Planet of Cities (Paperback)
This book puts forth a science of cities to help prepare for the mass urban in-migration expected by 2050, by which time 70 percent of the global human population is expected to live in metropolitan areas, according to the Untied Nations. Drawing on data from the Atlas of Urban Expansion, which uses satellite imagery to measure urban growth and related factors, it provides planners, elected officials, and other policy makers with the conceptual framework, basic empirical data, and practical agenda necessary to manage development at sustainable densities throughout the world.
Shlomo (Solly) Angel is a professor of city planning at New York University's Marron Institute and leads both NYU's Urban Expansion program and Stern Urbanization Project.
"Committed environmentalists and other defenders of urban containment are sure to reject at what Mr Angel calls 'the making room paradigm.' But he makes a solid argument that this is a much more realistic way of dealing with urbanisation than building new city walls, particularly in developing countries. 'As heroic and justified as it may be,' he writes, 'containing the oncoming global urban expansion is much the same as holding back the tide.'"
— The Economist