Today, the societies, cultures, and the places in which we live and work are increasingly intricate phenomena. Globalization eradicates spatial boundaries to business. Gentrification involves social and political pressure. Pandemics are never site specific or confined to the past. Architecture and urban design are global endeavors. Sustainability requires material and political action. Patterns of criminality are not place bound. Similarly, the need for education and housing are universal and land rights are essential legal tools for First Nations and communities everywhere.

Within this mode of thinking, when we discuss sustainability we must consider local planning and global politics. When we speak about smart cities, we are obliged to consider cyber security and civil rights. When we discuss law and human rights, we cannot ignore economic or social policy. Equally, when we think about food production and consumption, we must consider transportation costs, public health, and more.

In reading livability as an aggregate of forces then, the Livable Cities – London conference, does not see ‘the city’ as primarily a physical and designed entity. On the contrary, it posits ‘the livable city’ as a ‘construct’ involving a plethora of agendas, practices and disciplines. As an inherently interdisciplinary conference it  explores cities as both a series of material questions and immaterial phenomena. It critiques the city as an interplay of forces that includes spatial design, politics, sociological trends, cultural tendencies and media representations, as much as it involves economic policy, planning strategy and the provision of public services.

By juxtaposing, comparing and sharing work in various fields then, it is expected that a broader and richer picture will emerge at  the conference with regards what makes the places we inhabit more, or less, livable.