THE COAST : RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES Despite the real risk of rising sea levels due to global warming, the vast majority of major urban regions are currently in coastal areas. There are obviously many reasons for this, first and foremost among which is the openness to the world represented by the sea front. [ + ]
THE COAST : RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES
Despite the real risk of rising sea levels due to global warming, the vast majority of major urban regions are currently in coastal areas. There are obviously many reasons for this, first and foremost among which is the openness to the world represented by the sea front. The Mediterranean Arc opens out towards the Middle East and Africa and is far from having exhausted the opportunities which arise out of such a position.
[ - ]CULTURE AND LEISURE Culture and leisure have become major elements in the perceived appeal of cities and a determining factor in the competition to attract a dynamic population, companies and investments. For the Mediterranean Arc, music and performance venues, cinemas, museums and libraries, but also the ever-growing variety of leisure activities, should not be exclusively linked to “town centres” but should be spread over the entire urban area, stretching along the coast. [ + ]
CULTURE AND LEISURE
Culture and leisure have become major elements in the perceived appeal of cities and a determining factor in the competition to attract a dynamic population, companies and investments. For the Mediterranean Arc, music and performance venues, cinemas, museums and libraries, but also the ever-growing variety of leisure activities, should not be exclusively linked to “town centres” but should be spread over the entire urban area, stretching along the coast. Specialist sports infrastructure, from stadiums to golf courses, sailing, trekking, and more, are also key. It also seems vital to us to include shopping centres, retail parks and other infrastructure linked to consumption in development plans. The boundaries between leisure, consumption and culture are becoming increasingly blurred in urban environments. Consumption – at once a pleasurable and stressful activity – has become so generic that, more than ever, it needs to include other offers aimed at meeting consumer demands or differentiating a product from a marketing perspective. Commerce, leisure, and culture (now condemned to emerge from its Ivory tower) have everything to win by integrating the coastal landscape in a synergetic and global vision.
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