STRATEGIC PLAN FOR PARIS
Introduction
Paris is continuously evolving as with all big cities. It is complex, driven by the interaction of its multiple mechanisms, with its metabolism. Similar to many cities in the world, it is facing new challenges today: climate change, ecological transformation, changing habits, and rivalry, and urban-town-town cooperation. Paris needs to take a creative approach, as it discusses these problems while staying versatile and realistic. A smart city is primarily concerned with developing urban infrastructure, technologies, and products that meet the required needs of its citizens and their search for wellness[1].
“The Strategic Strategy for a Smart and Green Paris, 2020” is a kind of blueprint that sets out a direction for Paris’ future. Nevertheless, the government recently amended this proposal in 2018, with some parts recently updated in 2010, which adds to the assumption that it is not being taken seriously enough. The objective of developing a city, in the sense of moving to “smart city,” is to enhance the lives of its inhabitants. Some of the critical elements of doing so is ensuring that the city’s physical environment can endure population increase, embrace emerging technology and, most importantly, maintain them. I assume there is a gap between emerging technology and its deployment around the region. This idea is possibly due to a lack of cooperation between the public and private sectors. There are many small projects and enterprise; these smaller start-ups don’t have enough traction without the help of a larger group.
Paris is a city known for its tradition and identity, and the people are very much concerned with the city, which as a result of the local government, organisation which policy are issues that affect the society. Nevertheless, at the same time, some facets of the environment are not particularly agile in providing incentives for high-risk activities, such as start-ups that tend to implement technologies in the region.
City Analysis
Innovation
Historically, the town’s lifeblood has always been imagination. With Paris’ critical mass of businesspersons, musicians, academics, scholars, bureaucrats, and utility-brokers, cities have still required innovation to operate as markets, trading, and development centres. Mostly they were the places where races and cultures blend and where contact produces new ideas, art information, and organisations3. Paris is one of the most innovative cities in the world, given its diverse and artistic population.
Innovation is a crucial driving factor towards the development of any city, Paris is also Europe’s leading city and the third-largest in the world in terms of the headquarters of companies listed in the Fortune Global 500, with 29 companies, 15 of which are headquartered in the La Défense area. A financial centre, this business district has a total of 500 companies and 160,000 staff across 3.5 million square meters of offices (50 million in full in the region). This depiction, along with the rest of Hauts-de-Seine, accounts for 65% of research and development expenditure[2]This means that business startups have access to a, particularly supportive environment. Incubators and co-working structures are numerous and increasing, creating a system that fosters further innovation. Paris has become an attractive business station for local and international entrepreneurs.
Although the environment favours innovation, there are several weaknesses associated with it, first of there is the language barrier challenge. English speakers in France are few and far between, and this severely discourages international investors from entering the Parisian market. Also, due to the favourable startup environment, competition is fierce and rampant; this is a double-edged sword since race while increasing the quality of products and services may, in turn, discourage some investors. The risk-averse investors will opt for less competitive markets where they are assured to succeed without impediment. Moreover, there are the risk of over-investing the city’s funds into creating and sustaining this environment at the expense of the citizens’ livelihood and wellbeing. The involvement of the state in the economy can also be seen as a weakness. High tax rates can diminish the innovativeness of the city by discouraging startups[3].
The city of light has become the innovation hub for Europe, millions of funds are being set aside just to cater for startups, from both the private and public sector, Paris is home to the largest incubators, providing infrastructure for over 50 startups. The availability of funds, working stations, and nurseries, not to mention the ready market has become an extremely effective lure to tech giants and innovators across the world. Such values form the policy and activities Paris implemented for 2020 and beyond that promote citizen engagement, initiative co-creation, and support for the ecosystem of innovation. Smart and Efficient Paris is a city-as-platform that is transparent, determinedly forward-looking, and ready to innovate, disrupt and create new technologies that place technology, data, interoperability, and integrated networks at the forefront and the centre.
Threats facing innovation in Paris are associated with the startups themselves; there is the risk of a lot os the startups failing, and thus bringing about losses from the intensive allocation of funds. Furthermore, the city faces intense competition from other innovation hubs such as silicon city in San Fransisco, London, and Singapore. The public must embrace innovations coming into the town failed to do so means that there is a disparity between the state and the people. Therefore there is the risk of preceding on public interests in favour of innovative advancement.
Urbanization
We need to make the most of our urban spaces at a time when cities are under pressure from rising demographics, global warming, and increasing inequality. Faced with these challenges, Paris is leading the way to a more open, inclusive model of urbanism, to keep the region through equally and sustainably. In 2015, under the leadership of Mayor Anne Hidalgo, the city opened up to popular vote 5 per cent of its annual budget – worth €20 m. Parisians were invited to pick urban and architectural projects, to be funded by the City Hall[4]. Public artworks, co-working spaces, modern pedestrian parks, urban gardens, and aerial farms were among the winning projects. As far as urban logistics is concerned, roads remain the chosen alternative, with 90 per cent of goods being shipped by the way. About 20% of Paris’ cars carry merchandise. The rise in e-commerce (21% to 32% growth per year) continues to increase distribution routes and vehicle numbers dramatically, and the rate of deliveries missing is incredibly high. The expansion of river and rail transport, the advancement of bulk shipping, and the rethinking of last-mile distribution are all important factors. The Sustainable Urban Logistics Charter, signed in 2013, supported the target of providing 50%of non-diesel vehicle last-mile deliveries in 2017 and 100% by 2020.
Low air and water quality, inadequate water supply, waste management problems, and high-energy usage are compounded by the rising population growth and urban climate demands. The increased urbanization means that pollution and waste, degradation of the environment turns out as a significant weakness. Another weakness is the growing gap between the haves and the have-nots; inequality breeds resentment between the two groups and may lead to unfavourable vices such as increases crime rates. Urbanization is also dependant on proper governance, incase the governing body is not efficient. Urbanization of Paris will be curtailed, and proper management means that there shall be an efficient use of funds and that the government shall ensure fair distribution of resources.
Urbanization presents Paris with an opportunity to be the hub of development in all of Europe. The utilization of environmentally friendly energy sources upholds the current requirements by international environmental conservationists. The need for modern infrastructure and development presents an opportunity for investors and construction contractors all over the world; this, in turn, provides employment opportunities for the Paris populace with jobs at almost every skill level. Paris, through her modern application of urbanization, has also become a spot for green tourism, where individuals from all over the world visit o view and admire these developments[5].
The urbanization of Paris has had to weather numerous threats, the first being natural calamities such as flooding, urban development magnify the risks and consequences of environmental hazards. Accelerated urban growth may also result in increasing poverty levels since the government may not be able to provide public services to everyone. Concentrated energy use will lead to air pollution, not to mention the increase in the waste compilation. There’s also the risk of terror attacks, there have been previous attacks, and the terrorists seem to favour urban cities for their attacks.
Infrastructure
The city of Paris has undergone an overhaul in its communications and transport networks over the years. The main aim of these changes has been to adopt a cleaner and more environmentally friendly Paris. Emissions from nitrogen oxide (NOx) due to road traffic have declined by 30%, small particulate matter by 20%, and ultrafine particulate matter by 45% since 2001. Nevertheless, Paris inhabitants and the greater metropolitan area are still subject to deficient air quality. Clean mobility will be built on a wider scale, such as rapid transit, hybrid cars, and non-motorized (walking and biking) travel. The goal of the city is to remove diesel-powered vehicles by 2020 and decrease nitrogen oxides by 40%, small particulate matter by 25%, and ultrafine particulate matter by 40%[6]. Cleaner modes of transport mean that the environment is preserved, air pollution is reduced and thus the city is an ideal place to live for its residents. Improved transportation also means the free movement of labour and goods, allowing businesses to prosper. Moreover, providing basic public services to the cities, residents are greatly aided by proper infrastructure, thus improving the quality of life for Paris’s citizens.
Although the city is working hard to reduce its carbon footprint, pollution is still a significant prerequisite of infrastructural development. Fossil fuels are needed to build roads, moving vehicles; trains and planes are quite noisy, causing noise pollution. The building of these transport and communication features also encroaches on natural land. This step means urban tree cover gets severely reduced, and the animal population decreases. Most of the methods getting adopted due to their environmentally friendly nature are quite capital intensive. This is not only a tool for the city’s government but also to the taxpayers[7].
The development of infrastructure has brought many opportunities by blending with modern technology. Mobility and economic mobility are two areas in which the digital transition is in full swing. The way we fly GPS has changed. By carpooling, ride-sharing, and a multitude of multimodal alternatives, the distinctions between private travel and public transit are being blurred. New digital platforms help automate journey by software providing multimodal transport input in real-time. Owing to the advent of on-demand transportation, a real transformation in how we get around cities, a fundamental change in urban mobility will take place over the next couple of decades. In the short term, non-motorized travel has made highways become safer with the advent of electric cars and makes for greater use of public spaces. Intelligent street furniture and modern integrated infrastructure will lead to a more accessible environment. They will take into account the diverse conditions and limitations of people[8].
There is a myriad of threats facing the infrastructure development of Paris. The first one has to be the risk of terror attacks. As one of the largest and most populated cities in the world, Paris is a target for terror group attacks, the development of transport avenues and digital communication networks, may give the terrorists the means to carry out physical or cyber attacks on the city. Increased utilization of technology also [poses the threat of replacing human labour. AI and working robots are slowly encroaching on jobs that were thought to be solely human tailored. However, with modern technology features being utilized today, many workers are being forced to resign and be replaced with robots who are more efficient and offer higher levels of quality. This step may lead to a spike in unemployment, which favours increasing crime rates and poverty. Furthermore, better infrastructure may lead to increased immigrants, which will have adverse effects on the population density balance of the city.
Bibliography
Carayannis, E. G. “Patrice Noailles-Siméon European Forum fo Innovation Policies & Collectif Innovation (+ Evry University+ RRI), Paris, France.” (2017).
Duxbury, Nancy, Jyoti Hosagrahar, and Jordi Pascual. “Why must culture be at the heart of sustainable urban development?.” Agenda 21 for culture (2016).
Hayes, Peter. “Paris industry conference focuses on digital innovation and variety adaptation for climate change.” Wine & Viticulture Journal 34, no. 3 (2019): 13.
Hidalgo, Anne. “Placing people at the centre of our sustainable urban future.” UN Chronicle 53, no. 3 (2016): 12-15.
Mirabile, Mariana, and Jennifer Calder. “Clean power for a cool planet: Electricity infrastructure plans and the Paris Agreement.” (2018).
Tambo, Ernest, Wang Duo-Quan, and Xiao-Nong Zhou. “Tackling air pollution and extreme climate changes in China: implementing the Paris climate change agreement.” Environment International 95 (2016): 152-156.
[1] Hidalgo, Anne. “Placing people at the centre of our sustainable urban future.” UN Chronicle 53, no. 3 (2016): 12-15.
[2] Carayannis, E. G. “Patrice Noailles-Siméon European Forum fo Innovation Policies & Collectif Innovation (+ Evry University+ RRI), Paris, France.” (2017).
[3] Hayes, Peter. “Paris industry conference focuses on digital innovation and variety adaptation for climate change.” Wine & Viticulture Journal 34, no. 3 (2019): 13.
[4] Duxbury, Nancy, Jyoti Hosagrahar, and Jordi Pascual. “Why must culture be at the heart of sustainable urban development?.” Agenda 21 for culture (2016).
[5] Duxbury 21
[6] Tambo, Ernest, Wang Duo-Quan, and Xiao-Nong Zhou. “Tackling air pollution and extreme climate changes in China: implementing the Paris climate change agreement.” Environment International 95 (2016): 152-156.
[7] Tambo 155
[8] Mirabile, Mariana, and Jennifer Calder. “Clean power for a cool planet: Electricity infrastructure plans and the Paris Agreement.” (2018).
