Give citizens a sense of ownership in city planning: SMU Provost

SMU Provost Professor Lily Kong was a panellist on Channel NewsAsia’s Perspectives programme (filmed at SMU Labs), with SMU as the exclusive higher education partner. Tackling the topic Urban Challenges in Asia’s Megacities, the four distinguished panellists discussed ways to look at problems Asian megacities face and what it will take for these large cities to remain sustainable, liveable and resilient. Prof Kong talked about the importance of public engagement, community involvement and social robustness in the planning of megacities. She said city leaders should take time to sit down with citizens, adding that they need to understand what their citizens' needs are and take them on board when planning cities, because it will be the citizens who will benefit or be affected by top-level decisions. “Master planning without public engagement, without community engagement, without involvement, risks a city without a sense of ownership,” Prof Kong, who has written extensively on the social and economic aspects of cities, said.