Here & Now Journal - Autumn 2025 - Digital Cities
The end of year edition of the AoU's Here & Now e-journal, exploring the theme of Digital Cities
1. Welcome
2. Letter from the Editors
3. The Academy in Action
4. Three questions to test new digital planning approaches against
Ed Parham examines whether digital advances in design and planning translate to better places.
6. The 15-Minute City: Future Utopia or Dystopia?
Adam Muggleton assesses the risks of surveillance as part of 15-minute city infrastructure .
10. Could nature be the biggest winner from digital engagement technology in our cities?
Mike Saunders demonstrates how digital platforms can help deliver nature-rich environments.
13. Losing Our Senses in the City
Irma Delmonte warns of declining spatial memory in the age of GPS and AI.
16. Digital Magics and Tech-Utopias
Harrison Brewer investigates the promise of tech-utopias.
19. Designing for the Invisible User
Maryline Esteves explores how AI agents will soon curate urban journeys.
22. When Tech Gets in the Way
Lewis Hubbard advocates for a simplified approach to SuDS design.
24. The New Economics of Infrastructure
Shane Mitchell explores the shift from asset delivery to adaptive ecosystems
27. The City Observatory: Rotterdam
In this instalment of BDPlab’s Good City papers, Fleur Dassen and Björn Bleumink explore developing ideas for urban resilience to rising sea levels and increasing extreme weather.
38. MyPlace: Stralau
Lucy Bali reflects on the significant of Stralau, Berlin in her life.
39. ArtPlace: 20 Years of the AoU
Connie Dales shares a selection of illustrations created to commemorate th AoU’s 20th anniversary.
40. Member Spotlight
Young Urbanist Jack Strange reflects on how the AoU’s ‘learning from place’ ethos came in handy during a year in Seoul.
42. Book Review
Harry Knibb shares his thoughts on The Smart Building Advantage by Dr Matthew Marson.
43. Urban Idiocy
The Urban Idiot ponders whether ‘smart cities’ are really all that smart.
46. Urban Philosophy
Resident philosopher Andreas Markides ruminates on the life and times of Archimedes, perhaps the forefather of Digital Cities.
The full Here & Now Autumn 2025 e-journal is embedded below. You can use the full screen button in the lower right hand corner to zoom in, and use the arrows to turn the pages.
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