APPROACHES CITIES CAN USE TO
PROMOTE SUSTAINABLITY AND
SMARTNESS
Ebenezer Annam
R2108D12680788
Environmental Sustainable Engineering and Logistics
UEL-EG-7037
8th November, 2022
Urban infrastructure is the backbone of any city. It's responsible for providing and
maintaining the services that make our lives easier, and it's responsible for carrying out
those services in a way that doesn't compromise the environment or human health. The
challenge when it comes to urban infrastructure is keeping up with growth while also
making sure that every bit of space we use is as efficient as possible—and that means
considering not just how we develop new buildings, but also how we maintain existing
ones.
One way cities can promote sustainability and smartness is by implementing sustainable
practices when it comes to how they build new buildings. For example, they can use
materials like steel instead of concrete or wood, which will require less energy to
construct and help reduce carbon emissions from construction. They can also consider
using renewable energy sources like solar panels, wind turbines, or geothermal heat
pumps for heating and cooling systems in new buildings.
Another way cities can promote sustainability is by encouraging residents to use public
transportation more often than driving their cars—which reduces congestion on city
roads and allows people to have more time for other activities like walking or biking.
One of the greatest challenges a major city in my country would face in using this
approach to achieve 'sustainability and smartness' is the lack of availability of high-
quality data. This can be solved by building a system for the collection, storage, and
distribution of relevant information about a city's infrastructure, including information
about its environment (such as air quality), energy consumption, waste management
practices, etc.
A major city in my country faces several challenges when trying to use this approach to
achieve sustainability and smartness.
First, there are a lot of people who live in our cities and they need homes to live. These
homes need to be built somewhere and this can be done with sustainable materials.
However, the construction industry is very competitive and workers are paid very little.
This means that most people will not be able to afford a home made from sustainable
materials.
Second, because there are so many people living in cities, there are also many jobs that
need to be done by them. The only way these jobs can be done is with machines
powered by electricity which requires fossil fuels. This causes pollution and climate
change which affects everyone's health negatively.
The city of Accra in Ghana faces many challenges when it comes to sustainable
engineering and logistics.
The city is a major port on the Atlantic Ocean, which means that it is responsible for
handling all sorts of cargo, from food and consumer goods to raw materials and
manufactured goods. This creates an enormous number of opportunities for waste,
pollution, and accidents.
Additionally, the city has a population of over one million people; this means that there
are over half a million vehicles on the streets at any given time. This number is
expected to rise as more people move into the area and more businesses set up shop
nearby.
Finally, there are a number of other factors that make this city particularly challenging:
climate change has already made it difficult for residents to keep their homes warm
during winter months; natural disasters like hurricanes can also wreak havoc on
infrastructure; and there is no centralized authority governing how these issues should
be handled.
References:
Ahvenniemi, H., & Huovila, A. (2021). How do cities promote urban sustainability and
smartness? An evaluation of the city strategies of six largest Finnish cities.
Environment, Development and Sustainability, 23, 4174-4200.
Das, D. K. (2020). Perspectives of smart cities in South Africa through applied systems
analysis approach: A case of Bloemfontein. Construction Economics and Building,
20(2), 65-88.
Vukovic, N. A., Larionova, V. A. & Morganti, P. (2021). Smart Sustainable Cities:
Smart Approaches and Analysis. Ekonomika regiona [Economy of region], 17(3), 1004-
1013. https://doi.org/10.17059/ekon.reg.2021-3-20.
Wahab, N. S. N., Seow, T. W., Radzuan, I. S. M., & Mohamed, S. (2020). A systematic
literature review on the dimensions of smart cities. IOP Conference Series.Earth and
Environmental Science, 498(1). doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/498/1/012087
