Learn from past for better urban future

For the past 20 years, Western countries have mistaken urban sprawls as the symbol of urban development. The car-dependent lifestyle this mistake has created is, in fact, a failure of urban development.

"Urbanization is not synonymous with urban sprawl," says Ting Ho Cheung, a registered architect and member of the Architectural Institute in British Columbia, Canada. "Urbanization should be a process of sustainable densification with respect to urban ecology. It should eventually upgrade a city into a metropolis," says Cheung, who is also an accredited professional for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.

Advancing urban infrastructure creates a livable density in a metropolis. But a city should preserve the green space needed for the healthy physical and mental development of its residents, he says. "Every nation should have its own definition of livable density according to its culture."