Murtaza Haider clearly grasps the nature of his assignment — to create and lead a cities institute that will be "the envy of the world."
When he takes on his new position this summer as the inaugural Radhe Krishna Gupta Executive Chair in Cities and Communities in the Alberta School of Business, he plans to pull together the best minds at the University of Alberta to envision what a thriving city of tomorrow will look like — starting with Edmonton.
"Edmonton has the potential to be a city of three million," says Haider. Connected to Calgary by high-speed rail, the region could become "the next economic zone of seven to eight million people who will help drive the nation's prosperity."
Haider is tasked with leading the new Cities Institute, drawing on expertise from a variety of disciplines including economics, engineering, social science, environmental science, computer modelling and urban geography.
"The University of Alberta is an intellectual powerhouse, with the intellectual weight to think creatively and be bold about solutions," he says.
"I see an opportunity to build a tent that invites in everyone with the courage to think outside the box, who is not afraid of sharing ideas that may not be part of conventional wisdom."
Haider's vision recognizes that conventional approaches to city building have been hampered by a narrow focus, according to Vikas Mehrotra, dean of the Alberta School of Business.
"Many of the problems that exist today defy single-sector solutions and require collaboration beyond traditional business disciplines," says Mehrotra.
"To remove this barrier, we believe an integrated, visionary approach uniting business with multiple city-building leaders will pioneer new ways to push beyond the status quo."
Half the world's population resides in cities, and that number is expected to rise to two-thirds by 2050. The new institute will respond to that trend head on, says Mehrotra, helping to bridge the gap between experts, decision-makers and industry players.
Mehrotra says Haider was the ideal candidate to promote this integrated approach.
"It takes a special person to tackle the work required to get this job done. Murtaza's curiosity, clarity and collaborative mindset, plus his ability to connect data with lived experience and turn insight into impact, make him the right person for this role."
