The Urbanist – "Cape Town’s Liveability Secrets: Highlights from Monocle’s Quality of Life Conference"

Host: Andrew Tuck
Date: September 11, 2025
Episode Overview:
This episode revisits standout sessions from Monocle’s 10th Quality of Life Conference, held in Barcelona. It explores the unique qualities that make cities livable, focusing on Cape Town’s approach through an in-depth conversation with its mayor, insights on Barcelona’s evolving identity from a prominent illustrator, and a perspective on the UAE’s diplomatic ethos from a leading official.

1. Barcelona’s Urban Character: History, Art, and Identity

(00:30–07:05)
Guests: Jordi Labanda (Editorial Illustrator), Josh Fennett (Monocle Editor)
Key Insights:

• The Gothic Quarter as ‘the city’s laboratory’:

  • “For me, it’s like the laboratory of the city, because everything happens there first. It’s a place that is based on layers and layers of different cultures that have been visiting us… The Romans, the Arabs, the Jewish, I mean, a lot of cultures.” – Jordi Labanda, (01:56)

• Barcelona’s historic orientation away from the sea:

  • The bourgeoisie of the 19th century saw the ocean as undesirable, turning their focus instead to the mountains, thus isolating the city from its waterfront until the rejuvenation of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. (02:34)

• Modernisme as a reflection of Catalan spirit:

  • “Modernisme, for us, is something very special because it surrounds us. I mean, it’s part of us… The architects, especially Gaudi, took a very careful look about how nature is developing.” – Jordi Labanda, (03:12)
  • Catalan personality is defined by ‘sen’ (strictness) and ‘rau’ (“crazy audacity”). Modernisme is seen as an expression of these qualities blended together. (03:55–04:17)

• Barcelona’s creative resilience:

  • The city has oscillated between periods of suppression (such as during Franco’s rule) and bursts of creativity, especially highlighted by the 1929 International Exhibition and the 1992 Olympics, which catalyzed transformation. (05:20)
  • “As all the relationships sometimes is hard... maybe it’s too popular and then the people who live here are feeling like we have a feeling of loss and uncertainty. But, I mean, I love her and I know she loves me and we need to talk, but I trust this relationship 100%.” – Jordi Labanda on loving (and critiquing) Barcelona, (06:26)

2. Cape Town’s Model of Livability: Ambition and Challenges

(07:05–17:27)
Guest: Jordan Hill Lewis (Mayor of Cape Town)
Key Insights:

• Motivation for Leadership:

  • Jordan Hill Lewis transitioned from opposition MP to Mayor out of frustration at inaction and a drive to realize his vision for Cape Town. (07:47–08:46)

• Cape Town Snapshot:

  • Population: 5 million
  • Noted for its layered history (including Malay and Indian slavery, Dutch and English colonialism, anti-apartheid politics), natural beauty, and diversified economy (tourism, shipping, agriculture, wine). (08:58)

• Tourism as an Economic Engine:

  • Despite recent records, Cape Town’s annual tourism (1.5 million) is a fraction of Barcelona’s (~15 million).
  • “We are desperate to keep growing tourism. We think that, you know, one of our priorities should be to make one and a half into three million and beyond, because already it employs 110,000 people in the city… We are nowhere near over-tourism.” – Jordan Hill Lewis, (10:03)

• Delivering Public Services and Equity:

  • On reopening public pools:
    • “Cape Town has 38 magnificent public swimming pools and 19 coastal tidal pools… But when I became mayor, the huge majority of those were closed… These are essential public amenities… Now we’ve got back up to 37 out of 38 are rebuilt and reopened, and all 19 of the coastal tidal pools.” – Jordan Hill Lewis, (11:35)

• Rapid Urban Growth and Informality:

  • Acknowledges 1.2 million people living in informal settlements; the city’s focus is on including them in the city’s progress.
  • “Quality of life has a somewhat more basic meaning when you don’t have access to basic services… If our mission is to give people a sense of hope about the future... we can’t be surprised when they actually respond… so we’re going to just keep running to keep up.” – Jordan Hill Lewis, (13:01, 14:24)

• Is Cape Town’s Success Exceptional?

  • Historically yes, but national political shifts could scale success; recent visa reforms for tourism are one example. (14:42)

• Climate Resilience:

  • Cape Town is investing in water security (reuse, aquifer extraction, desalination), driven by recent droughts and a drying climate.
  • “That’s tough conversation to have with the public when it comes at a real cost.” – Jordan Hill Lewis, (16:07)

3. UAE’s Approach to Diplomacy and Soft Power

(17:27–27:06)
Guest: Her Excellency Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi (Minister of State, UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
Key Insights:

• Personal and National Story:

  • Al Kaabi weaves her own diverse Emirati upbringing with the UAE’s rapid development, tribal structure, and its unique thread of never having been colonized (though Britain acted as protector). (18:15–21:08)

• Diplomatic Mission & Bridging Divides:

  • “Number one, it’s a nation of ideas. The relationship of a diplomat shouldn’t be transactional, it should be personal… There are differences in our belief system, in our culture, in our identity. But there has to always be a bridge.” – Her Excellency Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, (21:23)
  • Describes UAE’s success in unity through diversity; most of her work and education environments featured people from outside the UAE.

• Dialogue, Forgiveness, and Hope:

  • Tyler Brûlé reflects: “...it was one of the most profound conversations I’d ever had with a diplomat. It was this notion of... dialogue... in a world where things move so quickly, we’re so fast to condemn.” (23:10)
  • Al Kaabi underscores the power of forgiveness and building shared humanity amidst regional conflict:
    • “After visiting Mosul... you see hope, you see people want to live, want to create their own communities... That shared humanity is us before the borders, before the parties and before the divide.” – Her Excellency Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, (24:03)

• Responsibility toward Youth and Heritage:

  • Sharing recent experience in Mosul, Al Kaabi highlights the importance of restoring heritage and cross-national capacity-building between Iraqi and Ukrainian youth. “That sense of belonging is really important for us to cherish and to help them also maintain and protect.” (26:53)

Notable Quotes

• On Barcelona:

  • "Modernisma, for us is something very special because it surrounds us. I mean, it's part of us." – Jordi Labanda, (03:12)

• On Cape Town’s urban challenge:

  • “We are rolling out the most ambitious infrastructure and basic service delivery expansion program of any city in South Africa ever.” – Jordan Hill Lewis, (13:01)

• On welcoming migration and growth:

  • "If our mission is to give people a sense of hope... we can’t be surprised when they actually respond... so we’re going to just keep running to keep up." – Jordan Hill Lewis, (14:24)

• On dialogue and bridge-building:

  • “The relationship of a diplomat shouldn’t be transactional, it should be personal, it should be connecting people to people, and there should be respect with our differences.” – Her Excellency Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, (21:23)

• On shared humanity beyond borders:

  • “That shared humanity is us before the borders, before the parties and before the divide.” – Her Excellency Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, (26:28)

Key Takeaways

• Barcelona: Openness, creative resilience, and a dynamic identity built on cultural layering are at the heart of its urban appeal.
• Cape Town: The city’s livability roots lie in daring leadership, ambitious infrastructure investment, inclusive public amenities, and rapid responses to urbanization and climate threats.
• UAE: Soft power is built on dialogue, unity through diversity, and an embrace of shared heritage and forgiveness as tools for overcoming global and regional divides.