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Richard Bush

August 15, 2025 23:01

There is a global quest for urban innovation that enables cities to grow in ways that optimize space, enhance livability, and reduce the pressure on natural resources.

Society is now acutely aware of major global environmental challenges. Climate change, pollution, desertification, and deforestation and biodiversity loss are topics frequently discussed worldwide.

However, less commonly recognized are the profound implications of the thousands of new cities we will need to construct this century to accommodate the projected surge in the global population.

The regions most significantly impacted by this will include Africa, China, India and the Middle East.

With an estimated 11.6 billion people expected to inhabit the planet by the end of the century, we have entered an era of unprecedented urbanization. Humanity is creating what urbanists Greg Clark and Borane Gille describe as a “planet of cities.”

UN modeling projects that by 2100, the global urban population will increase from 2.6 billion to 9.6 billion. The number of cities with more than a million residents will grow from 275 to about 1,600. This equates to constructing more than 1,000 major cities in the next 75 years.

Whether nature can withstand this burden remains uncertain and is a matter of growing concern.

The impact extends beyond how people live in cities: commuting, eating, cooling and cooking. The very process of building these cities will likely become one of the largest contributors to climate change.

The construction and operation of urban spaces form a major global industry, encompassing real estate, infrastructure, utilities, transport, technology, and an array of associated goods and services.

Construction activities currently account for approximately 40 percent of annual global energy consumption and 36 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. The production of essential materials — steel, aluminum, cement, concrete and plastic — is energy-intensive and generates considerable pollution.

The UN Environment Program underlines the fact that decarbonizing materials is vital for reducing emissions throughout the life cycle of buildings.

Overall, evidence shows that we are building and operating cities beyond safe environmental limits. Given the rapid pace of urban development, the challenge is to do better; to achieve sustainability standards that not only protect the environment but ideally restore resilience for future generations.

Solving the problem of sustainable cities is both a wicked challenge and a tremendous opportunity. The scale, complexity and urgency are daunting but the potential for innovation is enormous.

Addressing this will unleash new technologies and usher in a green, smart economy.

In 2022, I learned that �������� was constructing the world’s first sustainable city: NEOM, a transformative, giga-scale project on the northern Red Sea coast.

This city is envisioned as carbon-neutral, car-free, nature-positive, powered by renewable energy, and built with advanced technologies to meet bold environmental standards. Such ambition, vision and scale are precisely what the current era requires.

Projects such as NEOM inspire visionary leadership and the scaling of innovation necessary to move beyond incremental change and open the door to transformational progress.

During my three years as chief environment officer in this project, I witnessed NEOM already changing the supply of construction materials and goods, helping international companies and construction sectors transition toward clean manufacturing, renewable energy, and circular-economy principles.

With an estimated 11.6 billion people expected to inhabit the planet by the end of the century, we have entered an era of unprecedented urbanization.

Richard Bush

There are encouraging signs that NEOM and other giga-projects across the Middle East — such as Red Sea Global, Diriyah, Qiddiya, and Murrabba — are making a global impact, as highlighted by reports from the likes of the World Economic Forum and the G20’s Urban 20 initiative.

NEOM’s influence is driven by its massive scale, aggressive timelines, and the high expectations set by its leadership for climate, decarbonization, environmental and livability standards, nature conservation, and operational efficiency — which are achievable only through systemic change.

When a giga-project such as NEOM solves a problem, the global construction industry benefits, future cities benefit and, ultimately, all of society benefits.

This demonstrates why large, ambitious projects are essential if we are to achieve both human progress and environmental sustainability in coming decades.

So, where will we find the inspiration, strategy and commitment to drive the construction industry’s transition to sustainability? Who will be involved and who will take responsibility?

Business will be central to driving the sustainability transition for one good reason: it promises a competitive advantage in a rapidly changing marketplace.

Conservative economists and seasoned business leaders alike are reading the situation and moving quickly to adapt. Demand for green goods and services is experiencing substantial growth that is expected to continue for many decades based on current forecasts.

Sustainability credentials are emerging as strong market differentiators, partly because of new regulations and standards set by governments that will not tolerate environmentally damaging industries and, more importantly, the conscious choice of customers, such as NEOM, who prioritize sustainability along with cost and quality.

As citizens, we can all play a role in supporting and influencing businesses and governments to make the right choices when it comes to sustainability.

There are encouraging signs of progress on a global scale, according to recent reports from leading organizations such as the WEF, UN Environment Programme, World Building Council, and U20.

For example, the First Movers Coalition, established by the WEF, brings together global companies leveraging collective purchasing power to create a credible demand signal for change.

Similarly, the First Suppliers Hub is a global repository of innovative and emerging products needed for decarbonization by 2050 in sectors such as aluminum, cement, concrete, steel, aviation, shipping and transport.

These examples demonstrate alternatives to the old business rules of competition and counterproductive isolationism, making way for new types of strategic collaboration founded on a shared interest in addressing sustainability.

�������� is showing its willingness to lean into the global challenge of building a sustainable future with courage, creativity, determination and proactive collaboration. Hopefully this example will inspire action.

On a personal level, it was exciting to be part of NEOM and to work alongside some of the greatest minds and change-makers. It has given me confidence that we will find a sustainable path as we navigate the rise of cities and urbanization.

• Richard Bush is the former chief environment officer of NEOM and is recognized for his work across policy, science and innovation in the field of sustainable development.