Course Summary
We are living in the urban age with close to 54% of the world's population living in cities. By 2050, this proportion is anticipated to grow to 84%, with most of this growth in China and India, which are projected to become the two largest economies in 2050.
At the same as our population and economic activity continues to grow, scientists argue that to avoid dangerous, runaway climate change, we must greatly reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.
At present, approximately 30 billion tons of carbon dioxide is being emitted worldwide annually. If emissions continue at this rate, the global carbon budget could be exhausted as early as 2035. The window of opportunity to begin the transformation society to shift away from fossil fuels is closing, and emissions must begin declining before 2020. This energy transition, from fossil fuels to renewables, will impact on how our cities are organised and function. From a more positive perspective, there is research to show that there are pathways to achieve deep decarbonisation available for many countries.
In this course, the main capability developed is a skill in examining possible future directions for cities such as Tokyo, Osaka, Bangkok, Melbourne, Honolulu and Apia to respond effectively to the interconnected concerns for climate, energy, food security and other pressing global issues.