The research project “Future Urban Industry: integrating economic, built and ecological systems for resilient cities” received $8.9 million funding from the latest Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) Endeavour Research Programmes round (the largest New Zealand’s contestable research fund).
The project, led by Professor Paola Boarin (Future Cities Research Centre), together with Professor Jacqueline Beggs (Ngā Ara Whetū: Centre for Climate, Biodiversity and Society) and Dr Garry McDonald (Market Economics Ltd), examines how urban industrial areas can better integrate economic, ecological, and built systems to enhance resilience.
The urgency to address this issue stems from a severe weather event that occurred in New Zealand in 2023. Cyclone Gabrielle struck the urban industrial areas of the North Island, causing devastating impacts, particularly in the Auckland region. Many businesses had to shut down for long periods, particularly due to flood damage.
Additionally, public areas and infrastructures were significantly impacted. The event stressed the importance of investing in strategic solutions to make urban industrial areas more resilient. By applying the Horizon Scanning (a strategic approach used to identify trends, risks, and opportunities that could impact an organization or a sector), the project team engaged target stakeholders (including local councils, local and global AEC industry leaders, and sustainable business councils) to identify problems, explore possible approaches to address the emergency, and define the project pillars.
The research team’s approach aimed to shift the perspective: rather than being discouraged by the severe weather event, they sought to turn the challenge into an opportunity to make urban areas more responsive and adaptive for the future.
Strategies and innovative technologies for the Urban Industry Zones’ future
Regenerative urbanism is the guiding thread of the project, not only to enhance the resilience of threatened areas but also to restore ecological systems and revitalize areas impacted by severe weather events, thereby generating thriving communities.
The research will concentrate on urban Industry Zones (UIZs) that may be considered vulnerable. UIZs are large industrial areas, with numerous commercial enterprises, and adjacent residential communities . The analysis examines these zones from three main perspectives:
- The built environment: defining how to improve structures, infrastructures, and the urban space.
- The ecological system: studying how to enhance and restore natural environments, reducing climate risks.
- The economic aspects: identifying how to support local businesses and communities, strengthening long-term economic capability.
The group will also develop innovative Ecological Economics Simulation Models and digital twin solutions to simulate potential future climate scenarios and understand long-term impacts of implemented strategies on the selected areas and the stakeholders involved.
The importance of multidisciplinarity
“The research team is highly transdisciplinary. We have architecture, urban planning, urban design, landscape architecture, engineering, social sciences, ecology, economy, computer science, occupational epidemiology, and Indigenous researchers working around these vulnerable populations, Māori businesses, and so forth. The group composition was deliberately designed to encompass diverse areas of expertise and varying levels of experience, fostering collaboration across disciplines and enabling younger professionals to further develop their research profiles”, says Professor Paola Boarin.
Collaboration strengthens the project, and GET is proud to be part of this journey as sustainability experts, supporting the definition of urban regeneration initiatives and sustainability goals and strategies to be implemented in Urban Industry Zones, referring to international standards such as LEED and WELL for Communities.
Future prospects and expected impact
With the launch of the research project, a precise roadmap has been established to achieve the desired outcomes.
- Years 1-2: Define, understand, and assess sustainability in Urban Industry Zones across five areas: socio-economic systems, built and urban form and infrastructures, ecological and environmental systems, Indigenous and community perspectives, and associated multisensory environments (visual, smell, taste, sound, touch). Identify indigenous, community, and stakeholders’ aspirations as well as future sustainability targets and goals for the same five areas, considering their interdependencies.
- Year 3: Co-produce preliminary strategies and plausible scenarios for sustainability outcomes in urban industrial zones involving all stakeholders (business, communities, government, AEC industry), using narratives that capture emerging and potential megatrends in climate change, technological disruption, and socio-ecological shifts over a 100-year period.
- Year 4-5: Produce an integrated transdisciplinary framework for urban industrial zones and define practices and policy interventions for sustainable transformation, including implementation plans and indicators for long-term monitoring of outcomes.
Thank you to Professor Paola Boarin for involving GET in this project. Collaboration between industry and academia enables the creation of transformative solutions by combining professional expertise with thorough analysis. This exchange fosters the opportunity to discover new insights, supporting the development of innovative strategies to create more resilient Urban Industry Zones.
