Faced with the realities of current crises, it's easy to assume our world is headed in a bleak direction. But there’s good reason to be hopeful— with developments in science and technology, a positive future is more viable than ever before. So, what if the future was awesome?
Let’s explore what the future of three cities could look like, if we harness the tools we already have at our disposal to solve today's problems. These visions are inspired by solarpunk, an art and social movement that imagines sustainable worlds in which humans, nature, and technology exist in harmony.
It’s 2125. In the past, Los Angeles was running out of water and its citizens were dependent on 5 million cars. Today, people glide down highway 101 on electric bikes, buses, and trains. There’s no fee for these services— instead, folks contribute their technical or gardening skills, or provide entertainment for others as they go.
Year-round sunlight makes LA well-suited to solar infrastructure, but water is still limited. City dwellers manage this by maintaining water-efficient farms in high rises, and within the 17 million square meters of land that once housed parking spaces. Here, students and scientists mist local fruit, vegetables, and grains with nutrients. They also create portable farms, stacking layers of plant and fertilizer into temperature-controlled shipping containers that can be transported out to city residents and beyond.
In Lagos, Nigeria, the city’s coast is completely transformed. In the past, sand mining and urban expansion eroded roughly 84% of the shoreline, which put the city at risk of catastrophic flooding. But the city responded by restoring the wetlands, which now act as natural sponges. An intricate array of pipes, equipped with turbines, capture the energy of flowing water and convert it into electricity. This powers buildings and services all over Lagos, like the city’s famous Balogun market, where people come together to trade, socialize, and entertain.
Along the coast, people steward thousands of native mangrove plants, which act as carbon sinks, clean up the pollutants of the past, and support biodiversity. This area celebrates the mangrove in many forms— local designers use its tannins to dye fabrics, while scientists research its pharmaceutical potential and its uses as a natural pesticide. Further out to sea, people embrace sustainable fishing practices and repurpose fish processing waste to power ships, floating farms, and public housing.
Meanwhile, São Paulo, Brazil has fully reimagined housing. In its industrial past, the city battled heavy pollution, and up to a third of the population lived in unsanitary conditions. But today, homes, schools, local government buildings, and entertainment spaces are made from repurposed materials from the former auto industry. These buildings generate their own solar power and capture rainwater to reuse. At the center sits a new solar football stadium, which generates energy and doubles as an incubator for growing native plants. In areas where the land remains toxic, citizen scientists are stewarding thousands of mushrooms. These mushrooms break down the bonds in the decades-old chemicals which remain in soil long after the burning of oil, gas, and household garbage. They then produce new spores, attracting insects and birds to the area once again.
These versions of LA, Lagos, and São Paulo embody the principle of life enmeshed with the promises and limitations of its surroundings. And while this future may seem far from reach, it is achievable, and it might not even take us 100 years to get there.
All over the world, communities are embracing these and similar ideas to build more sustainable systems. In Vancouver, Indigenous First Nations are building affordable, net-zero housing projects incorporating green spaces and bike infrastructure. In Singapore, urban farms flourish on skyscrapers and in the shells of former prisons. In Prague, urban beekeeping takes flight in hotels and theaters.
Optimism can be a powerful mobilizing force. From natural technologies to renewable energy, we have so many transformative tools at our disposal. All we need is the will to implement them.
