Sensing that the development of skyscrapers is entering a new phase in its existence, and inspired by the desire to let skyscrapers be more than just the expression of engineering prowess and the symbols of national pride of emerging economies, the practice Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, possibly the foremost innovator of the skyscraper, invited nine writers, critics, futurists and journalists to ponder the future of the skyscraper.
The angle for this little publication was to invite people outside or obliquely related to the profession of architecture to think and reflect. This approach is, it has to be said, appealing, not in the least since the consequences of building skyscrapers with respect to their ecological, material and energy footprints are so large that the decision of their construction ought to be a larger societal question and a shared, public responsibility.