Designing the City of the Future and The Pursuit of Happiness

RMI collaborated with the Lodha Group to implement a net-zero energy (NZE) district framework for Palava City, a greenfield development near Mumbai. The approach integrates energy, mobility, and water management to reduce carbon emissions and improve quality of life. Key strategies include improving building envelopes, maximizing on-site solar generation, prioritizing non-motorized transport, and treating 100% of wastewater for on-site reuse. The project serves as a model for sustainable urban development in emerging markets.

• Palava City is a greenfield development located 40 km from Mumbai that will eventually house over 2 million people. The project is being built in three phases: Palava I is complete with 19,000 residential units; Palava II aims for 80,000 units and 7 million square feet of retail/commercial space by 2030; and Palava III is expected to be completed by 2050 with 40 million square feet of commercial space.
• The NZE district design approach for Palava City focuses on minimizing on-site energy use through efficient design and maximizing on-site renewable energy generation. Implementing proposed energy conservation measures in building design could lead to approximately 40 percent energy savings compared to average buildings in India.
• Mobility is expected to be the largest contributor to the city's energy footprint at 64 percent. The strategy to reduce this footprint involves minimizing long-distance commuting in personal vehicles, maximizing non-motorized transport, and enabling electric vehicle use powered by on-site renewables.
• The water management strategy aims to reduce the energy and carbon footprint by treating and reusing 100 percent of greywater and blackwater on-site. The plan also utilizes low-impact development to manage storm water runoff, which helps minimize the urban heat island effect and increase green space.
• The integrated design framework emphasizes the synergy between energy, mobility, and water. Specific master planning techniques include orienting buildings east to west to reduce heat gain and using "solar envelope" zoning to optimize solar resources on facades and at ground level.

APA

RMI (2019). Designing the City of the Future and The Pursuit of Happiness. https://rmi.org/resources/designing-the-city-of-the-future-and-the-pursuit-of-happiness/

Chicago

RMI. Designing the City of the Future and The Pursuit of Happiness. 2019. https://rmi.org/resources/designing-the-city-of-the-future-and-the-pursuit-of-happiness/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Designing the City of the Future and The Pursuit of Happiness |date=16 September 2019 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/designing-the-city-of-the-future-and-the-pursuit-of-happiness/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2019designing, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Designing the City of the Future and The Pursuit of Happiness}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2019}, month = sep, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/designing-the-city-of-the-future-and-the-pursuit-of-happiness/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }