The Dallas Innovation Alliance’s Jennifer Sanders was honored to participate on the Advisory Board for ThoughtLab’s recent study on Building a Future City.

Executive Summary: Cities are in the throes of unprecedented change. Still reeling from the pandemic, and now facing economic, social, and climate disruptions, cities must quickly come to grips with the rising expectations of citizens. These run the gamut: wider digital access to public services, medicine, and education; more sustainable and safer infrastructure, mobility, and living conditions; and greater inclusiveness, public health, and affordable housing.

Baby steps won’t be enough. To overcome today’s urban challenges, cities must become future-ready. They need to morph into sustainable, inclusive, resilient, and safe metropolises—with newly fit-for-purpose digital and physical infrastructure.

This is no easy task. Today’s cities face severe skills shortages and budget constraints that make it difficult to keep up with the pace of change. They must contend with onerous political processes, changes in administrations, and regulatory and procurement complexity. Added to that is the need to put out daily fires.

To provide urban leaders with a roadmap for futureproofing their cities, ThoughtLab teamed up with Hatch Urban Solutions and a coalition of business, government, and academic leaders to conduct this ground-breaking research, titled Building a Future-Ready City. To analyze the latest views and strategies, we benchmarked 200 worldwide cities—representing 5% of the global population. In addition, we surveyed 2,000 citizens across 20 cities, interviewed city decision makers across regions, and held discussion groups with urban leaders and experts.

Read the full study here!