Module 4 — City Performance Indicators and Methods of Assessment
Lesson 3 of 13Urban Metabolism

Developed as a concept to better understand material and resource flows in cities, urban metabolism was first introduced in the 1960s, and with advancements in the late 1990s to include the wider anthroposphere, urban metabolism studies continue to be developed today and include applications for sustainable urban design, greenhouse gas emissions and policy analysis. In this video you will understand the elements of urban metabolism models, review some earlier examples of urban metabolism diagrams, and reflect on its application in engineering sustainable cities, and in urban planning and design. 

© Course Author(s) and University of Waterloo.

Nadine Ibrahim. (2019, June 6). Urban Metabolism. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRme1n2kG94

We are able to glean information about what goes on in a city from an urban metabolism model; therefore we can also understand the system wide impacts of consumption of goods and sequential production of waste within the urban environment. The urban metabolism is a model to facilitate the description and analysis of the flows of materials and energy within cities. Urban metabolism provides researchers with a metaphorical framework to study the interactions of natural and human systems in cities and urban regions.