A For over a century, the economic and social geography of major cities was defined by a predictable daily ritual: the commute. Millions of workers would travel from residential suburbs to a dense Central Business District (CBD) for work, and return in the evening. This model, which concentrated corporate headquarters, professional services, and high-value retail in a small urban core, was the primary driver of urban planning and real estate valuation. The premium placed on housing with convenient access to these CBDs was a fundamental assumption of the property market. However, the global pandemic triggered an unprecedented and rapid shift towards remote work, fundamentally challenging this long-standing paradigm and giving rise to a new phenomenon in urban economics. B This emerging trend has been termed the ‘Donut Effect’ by economists, including those from Stanford University. The metaphor describes a scenario where economic activity and population density decrease in the city centre (the ‘hole’ of the donut) and simultaneously increase in the surrounding suburban and exurban areas (the ‘ring’). Untethered from the necessity of a daily commute, knowledge workers, in particular…
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