Photo: iStock
Norbert Csizmadia
29/01/2025 23:31
Livable, sustainable, innovative, creative, liveable cities and areas. They can be ancient knowledge hubs like Samarkand, Bukhara, or new global HUB hubs like Dubai or Singapore. They can be coastal and waterfront locations, or even land-based, liveable hubs and knowledge cities.
Why a turquoise zone?
The colour turquoise is created by mixing blue and green. Blue is the colour of water, oceans, seas, crystal clear mountain lakes and the sky, the colour of the universe. And green is the colour of land, of renewal, of forests, of fields, of nature, symbolising vitality and sustainability. Turquoise is both protective and healing, innovative and inspiring. It is a symbol of innovation and creativity, an intersection of the ancient and the new. Turquoise is all around us, unnoticed. We don't notice it immediately, but we feel its effects: it makes us feel better, more liberated and innovative, because turquoise is also a symbol of good places.
The big changes of the times start at the edges
The great epochs (both geological and historical) are born at the edges of oceans and land. The new Eurasian epoch will also be reborn at the margins, and its most important regions will be the gateway regions. Gateways have a special cultural significance in Asian cultures. In the last five hundred years, the Atlantic era, the great geographical discoveries have given rise to areas close to the European Atlantic coast and then, in the 20th century, to the American coast. And today, it is the gateway regions that are emerging, not only on the coasts but also on the mainland.
Indeed, one of the key challenges of the Eurasian era is to build on land connectivity alongside the seas, creating a rebirth of economic, commercial, cultural and political links along the former Silk Road. Gateway areas are emerging, such as the gateways of South-East Asia, the land gateways of Central Asia, the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Peninsula, and Central Europe. Hungary is both West and East, a gateway between Europe and Asia, an important future gateway to Eurasia.
A life-centred and inclusive world order
Megatrends are constantly reshaping our world. Complexity, connectivity and sustainability are the three most important keywords of our time. Innovation zones and axes are emerging, forming geographic patterns. New living spaces, lifestyle spaces are being created, geographical places are being valorised. As global climate change brings ever more important changes to our daily lives, the ability to adapt will become increasingly important in the future. As the naturalist Darwin put it, "great changes are never survived by the strongest or the biggest, but by those who can best adapt".
Turquoise zones: 101 places to live, where it's good to live
The 5 blue zones (Okinawa, Ikaria, Sardinia, Loma Linda in California and Nicoya in Costa Rica) are oases of longevity, while the 36 green zones (biological ecoregions) are some of the most biologically diverse areas on Earth. The fusion of the blue and green zones results in the turquoise zones. 101 places on earth that are vibrant, sustainable, innovative and inspiring.
They are places where ancient cities are being reborn, because the rise of ancient cultures will play an increasingly important role in the future thanks to the technological revolution. Coastal cities, islands, modern global HUB hubs. Hotspots and zones of health, safety, new lifestyles, quality and innovation. It's all about 'Genius Loci', or 'the spirit of place'. As Richard Florida writes in his book "Who is your City": "where we live is the most important decision of our lives". The turquoise zones have the following ingredients: quality, health, exceptional gastronomy, sunshine, water, rich culture, creative cities, universities and competitive connectivity. They can be hotspots or even contiguous zones. Four per cent of our planet's land area, providing 64 per cent of its sustainability and future and viability.
The future has begun, and the new hubs will be the turquoise zones.
The author is a geographer and chairman of the board of trustees of the Pallas Athéné Domus Meriti Foundation and the John von Neumann University Foundation