An Upcoming Discussion with Joel: Are Our Suburbs the Future?

People − and lots of them − want to live in the suburbs, says author Joel Kotkin. Some estimates put the number of Canadians living in the ‘burbs at more than one in two.

Mr. Kotkin, a geographer, journalist and futurist, argues governments should invest primarily in the suburbs. It’s there, he says, where most families want to settle, and not in the downtowns of our cities. As people continue migrate to the city’s periphery in search of space and affordability, Mr. Kotkin says, we must strive to make suburbs more self-sufficient.

Promoting suburbs is controversial in our energy stretched age. But Mr. Kotkin, whose latest book, The Next Hundred Million: America in 2050, follows his 2006 book, The City: A Global History, builds his argument on democracy, economics and efficiency.

The discussion on whether the suburbs are the future takes place on Wednesday, March 30th at 12 p.m. ET. Advance questions can be sent here. Mobile readers can follow the discussion here.