Why use an urban system?
Systems thinking helps us achieve thriving, green and resilient urban places
We use systems thinking to consider the interactions and interlinkages that exist in what we do.
In the context of cities and towns and urban places, this means the interactions and interlinkages of how people's lives, the places where they live and work, and the nature we exist with, join together.
Using the Urban 2.0 system can provide the following benefits:
- Connecting the dots, avoiding silos - a systems approach ensures we consider all aspects and apply the Urban 2.0 principles when we look at specific challenges and ideas for urban areas, which helps us with aspects including policy and regulations, placemaking approaches, design and scope creation, and the implementation of initiatives.
- Ensuring meaningful involvement - by using the system we need to involve everyone in discussions and reviews (because we must think of all parts and aspects of the city / town).
- Achieve good outcomes - by applying the system we focus on achieving meaningful benefits that make a difference in the near-term and the long-term.
The Urban 2.0 System
A system for achieving thriving, green and resilient urban places
The Urban 2.0 system has five interlinked parts:
(1) governance which oversees
(2) the ecological system
(3) the physical (structural) system
(4) the socio-economic system
(5) and knowledge sharing and continuous improvement [the "glue" between (2), (3) and (4)]
These five parts are comprised of 17 sections, each of which are sub-divided into greater detail.
All 17 sections are interlinked with each other. For example, Infrastructure: transport & mobility has links to the 16 other sections, which influence how well it functions - meaningful benefits are not solely about providing good transport infrastructure.
Indicators in the system
A set of "key indicators" - which can be adapted for specific contexts - have been created for city and towns to focus on and use to monitor performance. These indicators should be linked to a city / town Vision and Plan, and they can be linked to an urban diagnostic if appropriate. They are designed with flexible threshold levels and ranges, to be reviewed in each urban context. Good governance should ensure that when an agreed indicator threshold is reached some form of action is required, which needs to be monitored to see how effective the response is.
The indicators used in Urban 2.0 are a combination of "lag" (backwards looking) and "lead" (forwards looking) indicators. Lead indicators are important to spot potential problems early and deal with them before they become bigger.
Underneath the key indicators is a detailed set of approx. 260 "urban indicators" which can be used to support a detailed diagnostic of a city or a town in its entirety, or for a part of it (e.g. transport, urban ecology or disaster resilience). 260 indicators might seem like a lot - it is because cities and towns have many parts to be considered and managed. These urban indicators have been written in plain language so that they align to real-life city and town structures and activities.
The urban indicators could be audited and benchmarked against and also linked to an urban diagnostic, if such an approach is being used to understand the current state and future needs of one or more cities and towns.
As is typical for metrics measurement and reporting, it is suggested that independent assurance could add value by verifying the quality of tracking against the urban indicators.
The Urban 2.0 system and its indicators are connected to global goals
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are integrated into the Urban 2.0 system (when updates to the SDGs are agreed in 2030, the Urban 2.0 system will be updated to suit), for cities and towns that want to use this mapping. This is achieved through the 260 urban indicators being linked to the UN-approved SDG Global Indicators which exist underneath the 17 SDGs.
A summary of the flow of Urban 2.0 to SDG connectivity:
URBAN INDICATORS > SDG GLOBAL INDICATORS > SDGs
Visit the "Links to UN frameworks" section for more details.
Find out More
Find out how the Urban 2.0 system can be used to ensure urban places are the best they can be.