2026 Mumford Lecture: Carlos Moreno on Proximity as a New Social Contract for Cities

The 2026 Mumford Lecture features Carlos Moreno arguing for proximity as the structural foundation of a new social contract for cities.

As urban crises multiply — climate disruption, rising inequality, housing shortages, social fragmentation — Moreno contends that rethinking how we organize time, space, and everyday access offers a powerful framework for transformation. Drawing on concepts like the "x-minute city" and human-scale ecosystems, the lecture makes the case that proximity can reduce carbon emissions, ease daily stress, strengthen communities, and create new forms of economic value. Not a trend or a lifestyle choice, but a civic, ecological, and economic principle for the urban future.