Barcelona wants to play a prominent role in the post-covid era. This has been stated by the mayor of the Catalan capital, Ada Colau, in an opinion article published this Saturday by the British newspaper The Guardian under the title Cities can lead a green revolution after covid. In Barcelona, we show how. According to Colau, it is necessary to take advantage of the economic crisis and the social damages caused by the pandemic to build a “new world more just, balanced and sustainable”, instead of reissuing “the fragile world of the pre-pandemic era”.
The mayoress of Barcelona believes that cities will play a key role in this process, since change must begin in large cities. “Barcelona and its metropolitan area want to lead the response to one of the harshest situations that humanity has faced in modern times ”, Colau stressed, after noting that“ we will need to boost the post-covid economy through green technologies and sustainable industry and transport ”. The article refers, for example, to the leadership that cities should have in the adoption of non-fossil fuels, the use of non-polluting modes of transport and the creation of green spaces that absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen.
In the article, Colau explains the main lines of the new Town Hall Mobility Plan and the transformation of the Eixample with the incorporation of green axes and superblocks to create a city “more pedestrian friendly and almost car free ”.
The mayor also confirms that the health crisis “it has reminded us all of the importance of scientific advances ”, referring to the rapid development of vaccines. “Cities can play a role in promoting science, technology and digital industries, something that Barcelona has been doing for years, through public policies aimed at attracting talent and building new infrastructures ”, he highlights.
At this point, Colau emphasizes on The Guardian that Barcelona will host the European supercomputer Mare Nostrum 5, whose computing capacity can be used in areas such as human genome research, new drug design, and weather forecasting. The mayor also recalls that the Catalan capital aspires to host the new European meteorology headquarters, whose forecasting capacity and environmental specialization are key to the fight against climate collapse.
“Our goal is to become the main scientific and cultural capital of the Mediterranean, promoting Europe’s transition towards a green and circular economy. And we can do it through the innovative, courageous and ingenious spirit that has characterized our city for a long time, working to improve the quality of life of our neighbors and ensuring that our post-pandemic society leaves no one behind ”, considers the mayor in the Article. “These are global challenges and will require international solutions. But cities are a good place to start, ”he concludes.
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