I’m finding the Mercer’s 2009 Quality of Living survey much more useful as it provides a special ranking for hubs with the best infrastructure. Note that Mercer’ survey is meant to be used as a comparison tool to determine compensation packages for companies with personnel abroad. Yet, as usual, it is fun to make a list of the cities where you would want to live next, right?

Here are the Top 5 cities in each region, according to the Mercer survey:

Interestingly enough, “Rethinking Urban Growth” is one of the few processes that acts as positive influencer in a world that seems doomed to end in food riots, although I find it hard to believe that this represents the full picture. At the very least there is one very important process missing from this picture: immigration.

Although only for the US, here is the Immigration Explorer, an interactive graphic of how different foreign-born groups have settled in the US over the last century.

The report provides details on a number of factors that combined make it attractive to develop the Travel & Tourism sector. These factors are: Policy rules and regulations Environemental sustainability Safety and security Health and hygiene Prioritization of Travel & Tourism Air transport infrastructure Ground transport infrastructure Tourism infrastructure ICT infrastructure Price competitiveness in the Travel & Tourism industry Human resources Affinity for Travel & Tourism Natural resources Cultural resources

In 2008, through the methodic evaluation of these factors, countries like Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Australia & Spain were at the top of the rank. However, with the abundance of details provided by this report the one thing that comes to mind as an important deficiency is the fact that only country level data is provided. Well, for a report of this scope is absolutely necessary to maintain this general approach. But I’m certain that the more granular this information is provided, the [...]]]> The World Economic Forum announced its Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2009 will be released on March 4. A couple of weeks ago I was asking people where to find better data that could be used to identify emerging destinations and based on the 2008 version of the report, this may be the best source.

The report provides details on a number of factors that combined make it attractive to develop the Travel & Tourism sector. These factors are:

• Policy rules and regulations
• Environemental sustainability
• Safety and security
• Health and hygiene
• Prioritization of Travel & Tourism
• Air transport infrastructure
• Ground transport infrastructure
• Tourism infrastructure
• ICT infrastructure
• Price competitiveness in the Travel & Tourism industry
• Human resources
• Affinity for Travel & Tourism
• Natural resources
• Cultural resources

In 2008, through the methodic evaluation of these factors, countries like Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Australia & Spain were at the top of the rank. However, with the abundance of details provided by this report the one thing that comes to mind as an important deficiency is the fact that only country level data is provided. Well, for a report of this scope is absolutely necessary to maintain this general approach. But I’m certain that the more granular this information is provided, the more valuable it will become. Within countries, specific regions may be investing far more resources to get ahead of the game. Identifying the qualities that these regions have to compete and using such information to publish a regional version of the report may be the first step in creating new tourism trends.

The idea is to come up with a certain way to organize information about destinations in such a way that those that have good infrastructure but have not yet developed as top tier tourist destinations can be identified. As it is, the index has yet to factor a number of things:

In brief, comScore reports China contributed 179,710 unique visitors in December 2008, while the United States (the traditional leader) only 163,300. For China this represents barely 13% of their population while for the U.S. is around 55%. Using Gapminder we can compare the Internet penetration vs. Income to visualize the trend (even though only 2006 data is available):

Over two years ago I wrote the post déjà vu, forecasting that the total penetration of Chinese users would reach 35%, using a simple comparison with the adoption of a similar technology back in the 90’s: the telephone. Considering that there are similarities in the way the two technologies are deployed, it is reasonable to use the comparison. In the case of the telephone it took China about 8 years to reach that milestone. The baseline I had used for this comparison was 2004 so we still have [...]]]> According to comScore, Global Internet Audience has surpassed 1 billion visitors. While on technology forums the news was barely covered, let alone analyzed, and publications like The Economist didn’t offer further intel, I think the implications deserve more discussion.

In brief, comScore reports China contributed 179,710 unique visitors in December 2008, while the United States (the traditional leader) only 163,300. For China this represents barely 13% of their population while for the U.S. is around 55%. Using Gapminder we can compare the Internet penetration vs. Income to visualize the trend (even though only 2006 data is available):

Over two years ago I wrote the post déjà vu, forecasting that the total penetration of Chinese users would reach 35%, using a simple comparison with the adoption of a similar technology back in the 90’s: the telephone. Considering that there are similarities in the way the two technologies are deployed, it is reasonable to use the comparison. In the case of the telephone it took China about 8 years to reach that milestone. The baseline I had used for this comparison was 2004 so we still have a few more years to go, but imagine half a billion Chinese users (35% of their population) on the web! That is more users than the next 12 countries combined today.

As we get closer to this milestone, I think the following trends will be observed:

• Larger amounts of user generated content will originate from Chinese users, shifting the conversation to the East and carrying with it all the services associated with it. Forget China being a “resource” economy.
• Web sites will sacrifice features for the sake of simplicity in order to embrace such a large user base (think Twitter).
• We’ll see the surge of web sites ideated with the Chinese culture at heart. The rest of the world will be left out unless we make a serious effort to understand our cultural differences. Baidu is just the beginning.
• Demystification of China as a destination will accelerate its relevance as a tourist destination. Put Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Xiamen, Chengdu, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Tianjin and Wuhan in your places to visit within the next 10 years. We’ll hear a lot more about them.

The original index data is available from Mastercard, and all I did was to reconfigure the weights assigned by the original methodology to assign more value to those dimensions that have a higher impact on the ability of a traveller to operate remotely from the region with fair access to a urban standard of living. These are the weights I assigned:

its not really about the Obamas – its about the context of our changing expectations of government

Berliners become an enigma – povo at home, increasingly affluent abroad

Just ignore the noxious skyline as you watch the GDP growth rates, still hovering near 9%

LA’s fashion scene has stagnated, and the city’s hold on entertainment is slipping to diffusion by web 2.0

the principles of kaizen (continuous improvement) are shaping a really cool new Japanese ecovibe

The general attitude down under appears to be one of distant concern

Here, ‘crunch’ is in the quinoa, not in the financial vocabulary

The city is rich enough to sit out the bust, and it can always rely on China’s neighboring Guangdong province to drive the local economy

Hunger breeds innovation, because people actually have to think, plot and [...]]]> As we struggle to find ways to survive the current crisis and look at the leaders of the world to provide guidance, the latest Hub Culture 2009 Zeitgeist Ranking will come in handy as a tour of the cities that are better positioned to sustain an acceptable quality of life while providing plenty of opportunities to rebuild for the future. A zeitgeist reflecting the drama of our times:

1. Washington,DC

its not really about the Obamas – its about the context of our changing expectations of government

2. Berlin

Berliners become an enigma – povo at home, increasingly affluent abroad

3. Beijing

Just ignore the noxious skyline as you watch the GDP growth rates, still hovering near 9%

4. Los Angeles

LA’s fashion scene has stagnated, and the city’s hold on entertainment is slipping to diffusion by web 2.0

5. Tokyo

the principles of kaizen (continuous improvement) are shaping a really cool new Japanese ecovibe

6. Sydney

The general attitude down under appears to be one of distant concern

7. Saö Paulo

Here, ‘crunch’ is in the quinoa, not in the financial vocabulary

8. Hong Kong

The city is rich enough to sit out the bust, and it can always rely on China’s neighboring Guangdong province to drive the local economy

9. New York

Hunger breeds innovation, because people actually have to think, plot and scheme to make a difference, and are more likely to do it on a shoestring budget.

10. London

With large infrastructure projects on the horizon for the Olympics, nimble currency moves and a general stiff upper lip, the mantra now is survival and sobriety

11. Shanghai

China is one of the last places in the world still experiencing growth, and that means that the party is still in progress here on the Huangphu River

12. Mumbai

Clearly the November attacks had a large impact on the mood of the city, but they can’t dent the can-do spirit of average Mumbaikars

13. Singapore

Private wealth and trading (two of the city’s biggest focuses) are giving ground to medical tourism, biotech and other homegrown industries taking root with support from the government

14. Buenos Aires

international markets and visitors that provide an international feel to the city began to dry up

15. Dubai

Dubai’s taste for showcases, whether luxury, architecture or design, make the remaining grand opportunities here very interesting

16. Paris

The current mood is about refocusing on priorities, living life more simply and thinking deep thoughts. Where better than Paris?

17. Toronto

Canadian globe trotters are heading back home to Canada’s most influential business city as they check out of their stints abroad.

18. Istanbul

Looking ahead, the story of Istanbul is about youthful opportunity.

19. México, D.F.

a young population works in Mexico City’s favour, creating optimism and opportunity for the future, generated by an increasingly well educated and global population.

20. Copenhagen

the Danish way of life, from design to food, with a focus on streamlined simplicity, makes more sense than ever.

While the article mentions the variety of factors that were considered, it is not clear what the evaluation methodology or how the scores were assigned, but there are plenty of notes about the various initiatives underway to make these cities worthy of their inclusion in this ranking.

Here is the list of the top 10 as ranked by their average score in 2020.

With such favorable prospects on any one of these cities, it may be worth investing a little time scouting them to become more intimate with their rhythm of life.

A recent study by the Global Enrironment Monitoring unit of the European Commission has produced a very interesting visualization of how accessible areas around the world are. Representing in brighter yellow colours those areas that are just a few hours away from a major city and darker red colours those that can only be reached after days of travelling, the map clearly conveys the simple fact that there are very few regions in the world that are truly isolated.

Produced by GEM

As I start to structure the notion of a slurb, one element to consider is how far away would you be willing to travel. Most tourists will assume a half-day for their journeys, a couple of hours getting to the airport and waiting for a flight, four to eight hours on a plane and maybe another hour getting to the final destination. The end point will usually be another major city or tourist destination with decent road infrastructure.

But knowing that there are very few places in the world that are more than a couple of days away [...]]]>

Wilderness? Only 10% of the land area is remote – more than 48 hours from a large city

A recent study by the Global Enrironment Monitoring unit of the European Commission has produced a very interesting visualization of how accessible areas around the world are. Representing in brighter yellow colours those areas that are just a few hours away from a major city and darker red colours those that can only be reached after days of travelling, the map clearly conveys the simple fact that there are very few regions in the world that are truly isolated.

Produced by GEM

As I start to structure the notion of a slurb, one element to consider is how far away would you be willing to travel. Most tourists will assume a half-day for their journeys, a couple of hours getting to the airport and waiting for a flight, four to eight hours on a plane and maybe another hour getting to the final destination. The end point will usually be another major city or tourist destination with decent road infrastructure.

But knowing that there are very few places in the world that are more than a couple of days away from “civilization” you could easily add another day to your journey to venture into a less accessible location, leaving behind most tourist traps and blending with the local scene. All this without risking too much as you would still be “near” a major city. All of the sudden the possibilities are endless.

The journey may end up costing more because you need to make arrangements for a car or a driver, but it is likely that settling in a remote community away from the tourist buzz will also drive your accommodation costs. Of course it now makes sense to stay longer. In fact, it makes sense to travel not only for vacations but the reconnect with your creative self, that part of your mind that needs to slow down and retreat in a quiet place to invent and define your next few months of greatness.

Other cities outside of North America included in the list: Osaka, Madrid, Sydney, Amsterdam, Paris, Melbourne, Berlin, Bangkok, Barcelona, Taipei, Santiago, Dublin and Caracas.