Shared Urban Futures

A global trend towards urbanization in the last century led to smaller and denser households as well as dramatic increases in real estate prices and rents. Today, more people live in urban areas than in rural areas around the globe, a trend that is likely to continue. In 2050, more than 70 per cent of the world’s population is projected to be urban. Worldwide real estate markets have demonstrated that traditional business concepts as well as architectural layouts of urban dwelling are unable to respond to the needs of our changing society. The evidence for a changing society and new forms of lifestyle has necessitated a vast change in contemporary urban living, leading to collective building typologies. The idea of collective housing, centered on sharing and participation, proposes alternative strategies to dysfunctional housing markets in urban environments. Shared resources in new collective communities allow for high flexibility and individual privacy for the generation known as ‘Digital Nomads’, who enjoy remote work, access to shared amenities and high mobility.