Diana Lind

The New Cities Foundation is a recently formed non-profit Swiss institution dedicated to improving the quality of life and work in the 21st-century global city.

The foundation believes that cities are humanity’s most important source of innovation, creativity and wealth-creation. It acts as a clearinghouse for information on urbanization and supports on-going original research. The Foundation’s membership is open to key public and private sector entities around the world who are stakeholders in the future of urbanization.

The New Cities Summit, an annual meeting bringing together the Foundation members and other leading voices in the global discussion on urbanization, is held under the auspices of the Foundation.

It’s every architect’s fantasy—getting carte blanche from a client. “It was excellent, and the first time for me,” Gus Wustemann says with evident glee, recalling how a couple contacted him after seeing his work in magazines, and offered complete creative license. The couple owned a 2,000-square-foot attic apartment in the historic quarter of Lucerne, Switzerland, and wanted it not just renovated, but transformed. Read more…