16.11.2023

Infrastructures of Life

Seven keynote speakers joined the sixth edition of the Living Cities Forum to rethink infrastructure as a reflection of the interests and values of all living entities – people, cultures, ecosystems and governance – around which a more equitable, inclusive and sustainable society can take shape.

For many, 'infrastructure' conjures mega-projects wrapped in weighty business cases: a hydro-powered dam, epic bridge or fast train. But the infrastructure we need to live well spans education, health, housing, green space, mass transport, telecommunications, sports and cultural facilities and more.

So what do we do with infrastructure projects, generations in the making, that fail to accommodate our ever-evolving society or adapt to a changing climate? How do we address inherited systems that instil disadvantage – and approach an era where data is intrinsic to buildings, systems and even interactions?

Infrastructures of Life presented an opportunity to radically rethink the layers of assumption behind the conventional understanding of infrastructure, to interrogate what we need to collectively live well as we grapple with rapidly changing environmental conditions.

Visit the library page to see the keynote presentations.

How do we rethink our inherited infrastructure, centuries in the making, but which are often engrained with disadvantage and ideologies that are more properly part of our history?

How do we plan for a future that more genuinely reflects the needs of an increasingly diverse society?

How do we account for rapidly changing environmental conditions?

How can we approach a new era of infrastructure, where data, information and interactivity is embedded into buildings, health care systems and even social interactions?