Abstract
Fragile Cities: Confronting the Changing Landscapes Violence
The twenty first century will be urban. By 2030, more than 3 in 5 people will live in cities and slums. It is not just size or density of cities and their periphery, but the pace of urbanization that will define global trajectories of violence. There are at least five major risks that will influence patterns of organized and interpersonal violence over the next 30 years. These include the changing geography, topography, demography, ecology and technology of violence. If violence is to be halved in the coming decades, the dimensions of the urban dilemma need to be acknowledged. Attention needs to be refocused specifically on those cities and settlements generating disproportionate levels of violence, building-in resilience to our cities, and harnessing technological innovation to improve safety and security.