Demystifying Complexity in Cities: The Urban Anatomy
Cities are complicated. Having a perfect understanding of the pillars that make up a city in silo, such as the mobility, food & waste, or utility network, does not translate to having a perfect understanding of the entire city’s behaviour. In other words, similar to organisms, ecosystems and social networks, cities are Complex Adaptive Systems. A Complex Adaptive System is a broad system which is both complex, due to the many interconnected working parts, and adaptive, because it is constantly changing and evolving. If your interested in learning more about Complex Adaptive Systems and the laws that govern them, then I highly recommend reading Geoffrey West’s book Scale: The Universal Laws of Growth, Innovation, Sustainability, and the Pace of Life in Organisms, Cities, Economies, and Companies. It is a fantastic book.
Anyway, Max Rostron & I, from the Innovation & Strategy practice within Accenture Digital, spend a lot of time working with organisations who operate across the urban realm and are looking to plan for the future. One of the main reoccurring challenges faced by the clients we work with is where to begin when trying to navigate the complexity of a city. To simplify this for them, we put our heads together one afternoon and looked to break a city down into its fundamental pillars and identify the interrelationships between them. The result is The Urban Anatomy (diagram below), a series of twelve pillars which underpin the way citizens can live, work and play in cities. In the diagram, we also show the level of influence that one pillar has on another pillar within the city. This was calculated as part of a survey we conducted with dozens of Accenture urban experts on what they think is important and interrelated in a generic city. The colours represent which of the two pillars has a greater influence. The width of an individual chord within a pillar represents the level of influence received from another pillar. Furthermore, the total width of the pillar represents the influence that pillar has in the wider city system.
For example, our initial survey found that Safety in a city is influenced more by a city’s Culture than it influences the Culture and that Health was the most influential pillar. Of course, when a survey is conducted on a specific city or city archetype, the pillars and level of influence within them will adjust accordingly.
We think The Urban Anatomy is a fantastic starting point for any organisation working within the urban realm to consider when building for the future. For instance, to help an organisation aligned to the Mobility pillar, it is critical to understand how mobility influences and is influenced by other pillars within the urban anatomy. Ultimately, as we stated at the beginning cities are complex and if you would like to find out more about how The Urban Anatomy can help you demystify, navigate and thrive in future cities, then please do get in touch!
Co-authored: William Brouwer & Max Rostron
