Initiative
The Ecological Sequestration Trust

How resilience.io can build value into city regions

Burgess COMMENTARY

Peter Burgess

https://youtu.be/huWTJ-F8bZA?list=PLDD5EC048401B0F6C

How resilience.io can build value into city regions The Ecological Sequestration Trust The Ecological Sequestration Trust Published on Jun 9, 2015

Our world is rapidly developing and cities must cope with increasing environmental, social and economic pressures.

Everyone wants to live in a clean, safe place that is resilient to these changes . . . but cities often have to choose between competing objectives: like building new homes whilst protecting the environment, or improving transport while reducing air pollution.

Currently there is no robust way for city planners to decide where to focus their resources. Existing ways of measuring progress ignore the ecological and social impacts of development, so one objective might be achieved but only at the expense of others.

Understanding the connections between transport, housing, waste and energy needs, can help inform better decision making.

The Ecological Sequestration Trust is building a systems model called http://resilience.io. Our approach is to combine layers of data, to build a comprehensive representation of a city's economy, ecology and human activity. Policies and decisions, systems interactions, resource flows are all combined into a three dimensional landscape.

For example, the poor air quality from burning coal is a public health issue for society.

One solution might be building a geothermal power plant which reduces air pollution, improves public health and cuts carbon emissions. It could also heat greenhouses for year round food production.

resilience.io will help everyone understand the costs and benefits of proposals like this and be accessible through their computer or digital device.

Whether a proposal is to finance a new transport system, or a regeneration programme, resilience.io ensures benefits are maximised.

resilience.io helps cities attract new investment and procure and deliver projects that build greater value for the future.

Animated and Directed by Peter Bunzl - http://peterbunzl.com
Narrated by Kate Rawson - http://katerawson.co.uk