Monocle highly appreciated the city's compact layout, convenient transport system, restaurants, and especially its commitment to environmental protection. The latter characteristic lifted the city to first place from second, which it occupied in last year's rating.
"Our planet is becoming increasingly urbanized. Radical initiatives to save the environment must be balanced. For example, banning car traffic in the city can work wonders, but at the same time it can kill trade," believes the magazine's editor-in-chief Tyler Brûlé. "Development projects that bring money to the city cause people who made the city lively and attractive to leave."
Copenhagen also received the title of "world capital of design" – such a development of design thinking has not been seen anywhere in the world since the 1950s-60s. Madrid received the title of the world's business capital after shedding its image as the capital of bureaucrats. According to the magazine, the midday siesta makes it a great place to work.
Paris was named the most cosmopolitan city – not least due to the efforts of its progressive mayor Bertrand Delanoë, particularly in including cyclists in the city traffic scheme. Berlin earned the glory of the world's most "cultural" city, and Japan's Fukuoka – the palm branch for the best city for shopping.
The top twenty "best cities in the world for living" is distributed as follows: Copenhagen, Munich, Tokyo, Zurich, Helsinki, Vienna, Stockholm, Vancouver, Melbourne, Paris, Sydney, Honolulu, Madrid, Berlin, Barcelona, Montreal, Fukuoka, Amsterdam, Minneapolis, Kyoto. As Lenta.ru notes, traditional New York and London did not make it into the top twenty best cities on Earth.