City or population center? Greg Clark, Group Advisor, Future Cities & New Industries at HSBC Group, suggests in a recent article for VISION by Protiviti that we embrace the latter term because it more aptly describes what cities are: places where people are concentrated. More than that, Clark sees the world’s population centers as playing a crucial role in our planet’s future — and that their success is therefore vital to avoiding our own extinction.
Clark asserts that “effective city leadership” and a shift to “well-orchestrated soft power” are essential to ensuring that cities — and our species — can thrive. And while he says many cities today are “seriously underpowered,” Clark believes that a new generation of more collaborative and forward-looking city leadership platform types is now emerging in population centers from China to Colombia to the United Kingdom.
This is a positive trend, but Clark wonders, is it too late? Consider that question for yourself after reading Clark’s article, “Global cities desperately need new leadership models,” on VISION by Protiviti. Subscribe to the VISION by Protiviti newsletter.