Urbanization increases globally: It is expected that 6.68 billion people will be living in cities in 2050. In 2100, 13 out of 20 megacities are expected to be on the African continent and cities like Lagos, Kinshasa, or Dar es Salaam are expected to have significantly more than 70 million inhabitants.

Some smaller cities and regions will experience exploding growth to metropoles. Acc. UN Environment program, buildings account for up to 41% of global anthropogenic carbon emissions. Concrete is the second most treated material in the world after water; and due to the tremendous need of concrete, the cement industry accounts for 5-8% of the global greenhouse gas emissions. The overall urban planning affects possible solutions for infrastructure and public transportation, social resilience (through community building) and climate resilience (e.g. resilience against flooding, earthquakes and heat islands).

Solutions need to be found and applied for sustainable constructions that provide socially responsible growth. Engineers, architects and urban planners need to find socially and at the same time ecologically sustainable solutions for prospective growth of rural, urban and metropolis regions. This requires decision-makers with interdisciplinary knowledge, who are able to grasp the complexity of sustainable city growth and find solutions for sustainable and socially responsible buildings and infrastructure. Furthermore, they need to be able to communicate with political decision-makers, industrial companies as well as diverse communities with different needs.