The second academic year of the Norman Foster Institute’s Master’s Programme on Sustainable Cities officially commenced this week, welcoming students from sixteen nationalities and diverse professional backgrounds, ranging from architecture to journalism.  The thirty-six-week programme, organised by the Norman Foster Institute in collaboration with the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, consists of three stages—Foundations, Transformations and Interventions, with time divided between classrooms, cities and studios. It encourages direct collaboration with city administrations to develop solutions for urban sustainability.

This year, the programme expands its focus to Africa, with three pilot cities: Melilla, Cape Town and Freetown. Each city brings unique contexts and challenges, allowing students to explore diverse urban realities and address critical issues such as informal settlements, climate resilience, economic disparities and sustainable growth. The methods and strategies developed will be adaptable to cities of all kinds, across the globe.

Towards the end of the year, the students will present their findings to the city administrations, with a strong emphasis on advocacy and presentation skills. Building on the concept that cities historically learn from one another, the programme will explore how the lessons learned in these cities apply to the wider context of global urban development.

Throughout the opening week, the students were introduced to the Norman Foster Institute’s academic body through keynotes and seminars delivered by:

Norman Foster, Co-Director, Norman Foster Institute (NFI); President, Norman Foster Foundation (NFF), Madrid, Spain; Advocate of the United Nations Forum of Mayors; Founder and Executive Chairman, Foster + Partners, London, United Kingdom, who opened the academic year with a keynote emphasising the role of cities in shaping society’s future.

Kent Larson, Co-Director, Norman Foster Institute (NFI); Member of the Advisory Board, Norman Foster Foundation (NFF), Madrid, Spain; Director, City Science Group, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab, Cambridge, MA, United States, who explored transformative communities and innovative models for urban living.

Diego López Urruchi, Associate Director of the Architecture Unit, Norman Foster Foundation (NFF), Madrid, Spain, who discussed strategies for creating future-proof cities.

Glyn Richards, Group Sustainability Director, Bupa, London, United Kingdom, who examined the links between sustainable urban design and public health, highlighting the opportunities for designing healthier cities.

Gareth Simons, Head of City Science, Norman Foster Institute (NFI), Madrid, Spain; Senior Research Fellow in Building Stock and Energy Modelling (Energy Institute) and Research Fellow in Evidence Based Urban Design and Planning (Space Syntax), Bartlett, University College London (UCL), London, United Kingdom, who emphasised evidence-based urban design strategies to enhance walkability, accessibility and sustainability.

Amin Taha, Director, Groupwork; Tutor, ADS5 Architecture MA, School of Architecture, Royal College of Art, London, United Kingdom, who presented strategies for achieving carbon-negative architecture through material and design innovation.

Maria Vassilakou, Founder, Vienna Solutions; Former Vice Mayor, Vienna, Austria, who discussed the role of social housing in Vienna’s global liveability success.

This week also featured engaging roundtables and the students’ introductory presentations, where students shared their backgrounds, expectations and early ideas. These activities laid the groundwork for the months ahead, fostering collaboration and dialogue as they tackle the urgent challenges of urbanisation and climate change towards creating sustainable cities.