Regardless of location, culture and even size, cities in the world depict similar trends in terms of the evolution of their spatial structure in time. As surprising as this statement might sound, we have recently compiled empirical evidence analyzing a sample of 194 cities over 25 years span, from 1990 until 2015. The article was published last week in Landscape and Urban Planning. I would be happy to share a copy with anybody interested to read.

That cities are homogenizing is not surprising in urban ecology. Is almost common sense that we can find the same species of birds, small mammals and even trees in cities located in Patagonia, Africa or China. The situation has been different for the analysis of urban form, where specificities of particular urban features grounded in cultural differentiation have been predominant. For some disciplines, every city is unique and unrepeatable, a statement that we proved incorrect if we pay attention to the regularities found in the evolution of their urban form in time. These findings bring relevant implications for urban research and planning.