Professor Kim Se-hoon, an urban design scholar who has been studying cities around the world for the past 25 years, shares his thoughts.
The New Normal Era: Urban Culture
"Those who read the city's changes seize the next opportunity."

Professor Kim Se-hoon of Seoul National University, an urban design scholar who has been exploring cities around the world for the past 25 years, shares tips on how to increase your value in a dynamic city.
In an era where the formula of urbanization equals growth no longer holds true, this book provides guidance on what kind of cities we should create and how we should design our personal lives and businesses.
Professor Kim Nan-do, author of the Trend Korea series, said, “The Urban Observatory captures the mechanisms of a changing city and persuasively tells us where we should place our bets on opportunities.
He highly recommended this book, saying, “This book will give you a blueprint for trends.”

The world we live in and the space that surrounds us will become more clearly distinguished as time passes, into a space of discovery and a space of surplus.
So, here's what I need to do to increase my value.
It is the ability to discern spaces with high performance and meaning, that is, ‘urban observation skills.’
Urban observation is the ability to read the value and context of a space, recognize its meaning, and internalize it in one's decision-making.
Through this, you should be able to understand the movement and spatial changes of the city and relate them to your own future.
It's on a whole different level from being one step ahead of trends.
Because trends are actually a product of the past.
Power and luck that have already passed, even if encountered, are likely to be noticed for a moment and then soon disappear.
Rather than focusing on temporary trends or incidents, we should focus on major trends that will continue for the next 10 years or more.
We must detect, judge, and act on signals of change.

--- From the "Prologue"

In 1980, futurist Alvin Toffler predicted the information revolution in his book The Third Wave.
He predicted that knowledge and information would become the most important resources for social development, and that the development of computers, mobile phones, and IT technology would allow people to work and communicate anytime, anywhere.
It was predicted that many people would leave the city and live in the countryside, building 'electronic cottages'.
It was a very interesting prediction, but the reality was a little different.
To cut to the chase, we didn't leave the city.
With the internet and smartphones in our hands and technology embedded in our bodies, we have become more deeply rooted in the city and its environs.
Cities are the base camps of human civilization.
The 'city on-and-off' lifestyle, where the main base of life is in the city and people leave the city when necessary and return to it, is more common.

--- From "How Do Cities Create Wealth?"

Ray Oldenburg, a renowned American urban sociologist, introduced a special space in his 1989 book, The Great Good Place.
This is a precious space that exists between home (our first space) and work (our second space), a place to escape the shackles of everyday life and find small joys with people around us.
Enjoy a pleasant chat at a local cafe and melt away the day's fatigue at your favorite bar.
Oldenburg emphasizes that third spaces play a crucial role in restoring humanity in disconnected societies and forming a healthy civil society.
Recently, a 'fourth space' with a different character has been attracting attention.
This is a special area where we focus on the self rather than on interacting with others.
Although the physical space itself is shared with others, its essential purpose is to revitalize one's own body and mind.
A place to escape the pressures of excessive social expectations and relationships, listen to your true inner desires, and build physical and mental strength.

--- From "From New York's Flatiron District to Jeju's Tapdong"