From 0 to 100: Balancing multi-generational spatial needs
Our population is changing, as are our lifestyles. This change requires careful consideration of present and future spatial needs for all generations, ranging from age 0 to 100. Do their diverging interests have to be treated separately, or do these have to be addressed in a ‘one size fits all’ solution? What is implemented today might not hold up a few decades from now.
Pressing issues regarding the housing crisis, the energy crisis, and overburdened infrastructure demand critical thinking and creative innovations from the future professionals of our working field. Are these crises to be addressed merely in the short term, or are long-term solutions required? Solutions can range from new sustainable housing concepts, altered mobility flows, and the redevelopment of physical as well as digital activity spaces. The latter also imposes the questions how do different generations meet and, more importantly, how do different generations interact? Can spatial planning connect generations?
In times of change connecting society proves urgent. Current trends like an aging population and societal individualization are slow processes, something we have grown accustomed to. Still, the past few years have shown increasing polarization, with more and more extreme expressions of discontent. New ways should be found, not only for current generations but even more for generations to be born. Accelerated acts of connecting may create a balanced future for all.