We have become a predominantly urban species and that is, on the whole, a
good thing. Cities enable the collaborative chains of creativity that
have been fueling human invention since Socrates and Plato bickered on
an Athenian street corner. Cities, at their best, are engines of
opportunity that turn poor people into rich people, and poor countries
into rich countries.
But there are also demons that come with density. Contagious disease,
crime, traffic congestion and high housing costs can also accompany
urban crowding. Managing the downsides of the mass urbanization is one
of the great vocations of the 21st century, especially in the growing
cities of the developing world.
In the west, we must work to ensure that the benefits of urban
creativity flow to a wider spectrum of the population, which includes
both the less advantaged in cities and those who live in lower density
regions.
Edward Glaeser is the Fred and Eleanor Glimp Professor of Economics in
the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University, where he has
taught since 1992. He regularly teaches microeconomic theory,
occasionally urban and public economics and has served as Director of
the Taubman Center for State and Local Government and Director of the
Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston for a decade.
He has published dozens of papers on cities, economic growth, and law
and economics. In particular, his work has focused on the determinants
of city growth and the role of cities as centers of idea transmission.
He received his PhD from the University of Chicago in 1992. This talk
was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but
independently organized by a local community.
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