Foster On Architecture: More People, Less Space

Writing for a supplement in The Times recently, Lord Norman Foster suggested that in a world witnessing the growth of megacities, depletion of fossil fuels, environmental threats and pressures on infrastructure are multiplying and offering both engineering and social challenges.

He argues that, on a finite planet, the biggest challenge today is to provide for increasing density – putting more folk in less space – whilst improving the quality of urban life.

Whilst greater urban density may remind us of inner city squalor, Foster reminds us that London’s Belgravia, Chelsea and Notting Hill are far denser that the more deprived areas of London.

He suggests that understanding the dimensions of sustainability is a global global issue – their resolution will determine the fate of future generations.

Foster & Partners