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By 2050, approximately two-thirds of the world's population will live in cities, up from just over half right now.
In order to accommodate the masses, it's important for urban centers to rev up their preparations for the future - through infrastructure improvements, technological innovation, policy-making, environmental protections, and other forward-looking strategies.
A new report from AT Kearney, a global business-consulting firm, ranks 128 cities based on their projected levels of importance and competitiveness in the future. The ranking combines cities' scores across various data points, including environmental performance, patents per capita, the number of business incubators and Fortune 500 companies, and quality of life.
In order to suss out the top cities of the future, AT Kearney calculated scores in four categories: personal well-being, economics, innovation, and governance.
These are the cities to keep an eye on in the coming years.