A City That Gives Us the Confidence and Hope to Change Our Society

As we commute less to work and school, and travel less to buy convenience goods, bicycle paths and sidewalks lush with greenery are being developed in urban areas. Experiments are being conducted to replace modes of transport such as railways and buses with smaller-scale alternatives better suited to the city. In each region, businesses have taken charge of the local infrastructure, and are operating in balance with the core infrastructure with the help and understanding of citizens.
As we become freer to choose where we live, competition will emerge among cities. Some will attract citizens, while others will lose them. Cities with dwindling populations will not attract businesses to handle their basic infrastructure. Younger generations will no longer have a reason to move to the city, and local communities will lose hope for the future. While charismatic individuals have stepped forward in some regions to guide city development in a promising direction, problems with continuity and the scope of citizens' involvement inevitably arise. Many regions will seek models for running cities that do not require such charismatic individuals.
Against this backdrop, schools are emphasizing curricula that teach individual citizens how to speak up, get involved, and change the actual workings of society. Students across all grades are making real change and even building new systems in their communities. Businesses that work with cities are also keen to give citizens the opportunity to get involved in activities to change their cities and restore the natural environment. These opportunities allow citizens to make concrete changes to their cities, such as junior high school students generating their own power to supply to the local community, or building new pedestrian crossings with traffic lights around their schools. Building a "commons" for citizens to engage with in this way, and providing opportunities that are synergistic with commercial activities is becoming a central theme in business today.

Keywords for Thinking About Quality of Life In a Sustainable Society: "Hackable Infrastructure"

Social Infrastructure That Builds the Confidence to Change Our Own City

Until now, infrastructure has been valued for its immutability and stability. While its value in terms of safety remains unchanged, enabling people to reshape the infrastructure supporting their cities will be of great value, unlocking a creative confidence in the local community. Technology will need to adapt accordingly, to support a new order in which ordinary people can "hack" their public spaces.