Lesson video

Hello, I'm Mrs. Grey, and I'm so excited that you've decided to join me to learn geography today.

Today's lesson is in our unit of Cities: what are they like to live in? And the title of today's lesson is The future of cities.

By the end of the lesson today, you will explore how cities may look and function in the future.

There are some key words that we'll come across in today's lesson.

They are smart city, sustainability, and urban planning.

A smart city is a city that uses digital technology to improve services and quality of life.

Sustainability is meeting today's needs without harming the future.

And urban planning is designing and managing how cities grow and change.

Today's lesson on the future of cities is split into two learning cycles.

The first, how will technology change life in future cities? And the second, how will cities respond to climate challenges? Let's take a look at our first learning cycle, how will technology change life in future cities? A smart city uses digital tools and data to make life easier.

Examples of smart tools in cities include traffic lights that change depending on traffic flow, bins that send a message when they are full, and apps that tell you the quickest bus route.

Andeep asks, "Why are digital tools good?" Brilliant question.

Well, digital tools make the city run more smoothly and reduce pollution.

Barcelona in Spain uses smart technology and is a leading smart city in Europe.

It's an image of Barcelona there.

A smart technology used in Barcelona includes sensors that manage traffic, streetlights that can be controlled to save energy, an app which lets people find parking spaces, and plants with sensors which detect when they need watering.

So, some really interesting technology there that's used in Barcelona, and making it a leading smart city in Europe.

Our first check for the lesson now then.

Which best describes a smart city? A, a city with the tallest buildings, B, a city that uses technology to improve life, C, a city where everyone drives a sports car, D, a city where lots of clever people live.

What do you think? So pause the video, write down your answer, and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay.

How did you get on? Which best describes a smart city? The answer is B, a city that uses technology to improve life.

Another check.

How does Barcelona use smart technology? A, it only uses solar power, B, it grows food on rooftops, C, it uses apps and sensors to manage the city, D, it has robots in every shop.

So pause the video, write down your answer, and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay.

How did you get on? How does Barcelona use a smart technology? The answer is C.

It uses apps and sensors to manage the city.

Did you get that? Well done.

In a smart city, technology is a major part of daily life.

People living in a smart city might use an app to book a doctor's appointment, pay for the bus with their phone, or attend an online school or work from home.

Alex says, "I'd like to live in a smart city.

I think it would be more efficient and connected." Do you live in anywhere that does this? Do you use any of these features already? Estonia is one of the world's most digitally advanced countries.

In the capital city, Tallinn, lots can be done online.

The Tallinn University of Technology develops new innovative ideas to use in the city.

Another check for us now then.

Which of these is an example of a smart city technology? A, using a phone to pay for a bus ticket, B, solar panels on rooftops, C, planting trees in the countryside, D, building houses with bricks.

So pause the video, write down your answer, and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay, how did you get on? Which of these is an example of smart city technology? The answer is A, using a phone to pay for a bus ticket.

Did you get that right? Well done.

Transport in future cities will be cleaner and smarter.

Technology is changing how we get around cities.

Electric buses and cars reduce air pollution, and shared bikes and e-scooters, they help people make short trips.

Singapore shows how technology can help solve a city's transport problems. Singapore uses driverless trains, a traffic pricing system to reduce congestion, electric buses in certain areas, and smart traffic lights to reduce waiting times.

A quick check for us now then.

How has Singapore made transport smarter? A, it banned buses, B, it uses driverless trains and smart traffic lights, C, people must walk everywhere, and D, it closed all roads.

So pause the video, write down your answer, and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay, how did you get on? How has Singapore made transport smarter? And the answer is B, it uses driverless trains and smart traffic lights.

Did you get that? Well done.

COVID-19 lockdowns changed city life in the short term, and accelerated change seen now.

During COVID-19 lockdowns, office workers worked from home, school moved online, many people used food delivery apps.

This showed how cities might change as more services move online and services replace shops in many city centres.

More services are going digital.

In the future, more people will shop online, learn from home, use AI, and work remotely.

This will reduce the need for large offices and shops in city centres.

So we're onto our first task of today's lesson then, now.

There are five mistakes in the paragraph below.

Can you find and correct them? Smart cities use technology and data to make everyday life harder and more efficient.

For example, Barcelona uses sensors to manage traffic and save energy, while Tallinn in Estonia allows people to access more services in person.

In future cities, transport will change too, using electric vehicles, shared transport, and even driverless cars to increase pollution and make travel faster, as seen in Singapore.

More people will also live, learn, and shop online, meaning cities may need more offices and shops and more flexible, digitally connected spaces.

All of this shows how technology is already changing the way cities look and work.

So there are five mistakes.

You need to find them and correct them.

Pause the video while you do that, and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay, how did you get on? This is what your paragraph should look like.

Smart cities use technology and data to make everyday life easier and more efficient.

For example, Barcelona uses sensors to manage traffic and save energy, while Tallinn in Estonia allows people to access more services online.

In future cities, transport will change too, using electric vehicles, shared transport, and even driverless cars to reduce pollution and make travel faster, as seen in Singapore.

More people will also work, learn, and shop online, meaning cities may need fewer offices and shops and more flexible digitally connected spaces.

All of this shows how technology is already changing the way cities look and work.

How did you get on? Did you find all five mistakes, and were you able to correct them? Well done.

So we finished our first learning cycle on how will technology change life in future cities, and now we're gonna move on to our second learning cycle, how will cities respond to climate challenges? Cities must prepare for a changing climate.

Cities face big climate challenges like flooding from more intense rainfall, heat waves from rising temperatures, and pollution from traffic and factories.

Lucas asks, "Can cities protect people from climate change?" Brilliant question.

Cities will need to change how they are built and run to protect people and the environment.

A quick check then.

Which of these is a climate challenge cities may face? A, internet problems, B, heat waves and flooding, C, lack of shops, D, too many parks.

So pause the video, write down your answer, and then come back and let's see how you've gone.

Okay, how did you get on? Which of these is a climate challenge cities may face? The answer is B, heat waves and flooding.

Did you get that? Well done.

Now, mitigation means reducing the causes of climate change.

Mitigation strategies include using renewable energy like solar or wind, cutting car use and traffic, and making buildings more energy efficient.

Freiburg in Germany shows how cities can lead the way in sustainable living.

Freiburg uses solar panels on homes and schools, trams and cycle paths to reduce car use, and green spaces and woodlands to absorb carbon dioxide.

Another check then.

What does climate mitigation mean? A, moving to the countryside, B, planting trees in forests, C, reducing the causes of climate change, D, taking shelter from storm.

So pause the video, write down your answer, and then come back and let's see how you go.

Okay, how did you get on? What does climate mitigation mean? The answer is C, reducing the causes of climate change.

Did you get that? Well done.

Now, adaptation means planning for the changes that are already happening.

So adaptation strategies include building flood defences, planting more trees for shade, and designing buildings that stay cool in heat waves.

Rotterdam in the Netherlands is a world leader in climate adaptation.

Rotterdam is preparing for sea level rise by building floating buildings that rise with flood water, using parks and green roofs to absorb water, so lots of things that Rotterdam's doing there to prepare for that sea level rise.

So a quick check for us.

How does Rotterdam prepare for flooding? Is it A, builds underground homes, B, uses floating buildings and water squares, C, covers roads in plastic, D, removes all rivers? So pause the video, write down your answer, and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay, how did you get on? How does Rotterdam prepare for flooding? And the answer is B, uses floating buildings and water squares.

Cities will need clean, green power in the future.

Future cities will rely more on solar panels and wind turbines, electric public transport, buildings that use less energy with better insulation and smart design.

All of these reduce emissions and help cities become more sustainable.

Masdar City in the UAE is designed to be almost zero-carbon.

It's powered by solar farms, it uses driverless electric pods instead of cars, and you can see an image of that there, streets are shaded to keep them cool without air conditioning.

Masdar shows how urban planning can prepare for climate challenges.

Another little check for us now then.

True or false? Cities can't do much to stop climate change because it's a global problem.

Is that true or false? So pause the video, write down your answer, and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay, how did you get on? True or false? Cities can't do much to stop climate change because it's a global problem.

That's false.

But why? So while climate change is a global issue, cities can make a big difference by reducing emissions and adapting their infrastructure to protect people and the environment.

So onto our final task of the lesson now then.

And your task is to answer the following three questions.

Question one, what is one way cities can mitigate climate change, and which city is doing this well? Question two, what does climate adaptation mean, and how is Rotterdam putting it into action? And question three, how will green technology help future cities, and what makes Masdar City special? So you've got three questions to answer there.

One about mitigation, one about adaptation, and one about green technology.

And you've gotta give a little bit of an example or talk about a particular city in each one.

So pause the video, write down your answer for each of those questions, and then come back and let's see how you go on.

Okay, how did you get on? So question one, what is one way cities can reduce the causes of climate change, and which city is doing this well? So cities can reduce climate change by using renewable energy like solar power.

Freiburg, Germany is a good example.

It uses solar panels, trams, and green spaces to lower emissions.

Question two, what does climate adaptation mean, and how is Rotterdam putting it into action? Climate adaptation means preparing for the effects of climate change, like floods or heat.

Rotterdam adapts by using floating buildings, water squares, and green roofs to manage heavy rainfall.

Question three, how will green technology help future cities, and what makes Masdar City special? Green technology, like solar power and electric transport, helps cities become more sustainable.

Masdar City in the UAE is special because it's designed to be almost zero-carbon, using solar energy and driverless electric transport.

How did you get on with those three questions? Did you manage to write an answer for each of them, and did you get them right? Well done.

So we're at the end of our lesson today on the future of cities.

Let's have a look at what we've learned.

Smart cities use technology to improve urban health.

Urban planning will focus on climate mitigation and adaptation in future.

Future cities will rely on renewable energy and green tech.

Advances in transport will shape future city living.

The function of cities may change as more of their traditional functions go online.

Thank you for joining me for today's geography lesson.

I've really enjoyed it, and I hope you have too.

I look forward to seeing you next time.