Are the dynamic cities of the East expanding too fast, or are recession hit cities in the West developing too slowly?  Will preserving historic buildings and neighbourhoods help create a better urban future, or prove a drawback by trapping cities in an outdated past?  Do Eco Cities signify a welcome engagement with creating environmental betterment, or a set of constraints that will deny material improvements and undermine lifestyle choices? Should the future be top down planning, a more pragmatic bottom up organic form of growth, or does the answer lie somewhere in-between… and if so where?

These represent just small sample of the questions that were posed (and rejected), interrogated, debated and contested at Masterplanning the Future, a unique international conference held at Xi’an Jiaotong - Liverpool University, Suzhou, in October. Part of UK Now – the largest festival of British arts and creativity ever held in China - the conference combined public and academic strands that brought together researchers and architectural practitioners, academics and cultural commentators, business representatives and public institutions, seasoned experts and inquisitive students.  As outlined in the opening remarks by Matt Burney, Consul (Cultural and Education) British Consulate-General Shanghai, the organisers should be congratulated for hosting an event and forging the partnerships that enabled debate on some of the key issues facing citizens in the 21st century.

If coming up with a clear set of answers on issues ranging from ‘the function of architectural education in China’ to the role of ‘Modernism from the West to the East and across the world’ to ‘how societies can think more creatively’ seems like a lot to tackle in a couple of days, then that is undoubtedly true. But that would be to misinterpret the nature and aims of the conference. Rather than attempting to resolve all these issues, Masterplanning the Future was a useful first step in opening up discussion on the global urban condition.  To do so, the conference brought together contributors from different disciplines and geographic locations, with representatives from more than 20 nationalities. Each responded to a range of provocations by engaging in a series of intellectual explorations of issues related to the past, present and future of the city.

Perhaps the ethos of the event was best represented by the slogan QUESTION EVERYTHING which was emblazoned across t-shirts of the splendidly organised cadre of undergraduate student helpers. In his closing remarks, conference organiser and XJTLU Lecturer of Architecture Austin Williams reflected that the day’s discussions had indeed produced largely ‘more questions than answers’. Yet this wasn’t an admission of failure, as much as acknowledgement that there are no easy answers, and that in the first instance, there is much to be gained from learning how to pose the questions and open up new lines of enquiry.  In such circumstances, the very act of creating a space for discussion, of bringing universal issues into a common space for debate, represents a genuine and significant step forward.

On a personal note, I flew back to London a bit tired but greatly energised, and with many questions of my own.  One of those questions was ‘what next?’ and how the discussion can and should be further developed.  Hopefully the organisers (and the partners, sponsors and my fellow participants) will soon start work on the answer.

Conference: 18/19th October 2012

Venue: Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU)