With an ever-growing need to adapt to climate challenges, accommodate the wellbeing needs of citizens and truly thrive, the winning cities of the future must overcome the disruptive forces of technology and demographics, and grow their ESG capabilities.

Through a presentation on findings and a panel discussion, we explore how cities around the world will fare against these challenges, and identify those best-positioned to overcome them.

Presenters and panellists:

• Paul Tostevin, Director, Head of Savills World Research
• Lucy Palk, Analyst, Savills World Research
• Simon Smith, Regional Head, Research & Consultancy, Savills Asia-Pacific
• Swapnil Pilai, Associate Director, Research, Savills Middle East
• Raymond Frederiks, Senior Consultant, Data, Intelligence & Strategy, Savills Netherlands
• Lina Liakou, Global Director of Network Engagement for the Resilient Cities Network

Global Resilient Cities

The winning cities of the future must overcome the disruptive forces of technology and demographics, and grow their ESG capabilities. Where in the world offers the greatest opportunity?

Paul Tostevin, Director and Head of World Research led a session assessing how cities around the world are dealing with these challenges, and which are best positioned to excel in the future.

Lucy Palk, World Research Analyst, explored how near-term economic headwinds are already testing city resilience, impacting real estate investment volumes.

The pandemic was perhaps the ultimate test of city resilience.  Tostevin explained how many were quick to write off the city as people moved the suburbs, but cities have survived past recessions and pandemics by adapting and demonstrating resilience.  People are again reconnecting with cities, but in new ways.  The world of work, in particular, has seen a seismic shift as employees have embraced hybrid working.

The environmental challenges facing cities are huge, but some cities are at the forefront of addressing them with more ambitious climate targets than the countries in which they are located.  Decarbonising real estate is central to that.  Savills analysis of global city office markets, for example, shows that Los Angeles, Paris, Frankfurt and Seoul have particularly large ‘green office deficits’ due to volumes of dated stock and limited pipeline supply.

Looking ahead, Savills Resilient Cities identifies those cities that offer the greatest potential.  Assessing 500 cities by their economic strength, knowledge economy, ESG credentials and depth of their real estate markets, big cities dominate the top of the rankings, but smaller cities such as Boston and Copenhagen are on the rise, supported by their outperformance in ESG and the knowledge industries.

An panel discussion followed.  Lina Liakou, Director of Network Engagement for the Resilient Cities Network explained the importance of models of governance that mitigate risk and respond to evolving challenges.  Simon Smith (Regional Head, Research & Consultancy, Savills Asia Pacific) Swapnil Pillai (Associate Director, Research, Savills Middle East) and Raymond Frederiks (Senior Consultant on Market Intelligence, Savills Netherlands) provided regional perspectives on city resilience, highlighting how local differences mean there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to meeting the many challenges our cities face.