Corporate Social Review Magazine 3rd & 4th QUARTER 2012 | Page 113

JHB City-States INNER CITY How cities are vital to the future of sustainability In the 21st century, cities will increasingly be the frame through which we understand and shape our shared economic, political and cultural circumstances. They will also be ground zero for the collision of economic, environmental and social imperatives that de?ne sustainability. Together, these facts suggest that in proactively addressing the challenge of urban sustainability, business and others may have an opportunity to harness the power and positive characteristics of cities to drive sustainability more widely. It is in this context that Citystates proposes a pair of related hypotheses : (1) sustainability needs cities as much as cities need sustainability, and (2) business and others should view cities as an increasingly crucial and constructive frame through which to understand and pursue sustainability. Speci?cally, we see cities as both linchpins and levers for sustainable development, and a source of potential lessons for how to drive the sustainability agenda forward. Linchpins As cities come to house more and more people, metabolize a greater share of resources, and further shape the broader physical, economic and social landscape we inhabit, their sustainability becomes key to planetary sustainability. Levers As hotbeds of innovation, cities could effect the speed and ef?ciency with which we develop new sustainability solutions. Furthermore, because of their growing power and in?uence, cities may provide a crucial means for replicating and driving successful solutions to scale. Lessons Many cities are setting the example for how to confront challenging issues head-on. As such, they provide numerous lessons for how to address sustainability challenges more widely. Photo: Chris Krichhoff CORPORATE SOCIAL REVIEW 111