"In architecture, there are always specific problems, but there is usually no opportunity to ask the big question: what is the future of urban planning? During his stay at the School of Architecture of the University of Navarra, Michael Hays, urban planner at the School of design of Harvard University (USA), explained the possible directions of the urban design of the 21st century in both Europe and the USA.

Hays, who taught as visiting professor of the University of Navarra's Master's Degree at design Architectural , said that "during the 1950s and 1960s everyone moved to the suburbs, but today, at least on the East Coast of the U.S., living in the city is a common trend reinforced by 9/11."

The architect was skeptical about understanding the real effects of the terrorist attacks and highlighted certain consequences "beyond the architectural". "The divorce rate in the U.S. has dropped immediately, which means that citizens are appreciating a different scale of values," said the architect at reference letter in the area of the family. "This, which is merely sociological, is a core topic for the urban design , since the way we use the city will be different to the extent that we are not driven only by occupations or by the Economics of the country," warned Hays, who admitted that the change will be felt, although he ruled out "spectacular alterations from the point of view of the physicality of cities."

Urbanism does not equal commercialism

The author of several books on architectural theory and criticism, he said the economic recession following the World Trade Center attack had a beneficial effect: "Making people see that urbanism does not equal commercialism." "At one time in the U.S., you couldn't walk through a city without seeing stores everywhere. You have to accept that the commercial dimension of the city belongs to the urban realm, but institutions such as universities, churches or museums also play an important role. At the end of the day, residential areas demand their own urbanism, not a bunch of stores," he said.

Asked about the possibility that urban planning will tend toward large cities and buildings, Michael Hays predicted a trend toward design of large tracts of land, "along the lines of design landscaping or infrastructure for highways or bridges." "The understanding of landscape and land culture has a longer tradition in Europe, whereas in the U.S. it is a much more recent development. In both cases, there is an awareness not so much of preservation, but of design, which has a culture of territory in mind," he clarified.