayor Wang Anshun and Nanjing's Mayor Ji Jianye, as well as Mayor Michael Nutter of Philadelphia, who is also Chairman of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

Other sessions brought together leading urban planners, architects, energy and water specialists, academics and researchers, Chinese and international NGO leaders, and corporate CEOs, including some leading Chinese real estate developers.

One of the common observations by many experts is that cities should primarily be places designed for people, with multiple choices for modes of transportation -- including walking and bicycling as well as various forms of public transport -- plus green and healthy environments with adequate recreational options.

By contrast, many Chinese cities are currently better designed for cars than for people, with wide, busy boulevards suitable neither for pedestrians, nor bicyclists. Encouragingly, a number of Chinese cities have pilot studies underway in which certain districts are being re-designed to be more people-friendly. International consultants are involved in a number of these projects.

The challenges involved in making Chinese cities more sustainable span a wide spectrum from urban planning, tax policies, waste management, zoning, regulations involving energy consumption, key performance indicators for mayors, residence permits, etc.

I was encouraged by Mayor Michael Nutter's description of the great progress Philadelphia has made since it established a Sustainability Office in 2008.

Despite its great historic role in early American history, Philadelphia had the reputation during much of the second half of the 20th century as a city in serious economic decline, with high crime rates and urban decay. It became the butt of jokes as an undesirable place to visit, even if you were sent there on a free vacation.

Philadelphia has clearly turned a green corner. Population is growing, a much higher percentage of graduates of the city's many universities are staying to work and live there rather than leaving, and major progress has been made in making the city cleaner and greener. Currently, zero solid waste goes into landfills; instead it is either recycled or reprocessed into energy.

Instead of paying US$68 per ton to dispose of solid waste, the city now earns US$65 per ton from recycling. In the process, jobs have also been created. Along city streets, solar-powered trash compactors have been installed, with recycling units attached. These are emptied 5 times per week.

The moral of the story is that with leadership, planning, and commitment, urban sustainability makes economic sense while also bringing improvements to people's health and the environment in which they live and work.

In 2010, for the first time in human history, half the world's population lived in cities. For China as well as the rest of the world, better urban planning and finding ways to make cities more sustainable is not cosmetic. It's now a matter of survival.

The Paulson Institute conference yielded a host of valuable insights and exchanges. Another event is planned for next year, as well as other supporting activities.