Gemma John | Founder & Director, Human City

Building Our Future

Can the application of traditional social sciences to big data help better tailor the future of the built environment to societal needs?

Gemma John is an anthropologist, helping to influence urban planning and development.

After ten years in academic research, Gemma spent five years working for engineering, planning, and architecture firms, including AECOM & Foster + Partners, before establishing her own consultancy business, Human City.

Human City helps property developers to create commercially successful projects, particularly in the co-working & co-living areas. Gemma’s work ranges from advising on new building concepts through to mobile apps. Gemma is currently designing a research project, focusing on the moral economy of housing.

In this podcast:

• How are generational mindset changes impacting our use & design of buildings?
• How does the real estate industry cater to the evolving changes in what the end user really wants or needs?
• Is co-living driven by necessity or desire?
• Exploring benefits of inter-generational co-living and the concept of the Skyler tower
• What can co-working learn from public libraries?
• The role of social sciences in the “big data” world & how to ensure that human interaction remains at the core of built-environment decision-making in an increasingly digitised world.

Gemma’s favourite building is Notre Dame Basilica in Montreal for its blue vibrancy!

Her innovation to watch out for is Vu.City, the provider of interactive, digital city models.