Inspiring the future of livable places

For hundreds of years, cloisters—enclosed gardens surrounded by covered walkways – have been the backdrop for study, contemplation, and exchanging great ideas. In Cortona, Italy, the cloister of the historic convent Sant’ Agostino served this purpose again, for the 61st International Making Cities Livable (IMCL) Conference, from October 29 through November 1. 

The IMCL conference series began in 1985, created by Suzanne Lennard, a British architectural and urban scholar, and Henry Lennard, a Viennese medical sociologist. The Lennards, passionate about sharing the best evidence-based lessons of great cities, envisioned creating a unique venue to exchange ideas about urbanism in beautiful and instructive places, with the city as a primary case study for learning. For the 61st IMCL Conference, that case study was Cortona. 

Cortona, a Tuscan hill town, boasts a rich history spanning from Etruscan times to the present. The double squares, medieval passageways, and clear demarcation between the city and countryside reinforce countless lessons about beautiful, sustainable, lovable urbanism. During the evenings of the conference, attendees gathered in the cloister garden and explored the narrow streets. The simple lessons of livable places are consistently reinforced in a place like Cortona: slow cars yield to pedestrians in truly shared streets that are gracefully contained by a fabric of understated buildings. The streets and passages link spaces of various sizes as enclosed outdoor rooms, inviting places to stop, take out a sketchbook, and consider how a place can be truly livable.

Throughout the days of the conference, practitioners, researchers, and implementers from around the world gathered to share effective tools and strategies, backed up by research findings, for the creation and preservation of livable cities. While surrounded by the backdrop of Cortona, attendees learned from Elizabeth Moule’s work applying lessons from ancient Italian hill towns to the different context of new towns in America, while the work of Andrew Georgiadis documented uniquely American hill towns, similar forms grown from entirely different seeds. These research findings and so many others make the IMCL conference unique in a world where practitioners are often still making the case for New Urbanist principles with anecdotes. Professors, PhD students, mayors, designers, and planners presented detailed research data, backing up those principles in a tangible way.

One of the strengths of IMCL is the variety of ideas. Highlights included Nur Rasyiqah Abu Hassan’s research on Malaysia’s heritage and its contribution to livability; Patrick Condon’s research on Vancouver’s 50-year experience with housing affordability and increased density; former mayor Jim Brainard’s experience with the power of tax increment financing to incite sprawl repair in Carmel, Indiana; and a walkthrough on the implementation of a stunning new mixed-income city in Le Plessis-Robinson, France. Mark Moreno and Laurie Stockton-Moreno demonstrated how considering the city as a prepared learning environment for young students inspired incredible hope for the future of livable places. These ideas and so many others demonstrated the powerful collaboration of urbanists and scholars pairing research with action.

The research presented at IMCL is also critical to the mission of the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU), written in the first words of CNU’s charter:

“The Congress for the New Urbanism views disinvestment in central cities, the spread of placeless sprawl, increasing separation by race and income, environmental deterioration, loss of agricultural lands and wilderness, and the erosion of society’s built heritage as one interrelated community building challenge.”

CNU’s research agenda, as reflected in CNU’s Strategic Plan 2024 Update, prioritizes addressing three urgent challenges: 1) Reforming detrimental regulations, 2) Equalizing access to affordable urbanism, and 3) Responding to a rapidly changing climate. Addressing the intersectional nature of these challenges requires a foundation of evidence-based strategies. 

This need for strategies is why CNU is excited to continue to partner with IMCL and grow from the research presented there. The opportunity to convene at conferences like IMCL is critical to CNU’s focus on the impact of institutional barriers to walkable, sustainable, equity-supportive urbanism. 

This year’s IMCL conference in Cortona was an important reminder that ideas shared around an ancient cloister garden can still teach invigorating lessons and inspire the future of cities around the world.