The Urban Paradox

Cities in Search of the Future

Paolo Verri

• Publisher: EGEA Spa - Bocconi University Press
• Year: 2026
• Topic: Business
• eBook ISBN:
  9791280623454
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

Where megacities shape destinies, the future is written in the paradoxes of urban life— where innovation, identity, and resilience collide in the laboratories of the world' s great cities. From Jakarta' s explosive growth to the quiet pride of Matera, this is a journey through nine cities at the crossroads of transformation. Paolo Verri, a seasoned " urban practitioner," brings decades of firsthand experience to stories of places that have reimagined themselves— sometimes through crisis, sometimes through celebration. Cities aren' t just backdrops— they' re restless organisms, testing new social models, wrestling with gentrification, and forging unexpected alliances across continents. Here, the " fifteen-minute city," smart citizenship, and cultural policy aren' t buzzwords— they' re survival strategies. Through vivid accounts of Barcelona' s Olympic reinvention, Pittsburgh' s leap from steel to biotech, and Wroclaw' s bet on youth and knowledge, the book reveals how urban paradoxes— success and decline, openness and conflict— fuel both innovation and unrest. You' ll find real lessons in sustainability, place branding, and the creative economy, but also a candid reflection: no city ever truly " arrives." Instead, each is a tortoise, always moving, never finished, forever outpacing the citizen Achilles who chases it. For anyone fascinated by urban planning, postindustrial revival, or the messy, beautiful business of building cities for the future, these pages are a map to what comes next.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Description
• Biography
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Foreword
• Introduction. The future belongs to the cities
• 1 Barcelona. From dictatorship to autonomy
• 2 Turin. From manufacturing to culture
• 3 Pittsburgh. Steel and disease
• 4 Lyon. The government of light
• 5 Milan. From politics to policies (and back)
• 6 Istanbul. Crossroads or monad?
• 7 Wrocław. A city for young people
• 8 Matera. From shame to pride
• 9 Tokyo. Old people and children
• Conclusions. Putting cities back in the hands of the citizens
• Bibliography