Governing Compact Cities

A critical analysis of the role of the urban climate resilience nexus in London

“…Philip Rode's exploration of the compact city provides a theoretical framework to deliver this, providing important conceptual grounding for this study. Central to which is a nexus of spatial planning, transport planning and urban design to deliver high-density urban form (Rode 2018;Kenworthy 2006). To explore the interactions between these three areas, this paper frames them within the urban climate resilience (UCR) nexus.…”

“…In a similar vein to the concept of policy integration, a nexus approach focuses on the interlinkages between two or more policy areas to provide balanced solutions and overcome silos. Through examining trade-offs and synergies, it provides the opportunity to break down the silos by which these traditional policy areas are burdened (ESCAP 2016;Rode 2018;EU 2020). In this paper, the three nexus elements are defined as follows.…”

“…A nexus provides a platform to interrogate policies aimed at supporting these ambitions, to gain a better understanding of opportunities and barriers towards delivery. London's political structures also make for a good case study, as the Greater London Authority (GLA) and the Mayor of London provide strategic leadership and authority over the 33 Boroughs, urban form and transport (Rode 2018).…”

“…For instance, Rotterdam is proposing vegetated city squares, to tackle vulnerability to surface water flooding (Arup 2018). Rode (2018) argues urban form is a facilitator for ST and GI measures, however it is not a simple process; compact design can lead to loss of greenspaces, therefore increasing UHI vulnerability (Artmann et al 2019). To overcome this, smart concentration of GI is required that considers performance over aesthetics; yet there is little research into how cities are balancing densification with this (Hansen et al 2019).…”

“…An essential pillar of the compact city is the importance of neighbourhood walkability, arguing that the last mile travelled is the most important as it is accessibility and connectivity that encourages people to choose sustainable transit over cars (Rode 2018). Kenworthy (2006) highlights Toronto's approach to city centre housing development, reducing the need to commute, resulting in pedestrianised streetscapes.…”