It isn’t as far away as you may think. Let’s take a moment and think about our future, the future of Leeds and that’s what we’ve just done in our latest Leeds Boost digital workshop…
The year is 2030, and Leeds has just been voted the ‘best place to live in the world’ for the 5th year running, pipping the likes of runners-up San Francisco and Tokyo to the post of the most prestigious global award.
We have seen major developments across the city in key areas, that has exposed Leeds to the world-stage, giving us global recognition as a destination that people not only want to visit but make their home.
Transport: 10th anniversary of the ‘Walk and Fly’ scheme.
It’s hard to believe that 10 years ago the first flying car landed at the First Direct Arena. A scheme that was born in our great city, has since seen an expansion of ‘walk and fly’ stations opening across the UK. Flying is now the number one means of transport for commuters in Leeds, which has led to a mighty reduction of 80% fewer vehicles on the roads.
Environment: Air quality vastly improved
According to leading researchers, the air quality in Leeds has increased dramatically. Leeds is now only second to Nuuk in Greenland. A massive contributing factor to these improvements was the pedestrianisation of the inner ring road in 2025. This has encouraged and allowed more people to run, walk and cycle into Leeds, making us a much healthier city all round.
Education: Real skills for our digital world
By recognising the disconnect between education and the ‘skills’ required for working in a digital world, employment is now at a staggering 100% for Leeds residents. By ‘Grow your own talent’ training through boot camps and workshops, Leeds is truly a city turned on to digital. With above average salaries, lower costs of living and a greater quality of life, it’s not hard to see why Leeds has been voted the ‘happiest place to live and work in the UK’.
Productivity: 4×4 work scheme
Productivity has been a massive boom area, mainly down to the success of the 4×4 scheme: working four hours a day, four days a week. Isn’t it just crazy to think back to 2018 when we’d be pushed to get a 15-minute lunch break?
Leeds is now the most productive city in the world, and our latest survey shows that the 4×4 scheme has had a massive impact on our health and well-being meaning we are more productive, less stressed and happier.
Wealth: LeedsCoin
The introduction of LeedsCoin in 2020 meant that Leeds escaped the currency roller coaster. The forward-thinking nature to adopt digital currency has had a positive impact on the city and the surrounding region. As a result, LeedsCoin has encouraged intercity trading, and we’ve seen a massive increase in spending in the hospitality and retail sectors.
Law: A.I, the biggest ally in legal services
Law is thriving. Largely due to the innovators and future thinking of our prestigious Leeds based law firms. The first to truly embrace and adopt Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the law sector, A.I. is now proving the quickest, most accurate ally in legal services.
Retail:
Leeds offers 24-hour shopping in our city centre through interactive displays and augmented reality. The impact of LeedsCoin means that people more than ever are valuing local quality craftsmanship, which has resulted in a boost for ‘Leeds born’ businesses with more people looking for locally sourced and crafted products and services.
Hospitality:
Hospitality has embraced automation which has subsequently allowed a real focus on the quality of service and customer interactions. Leeds now rivals the likes of New York, Sydney and London after having won the ‘best customer experience’ title at the world tourism awards. Leeds is now the first city in the UK to offer a range of 3d printed foods, which has seen an increase in better balanced meals, that are still delicious. The shorter working hours and increased wealth mean people are now eating out five times on average every week.
Property: Smart living
It’s not surprising that Leeds is the most sought-after city in the UK to live thanks to the improved living quality, transport systems and opportunities in abundance. We are living in and working in smarter environments that are highly energy efficient with new builds meeting the zero carbon policy. However, the biggest achievement has to be the latest announcement about homelessness, Leeds no longer has any homeless people on the streets and we are now working to help support other towns and cities to eradicate homelessness in the North of England.
Entertainment: Elvis virtually live
With more free time available to us, we’ve seen massive investment in entertainment. The Leeds International Festival is now in its 14th year, and this year the theme is ‘Life on Mars’, an eclectic showcase of science, tech, and music – including an exclusive interview with Professor Brian Cox about the latest space flight from Leeds Bradford Airport. At the First Direct Arena, the king has returned, Elvis is back in a virtual reality live gig at Europe’s best venue for music, sport, and hospitality.
Sport: Leeds United are champions again!
And finally sport. It looks like Leeds United are on course to win the Champions League for the fifth year running with a diverse team of men and women, all Yorkshire trained.
Wind the clock back and let’s jump back to 2018
Stop. Take a minute. Reading about Leeds 2030, how did it make you feel? Excited? Anxious? Happy? Scared…? Everything we’ve written about in our version of Leeds 2030 is actually possible.
When we consider flying cars, in today’s world you can get a degree in flying cars. Productivity and reduced working hours are happening now. Luxembourg is the most productive city in the world, yet they work the fewest hours. We hear about cryptocurrency in the media almost daily, so maybe a digital currency like LeedsCoin could be the next bitcoin?
A.I. is already making its impact, most notably in the world of Law. So much so that Canadian government is investing $125,000,000 in A.I. research. Did you see the burger flipping robot on social media? Launched in the US to help automate routine tasks, the robot flips whilst the humans focus on their job providing great customer service. 3D printed food is real; It’s happening now. You can set nutritional values and print the food you want to eat. This might not be everyone’s cup of tea but if we evolve this further, what kind of impact could this have to world hunger? And watching Elvis via virtual reality? You can do that right now on YouTube.
The future is happening that’s guaranteed, BUT…
“… your future is whatever you make it. So make it a good one…”
Doc. Brown
Introducing Leeds Boost
And here’s where we can help.
Leeds 2030 is our vision and at Leeds Boost we want to help businesses in Leeds with their own aspirations and vision for the future.
As a LeedsBID initiative, we provide digital skills training and insights to the businesses and people of Leeds. We believe the world we live in now is digital and to reach your potential, you must embrace it. Sounds interesting? Contact us and let’s start talking…
www.leedsboost.com or email simon@leedsboost.com
