Mr. Speer, in the mid-1980s you were one of the first to focus on sustainability in urban planning. How did that come about? And what does sustainability mean in urban development?
At that time we thought about the future of cities and also looked back into history. One difference stood out. Today we have all materials available worldwide, while in the past you could only build with the materials that were available locally. People didn’t build half-timbered houses because they looked good, but because they didn’t have any other materials than wood and clay. We applied this to urban planning, which is how we came to promote the idea of sustainability. Sustainability entails the more economical use of resources.
What significance do cities, and therefore also urban development, have in the 21st century?
Cities play a major role in climate change. 80% of all emissions are generated in cities, which places urban planning at the very centre of global development.
What needs to be done?
The building stock in European cities doesn’t conform to climate needs nor meet energy efficiency criteria. Roughly 90% of all buildings in Germany were constructed before 1980/1985, when that was not important. In the meantime there is a Federal Government building modernization programme, but the pace must be significantly increased.
And what about transport?
In European cities we are trying to network all functions so that they can be reached on foot as far as possible. A good example of this is the centre of Cologne, for which we produced a master plan the year before last. Living, working, culture and leisure are still closely interconnected there. And that naturally generates far less traffic.
In contrast to European cities, the megacities of Asia are growing incredibly fast. What approach does your work take there?
In the last 25 years sustainable urban development has become accepted worldwide. In China, for example, the political attitude to this subject has radically changed in the last 10 years. That doesn’t mean that sustainable urban development is being implemented in all China’s cities. You can’t expect that in such an enormous country. However, the appropriate laws are in place and in many cities people are beginning to put this into practice. For example, we are working on several large urban expansion projects in Changchun in northern China. The people in charge there are making enormous efforts to implement sustainable principles.
Recently, public interest focused not on sustainability, but on the opening of the Burj in Dubai. What is your view of urban development as practised in Dubai?
This development has two aspects. On one hand, in recent years Dubai has succeeded in establishing itself on the world map as a location for major events and tourism as well as creating an excellent image – in part also as a result of excellent architecture. This great hotel, this sail on the beach, beautiful. Burj Dubai is also a symbol for the future for Dubai. I have no doubts about its success. The problem lies elsewhere. First, high-rise buildings that are taller than 300 to 350 metres can’t be built economically nor run economically. Second, Dubai has gone too far in urban development. I would have built only half.
Which city already comes closest to your ideas of sustainability?
In Europe it would be Barcelona. The city gets very close to the principle of sustainability. It is compact and mixed. To a large extent the port is now used for other purposes and the seafront is once again part of the city. It is outstanding how Barcelona is dealing with its old building stock. When I look further around the world, then it is Singapore. From the very outset the city had the problem of having too little space and has therefore made very intelligent use of it. This has led to very great compactness, within which, however, a high quality of architecture has been created – for example, with high-rise residential buildings. Despite that, today you still get the feeling that Singapore is green.
And in Germany?
Hamburg has a very intelligent urban development policy – also in terms of sustainability. That’s not only true of the HafenCity district. That applies to many other areas.
The opposite side of the coin of expanding cities is deserted villages and regions. How do you deal with that in planning?
A good question. Neither planners nor policymakers are really prepared for dealing with this problem. You don’t learn anything about it at university and we never had to face it before. Until now everything has centred on growth. However, we know that this situation has existed in other countries in Europe for over a hundred years – just look at eastern France or the north of England. In future there will be regions where it will be impossible to preserve the standard we have today because the population has moved away and the infrastructure cannot be maintained with the few people who remain. We will have to devote considerable attention to this subject over coming years.
What could a possible solution look like?
I believe that in Germany in the future we will have different living conditions with different income levels and standards of amenities. I also believe it will not be possible to uphold the equality of living standards in all regions that is anchored in the Basic Law. At the same time as this development, however, we are also observing a very strong differentiation and individualization of society. There are definitely people who say I don’t need all that. I love living in this type of landscape. I don’t have a supermarket next door, but I can plant my own vegetables instead.
The motto of Expo 2010 in Shanghai is “Better City – Better Life”. What are your expectations of the Expo? And will you visit the fair?
We contributed to the development of the basic idea and also conceived Expo 2000 in Hanover. The organizers learned a great deal from that – for example, to locate the Expo on a former industrial site on the river and not, as originally planned, on a greenfield site. You have to use a World Fair like this to develop the city in a sustainable way. I believe it will be a very impressive World Fair with a beautiful German Pavilion. It goes without saying that I’ll be visiting Shanghai to see the Expo.
What other projects do you have in the pipeline?
In Cairo we are planning an urban expansion programme for two million people and in Alexandria we are working on the bid to host the 2017 Mediterranean Games. Additionally, we are engaged in drafting the master plan for Munich’s application to host the 2018 Winter Olympics and are playing a major role in Qatar’s application for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
