R//C Lunch Sessions 2: Urban Futures Along the River: Reconnecting Cities, Water and Society

River//Cities approaches urbanisation not only as a demographic or economic phenomenon, but as a spatial and ecological process. Rivers have always been foundational to urban development: they enabled trade, provided resources, structured settlement patterns, and shaped cultural identities. Yet in many modern cities, these relationships have been obscured, engineered, or even severed. Today, as cities continue to grow, the question is not only how they expand—but how they reconnect: to water, to landscape, and to the ecological systems that sustain them.

In this context, Bernhard Müller, former mayor of Wiener Neustadt and Secretary General of the Urban Forum, provided a comprehensive overview of urbanisation trends in Austria and worldwide. His contribution traced the long arc of urban development while situating current challenges within a global framework of accelerating change.

Urbanisation is not a new phenomenon. From early settlements in the Middle East to the structured city-states of classical antiquity, from medieval towns to industrial cities, urban development has evolved through distinct historical phases. Each phase redefined the relationship between people, space, and resources. What distinguishes the present moment, however, is the scale and intensity of this transformation. Cities are no longer simply places—they are complex, interconnected systems embedded within planetary processes.

At the same time, the concept of the “city” itself remains surprisingly difficult to define. There is no universal agreement on what constitutes urbanity. Instead, urbanisation is more accurately understood as a process: the increasing concentration of populations in urban areas. This process is measurable, and its trajectory is unmistakable.

In 1950, less than one-third of the global population lived in cities. By 2021, this number had risen to 4.4 billion people. Within just a few decades, the world crossed a critical threshold: around 2010, for the first time in human history, more people lived in urban areas than in rural ones. Projections suggest that by 2050, nearly 70 percent of the global population will be urban, amounting to over 6 billion people. 

This transformation is not evenly distributed. Highly urbanised regions such as North America and Latin America coexist with rapidly urbanising areas in Asia and still predominantly rural regions in Africa. Yet across all contexts, one pattern is clear: cities are becoming the primary sites of human life—and therefore the primary arenas for addressing global challenges, including climate change, resource management, and social inequality.

Water plays a central role in this transformation. Many of the world’s largest cities are located along rivers, deltas, or coastlines. These locations offer advantages—connectivity, fertility, access to trade routes—but they also entail risks. Flooding, rising water levels, and ecological degradation are increasingly pressing concerns. Urbanisation intensifies these dynamics, often placing additional pressure on already fragile ecosystems.

At the extreme end of urban growth are megacities—urban agglomerations with more than 10 million inhabitants. Their number has increased rapidly, and further growth is expected in the coming decades. These vast urban regions concentrate not only populations but also economic activity, infrastructure, and environmental impact. Emerging concepts such as “gigacities,” particularly in China, push this development even further, envisioning urban regions of unprecedented scale—regions that must manage water, energy, and mobility systems at a level of complexity never seen before.

Against this global backdrop, Austria offers a distinct but revealing case. While geographically small and shaped by alpine landscapes, it is nonetheless a highly urbanised country. Around 70 percent of its population lives in urban areas or their surroundings. At the same time, only a limited portion of the national territory is suitable for permanent settlement, highlighting the importance of spatial efficiency and regional coordination. 

Austria’s urban system is characterised by a paradox: a high number of municipalities—over 2,000—combined with strong functional interdependencies between regions. This fragmented administrative structure contrasts with the reality of interconnected urban regions, where economic, social, and infrastructural systems operate across boundaries.

Vienna exemplifies this dynamic. Located along the Danube, the city has historically developed in close relationship with its river—both as a resource and as a risk. Today, it is one of the largest cities in the German-speaking world, with more than 2 million inhabitants. Its size reflects not only national dynamics but also historical legacies, particularly its role as the centre of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Urban regions in Austria generate the majority of economic output and host most employment opportunities, underlining their central role in national development. Yet this concentration also raises questions about accessibility, mobility, and spatial equity—especially in regions where connections to urban centres remain limited.

From a River//Cities perspective, these challenges are inseparable from questions of water governance and landscape integration. Rivers do not follow administrative boundaries; they connect regions, ecosystems, and communities. Urban development that ignores these connections risks creating fragmentation—both spatial and ecological.

Reconnecting cities with their rivers therefore becomes a key task. This involves not only technical solutions—such as flood protection, water management, and infrastructure—but also a cultural shift. Rivers must be understood not merely as resources to be controlled, but as integral components of urban life. They shape public space, influence climate, and provide opportunities for recreation and social interaction.

This perspective aligns with a broader rethinking of urbanisation. As early as 1992, the United Nations declared that “the future is urban.” Today, this statement has gained new dimensions. The future is not only urban—it is also relational, ecological, and networked.

Cities are increasingly seen as key actors in a globalised world, potentially more influential than nation-states in addressing transnational challenges. But with this role comes responsibility. The way cities grow, connect, and interact with their natural environments will shape not only local conditions but also global trajectories.

The River Cities Lunch Session thus points to a fundamental question: how can urbanisation be guided in a way that reconnects people, place, and nature? The answer lies not in a single model, but in a continuous process of negotiation—between growth and limits, infrastructure and ecology, global dynamics and local contexts.

Rivers, in this sense, offer both a metaphor and a framework. They remind us that cities are part of larger systems, defined by flows and interdependencies. To understand the future of cities, we must therefore look not only at buildings and populations, but at the currents that run through them.

The future may be urban—but it will also be shaped by water.