With technology advancing daily and the need for housing rising faster each day, design studios are at the forefront, pushing their designs and shaping a new generation of cities. Ambitious practices such as NEOM have not only unveiled plans for their vertical megacity in the Saudi desert, but construction has already begun. Many studios are now at a crossroads, questioning the limits of future cities. Can a city exist solely on water? Can a city move as a single being? Can cities be organised into a single structure? Global issues such as the housing crisis and the climate emergency are sparking these questions about the future of cities, and designers are using this as an opportunity to create unprecedented high-tech futuristic cities. The future may be closer than people think.
The potential of cities on water
Multiple urban designers and architects have experimented with different strategies for how cities can exist on water as the sea level rises. Over 70% of the earth is water, and climate change is causing sea levels to rise as the world loses precious land slowly, so it seems logical to assume that humans will begin to reside on water. Building on water could mean many things, and below are three examples of innovative methods on how humans can exist on the water, including a floating city, an artificial island, and a city within a terayacht.
In 2020, BIG revealed their master plan for BiodiverCity just off the shore of Penang Island in Malaysia. The design includes three artificial islands, each modelled as a lily pad, with an autonomous transport network connecting each island through water, air and land-based transport.
The project will encompass 1821 hectares of land split across the three islands, each composed of mixed-use public and residential spaces. The city will offer sustainable economic and cultural growth of Penang Island whilst protecting the natural habitats of the coast. BIG claims that the buildings within BiodiverCity will be mainly constructed of local bamboo, timber, and concrete, which uses recycled materials as aggregate. The islands will support up to 18,000 residents with an array of ecological nature reserves and parks spread across the islands to support biodiversity. These islands will offer an opportunity to explore the world of technology and robotics whilst maintaining the rich culture of Malaysia.
The first island of the Maldives Floating City has made its way to the water as this visionary construction comes to life. Danish studio Waterstudio released their plans to create a floating city just 10 minutes from the Maldivian capital, Male. The city is inspired by the deep-rooted cultural traditions that connect Maldivians to the ocean. This master plan aims to enrich this connection between the locals and the surrounding ocean; the concept of a design which resembles brain
coral further demonstrates the idea of living with nature. The lagoon spreads across 200 hectares of water, and the roads and buildings are organised efficiently, as natural brain coral would. The city is surrounded by small islands and coral reefs, which will act as a natural wave breaker to protect the community. The architecture will be constructed with rising sea levels in mind so that the city
can adapt to such effects. The city will boast residential quarters alongside hotels, shops and restaurants, with only bicycles and scooters on the streets and boats to reach the city. This city is the first of its kind, allowing the Maldivians to rewrite their story.
One of the most controversial projects to be released in recent years is Pangeos the Terrayacht, which was designed by Lazzarini Design Studio. The concept of this floating city, which swims across the globe, challenges the size of the largest cruise ship in the world as it extends to 550 metres long. The terayacht was designed in the shape of a grand turtle, and its name references the great Pangea, the supercontinent that existed millions of years ago. The Pangeos can house up to 60,000 guests across various hotels, apartments and condos.
This futuristic adaptation of Noah’s Ark will continuously swim through the ocean, discovering every corner of the earth, offering anything one might need to safely and happily exist away from land. To allow guests and residents to come and go as they please, The Pangeos holds its own docking and aircraft ports. Life on the terayacht will be the height of luxury with shopping malls, gardens, restaurants, beach clubs and many more facilities. The structure is estimated to cost $8 billion across an eight-year construction project that will take place by closing off one square kilometre of the sea and building a circular dam off the Saudi coast if it comes to fruition. This ambitious project would revolutionise modern living if it is proven to be possible.
The future of living on land
In order to continue developing and industrialising land, people must be abstemious to ensure the entire world is not urbanised. Nature is crucial in maintaining a healthy world, and people must respect that they cannot eradicate the remaining natural landscapes. Architects, urban designers and visionaries worldwide constantly seek solutions to allow further development without compromising natural landscapes. Many possible solutions are being tested, the most familiar being skyscrapers and the most unfamiliar being a vertically stacked linear city. The most simple difference is that designers can implement nature into their projects so that nature and architecture co-exist.
In 2021, NEOM turned heads worldwide as they announced their plans for The Line in Saudi Arabia. The technique of this structure is to start a new city from scratch by taking a city that would typically take up over 700km2 of land and stacking elements on top of one another to form a tall, linear city with a resulting footprint of just 34km2. The Line will stretch across 170 km in length, reach 500 metres high and 200 metres wide with a mirrored façade that should allow it to blend into the desert seamlessly.
The theorised city will run off 100% renewable energy with no cars or emissions; autonomous transport will transport all residents and guests more efficiently. The Line can house nine million people, all of whom will have every daily necessity available to them within a five-minute walk. The city will feature lush vegetation in every corner of the structure, with an ideal climate all year. It seems like the perfect city, but many sceptics exist among the many turned heads. Something like this seems too good to be true, and although the foundation construction has been underway for over two years, the project runs into more ethical and physical setbacks at each step. Is The Line worth sacrificing their moral integrity?
In 2019, Italian architect Stefano Boeri unveiled his plans for Smart Forest City in Cancun, incorporating a contemporary city within a lush botanical garden. This plan pioneers a movement towards more eco-efficient developments within future cities. The 557-hectare plot will encompass 7.5 million plants of many variations to create one organism between nature and architecture. The architect designed the Smart Forest City in hopes of making the world a better place and tackling the climate emergency. Boeri claims that thanks to green roofs and facades, any nature that was
affected in construction will be redistributed and not removed, creating an environment that is said to absorb 116000 tons of carbon dioxide each year.
This city allows biodiversity to thrive without threats to the revolutionary city that inhabits the space, and the land is set to be fully self-sufficient in producing its own food and energy due to a collaboration with German engineers at Transsolar. The city is encircled by water gardens that protect it from flooding whilst offering serine boating access through the city. Although there are no current advancements in the production of this city, it is one of the first futuristic cities that has mentioned affordable housing being included in its 130,000 occupancy, allowing everyone the opportunity to step into the future.
The creative potential of future cities is endless, and with the help of new AI art generator technology, many more proposals will undoubtedly come to light in the coming years. The world is full of extraordinary possibilities with talented and ambitious people willing to take on the challenge, but who will succeed? It is time to wait and see who can make the impossible possible as the world steps into the future of urban design.
References:
Barker, N (2022). Ten futuristic cities are set to be built around the world. [online]. Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2022/08/01/futuristic-cities-planned-architecture-masterplanning-urban-design/
Crook, L (2020). BIG reveals masterplan for ‘urban lilypads’ off the coast of Penang Island. [online]. Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2020/08/21/biodivercity-big-masterplan-penang-island-architecture/
Gibson, E (2019). Stefano Boeri unveils Smart Forest City covered in 7.5 million plants for Mexico. [online]. Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2019/10/25/smart-forest-city-stefano-boeri-cancun-mexico/
Maldives Floating City (2024). Brain Coral: concept inspiration for Maldives floating city. [online]. Available at: https://maldivesfloatingcity.com
NEOM (2024). The Line. [online]. Available at: https://www.neom.com/en-us/regions/theline
Pangeos Yacht (2024). Pangeos the itinerant floating city concept. [online]. Available at: https://www.pangeosyacht.com/projects
Stefan Boeri Architetti (2024). Smart Forest City Cancun. [online]. Available at: https://www.stefanoboeriarchitetti.net/en/project/smart-forest-city-cancun/
Images
Image 1. BIG (2020). BiodiverCity master plan. [render]. Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2020/08/21/biodivercity-big-masterplan-penang-island-architecture/
Image 2. BIG (2020). BiodiverCity functioning streets. [render]. Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2020/08/21/biodivercity-big-masterplan-penang-island-architecture/
Image 3. Waterstudio (2022). Maldives Floating City. [render]. Available at: https://maldivesfloatingcity.com
Image 4. Lazzarini Design Studio. Pangeos The Terayacht. [render]. Available at: https://www.pangeosyacht.com/projects
Image 5. NEOM (2021). The Line exterior. [render]. Available at: https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/more-uk-practices-linked-with-saudi-line-as-morphosis-departs
Image 6. NEOM (2021). Inside The Line City. [render]. Available at: https://www.neom.com/en-us/regions/theline
Image 7. Stefan Boeri (2019). Smart Forest City. [render]. Available at: https://www.stefanoboeriarchitetti.net/en/project/smart-forest-city-cancun/
