Foreign Policy magazine (FP) recently released their 2010 Global Cities Index. Of the 65 cities listed, Chicago moved up to 6th place from the previous 8th place.
The index was derived from a partnership of FP, the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and the consulting firm A.T. Kearny.
The cities were chosen based on a population of at least 1 million people. The index tried to answer the ever elusive question: What makes a city global? The goal of the index is to derive how much global influence a city has on the global markets, innovation and culture. Since we are talking about Chicago, dare we say how much global clout a city has?
The rankings were based on the following criteria: business activity, human capital (does the city attract diversity and talent?), information exchange (global news and broadband penetration), cultural experience and political engagement (how much influence does the city have on global policy-making).
As FP noted in their study “Data ranged from how many Fortune Global 500 company headquarters were in a city to the size of its capital markets and the flow of goods through its airports and ports, as well as factors such as the number of embassies, think tanks, political organizations, and museums. Taken together, a city's performance on this slate of indicators tells us how worldly -- or provincial -- it really is.”
According to the City of Chicago's website “Chicago is home to eleven Fortune 500 companies, while the rest of the metropolitan area hosts an additional 21 Fortune 500 companies.” The CME Group based in Chicago, states “CME Group is the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace.”
A few interesting points to summarize from this list:
- A nation’s capital does not necessarily guarantee a high ranking. For example Washington D.C. ranked 13th overall and 42nd by population and 10th by GDP. Beijing ranked 15th overall and 13th by population and 33rd by GDP. Moscow ranked 25th overall, 19th by population and 25th by GDP. Cairo ranked 43rd overall, 17th by population and 36th by GDP.
- Of the top 10 cities in the index, only two are European (London and Paris), three are American (NYC, Chicago and Los Angeles). Five are Asian and Pacific (Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Sydney and Seoul).
Overall, Chicago ranked 6th in the index; 25th by population, and 4th by GDP.
In 2008, 60 cities were ranked in the Global City Index. Chicago ranked 8th overall; 12th in business activity, 3rd in human capital (just behind NY and London), 24th in information exchange, 20th in cultural experience and 20th in political engagement.
Its not surprising Chicago was ranked 3rd in human capital as it has a very diverse population and some of the top universities are located in Chicago such as the University of Chicago and Northwestern.
The 2010 top three cities ranked in the index by GDP included: Tokyo, New York and Los Angeles.
The upward mobility of Chicago in the 2010 Global City Index is one more metric in a list of rankings that puts Chicago on the global map. Below are a few more of Chicago's noteworthy global items as noted on the City's website:
-The world’s largest commercial office building is Merchandise Mart
-The world’s largest illuminated fountain is Buckingham Fountain located in Grant Park
-The world’s tallest masonry building is Monadnock Block located at 53 W. Jackson Blvd.
-The world’s largest free-admission food festival is the Taste of Chicago located in Grant Park
-The world’s largest convention facility is McCormick Place located at 2301 S. Lake Shore Drive
-The world’s highest steeple above ground is at the United Methodist Church, 77 W. Washington St.
-The Chicago Park District has the nation’s largest municipal harbor system.
-The world’s largest stand-alone theater is the Uptown Theatre located at 4810 N. Broadway
-The world’s largest parochial school system is the Archdiocese of Chicago
-The world’s largest water filtration plant is the Jardine Water Purification Plant located at 600 E. Grand Ave.
-The first Ferris wheel made its debut in Chicago at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. Today, Navy Pier is home to a 15-story Ferris wheel, modeled after the original one.
-The Chicago Cultural Center is the first free municipal cultural center in the U.S. and home to the world’s largest stained glass Tiffany dome.
-When it opened in 1991, the Harold Washington Library Center, with approximately 6.5 million books, was the world’s largest municipal library.
-The Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) is the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere at 110 stories high. Its elevators are among the fastest in the world operating as fast as 1,600 feet per minute.
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