Urban Futures 2026: the now state & urban drivers to watch
Last year, we identified the 25 global drivers impacting our cities. Where are we now in mid-2026? Join & understand urban futures (plural).
You've heard "the housing crisis," "AI," "climate", and "the future" a hundred times this year. But what do these terms actually mean in practice for the cities you're responsible for?
If you make decisions about the future of a city or district, you're bombarded with big words and even bigger reports. But they don't help you decide what to do on Monday morning.
Last year, we mapped the 25 global drivers reshaping cities. Halfway through 2026, we will show you where we currently stand, where we are headed, and which decisions you will have to make.
This 1-hour online keynote is a briefing on three core challenges our cities are facing today:
The housing crisis
Energy shortage and climate change
Digitalisation and AI in decision-making
You'll leave with:
Clarity on the trends that are being name-dropped
Briefing on key developments across culture, society, economy, ecology and technology to know what's coming next.
A simple way to turn any global trend into a concrete local decision, without a 200-page report and 12 meetings.
This session is for you if:
You work in municipal or district policy and have to make real decisions about the future of your city.
You need tangible information to base your decisions upon, not more theory.
You're tired of trend reports that present magnificent future scenarios but never tell you how to get there.
Hosted by Julia Barashkov (PhD, TU Delft) and Ben Drusinsky (PhD, TH Köln), founders of Urban Futures Lab, a studio for prototyping urban foresight. We help cities manage uncertainty by future-proofing the decision-making process.
This session is held in English.
past events
Urban Futures meet-up 2: October 10th, 16:00 - 18:00, at TU Delft
How do we measure what matters in cities? In our last meetup we discussed a granular, person-level way to compare climate impact and carbon footprints with Adele Therias and Megan Visscher. Mahdi Rahimi explored what accessibility really means when perception and emotions shape behavior, and how to capture invisible barriers in 15-minute cities.
Our community is asking questions that redefine “better cities”. Are you working on something that challenges how we think about urban life? Join us on October 10th, Pulse building, TU Delft 16:00-18:00
Our community is asking questions that redefine “better cities”. Are you working on something that challenges how we think about urban life? Join us on October 10th, Pulse building, TU Delft 16:00-18:00
A training for 22 emerging urban policymakers joining municipalities: September 8th, 11:00, Amsterdam.
Our training covered the basics of strategic urban foresight, offered an overview of the 25 global drivers impacting cities in 2025, and concluded with practical scenario-building for their urban contexts.
Participants left our workshop with the tools to identify and map weak signals, spot relevant trends, develop future scenarios, and understand the actions to take in the different stages of policymaking.
Urban Futures meet-up: May 2nd, 16:00 - 18:00, at the AMS Institute
Are you shaping the future of cities through your work? We want to hear your perspective. Meet us and other like-minded people at the AMS Institute in Amsterdam.
We’re bringing together diverse voices to explore emerging trends and challenges impacting our cities. We want to see what you are working on. Show us your screen for 10 minutes and tell us about a project or a challenge you’re facing.
Are you shaping the future of cities through your work? We want to hear your perspective. Meet us and other like-minded people at the AMS Institute in Amsterdam.
We’re bringing together diverse voices to explore emerging trends and challenges impacting our cities. We want to see what you are working on. Show us your screen for 10 minutes and tell us about a project or a challenge you’re facing.
