How Cities Grow During The Ages

Introduction to Urban Planning

Have you ever wondered how cities are being designed? Who decides where roads and bus stops go, or where a park or alley will be? If you are an urban studies student, the answer is that people like you decide on all these things. Graduates with proficiency in urban studies are the visionaries of the future, able to dream big, think logically, consider all important details, create comfortable spaces for others to live, and conduct well-organized urban planning research. They are responsible for the well-being of thousands of citizens who work, relax, do sports, and raise children in the areas they structure. Urban planners have to research and analyze extensively, study the problems of cities, and come up with effective solutions, as discussed in numerous urban studies articles (Smith, 2020).

Challenges in Urban Planning

Urban planners need to help construct and maintain both natural and man-made environments, including green areas, ponds, rivers, buildings, roads, bridges, and canals. Economic and political changes, water supply, energy consumption, population growth, and numerous other factors must be considered and predicted, creating a plethora of challenges for architects, engineers, and other experts involved in city development (Jones & Taylor, 2018). Urban specialists are the only ones with the comprehensive knowledge across various spheres necessary to make cities function properly. As Alex Steffen (2012) aptly puts it, "By stealing the future, selling it in the present and calling it GDP." He further emphasizes that if we continue down this path with an ever-growing population, we are going to run out of future resources quickly. However, by thinking differently, we can create cities that not only achieve zero emissions but also possess unlimited possibilities. This is the challenge we face today.

Historical Perspective on Urban Planning

Urban planning began as a profession largely dedicated to averting crises arising from urban growth and providing conditions for public health. This was particularly true in the many 19th-century European and North American cities transformed by industrialization and unprecedented rates of population growth (Davis, 2015). Rapidly deteriorating air and water quality made it necessary to introduce regulations to protect the health of the residents of these cities. Today, as we reckon with population growth, advancing rates of urbanization, and widespread recognition of climate change, we know that the cities of the future share a common destiny. The choices we make about how we build, inhabit, and maintain these cities will have global and long-term effects.

The Evolution of Urban Planning Concerns

Starting in the 1950s, planners began to broaden their focus beyond immediate health effects on urban residents. Their work started to reflect Western society's deeper understanding of, and respect for, natural processes and a growing awareness of the long-term environmental impacts of cities, from the local to the planetary scale (Miller, 2019). As an aspiring urban planner, I hope to contribute to this field by making Albania a better place with an improved urban plan. By integrating sustainable practices and innovative designs, urban planning can lead to cities that not only enhance the quality of life for their inhabitants but also preserve resources for future generations.