Sharing Cities: A Case for Truly Smart and Sustainable Cities

This policy manual from McLaren, an environmental researcher and consultant, and Agyeman, a professor of urban and environmental policy and planning, is only partially successful in demonstrating that humanity’s future lies in cities that prioritize sharing. The authors believe that humans are natural sharers and that this inclination will enable the cities of tomorrow to be more equitable places to live and work in. The utopianism of their vision is established early on, when they quote, with favor, the ex-mayor of Bogotá, Colombia, describing his ideal urban environment as one “where even the rich ride buses.” Later they cite, as an example of government transparency, a policy by Seoul’s Mayor Park Won-Soon of sharing nonfinal versions of policy documents, without any discussion of potential downsides. The book gives short shrift to the daunting political obstacles to transforming the U.S. into a society where all citizens are paid a “basic income” “regardless of whether they are in work.” Even sympathetic readers may still find themselves wondering how practical the authors’ goals are. Those interested in a radical reenvisioning of American society will find some creative ideas, but no legible road map for reaching them. [em](Dec.) [/em]