IN-PERSON Barcelona Livable Cities. Section A

Abstract

Livable city, focusing on quality of urban life, was pioneered proposing in Vancouver’s 1971 master plan and globally accepted in the Habitat-I. Many studies especially those on livability index or livable city rankings assume that the more livable the city, the more competitive the city will be. The argument views city livability as the key factor to attract quality human resources which are crucial for urban competitiveness. With an increasing focus on urban innovation in recent years, similar viewpoint is proposed to associate city livability and urban innovation capacity. Are liveable cities innovative, and how? This research looks into Yangtze River Delta, one of China’s most dynamic regions with outstanding livability reputation, to answer the question. As a development discourse and project for local government, livable city is often measured by a set of livability indices, which allows quantification and comparison of city. This research consults urban livable competitiveness from the Yearbook of China’s Cities to quantify the degree of livability of different cities in Yangtze River Delta and use patent as proxy for measuring urban innovative capacity. Analysis of the livability-innovation relations generally reveals that urban innovative outputs are positively associated with city livability, but extent of such correlation varies among different technological fields. Findings of the research generate insights into the discussion of livable city and urban innovation development.