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ESSAY
CROSSTALK
June 25, 2017
The Effect of Iteration on Urban Form, Part I: Fractals and the Creation of Complexity
In a previous article I proposed that we adopt a perspective on preservation that allowed for transformation and change of what is to be preserved. This type of change has a more precise definition: iteration. To iterate means to “cover the same ground twice”, using feedback from the result of previous attempts and from environmental change to improve the result....
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ESSAY
CROSSTALK
June 21, 2017
Time of the Poppies
“Do you seek the highest, the greatest? The plant can teach you to do so. What it is without will of its own, that you should be with intent – that’s the point!” —Friedrich Schiller Some days ago, after giving a lecture in a west German city, I arrived back at my Berlin neighbourhood subway station and walked home. I...
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GLOBAL
ROUNDTABLE
May 8, 2017
To whom does a city’s nature belong? Is it a common pool resource, or a public good? And who decides?
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REVIEWS
PODCAST
June 12, 2017
Great Cities Grow from Great Spaces and Listening to their Citizens
A review of: Eyes on the Street: The Life of Jane Jacobs, by Robert Kaniglel. 2016. Knopf. 512 pages. Buy the book. Garden Legacy, by Mary Louise Mossy Christovich and Roulhac Bunkley Toledano, with a foreword by S. Frederick Starr. 2016. The Historic New Orleans Collection. 268 pages. Buy the book. Ecocities Illustrated: the easily built visionary future of Richard Register, by Richard Register....
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RECENT ESSAYS...
June 18, 2017
Cities of Difference, Part I: Gender is Important in Understanding Nature in Cities
Cities abound with difference: people, buildings, trees, plants, animals, etc. People in cities (and beyond, of course) inhabit various and fragmented identities that include gender, class, race, ethnicity, sexuality, age, and ability/disability. These identities are produced in relation with other people, living- and non-living entities, and the landscape. These social identities are shaped through, and reflect differential access to, experiences...
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June 14, 2017
Is Green the New Flying Car? A Visit to the World’s Fairs of 1964 and 2064
What inspires our work? Why have we each chosen to pursue a vision of cities that incorporates and expands our views of nature? Was it a particular mentor, a class or school experience, time spent in wilderness, or a book or film that led us to think boldly about a green future for cities? I grew up in a part...
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June 11, 2017
Singapore through the Eyes of a Young Planner in Manila
How has Singapore created itself as a “city in a garden”? I’m from Manila, and have recently returned from a week-long educational trip hosted by the Young South East Asian Leadership Initiative (YSEALI). The workshop was entitled Urban Planning and Smart Growth. It brought together sixty young leaders across the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to learn from...
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June 7, 2017
The Role of Cities in the Climate Fight—A Cautious Approach
Cities are helping lead the global effort Cities are the new face of climate change. Where I live in New Haven, Connecticut (USA), we are witnessing its impacts—warmer winters, sea level rise, and inland and coastal flooding. The city is taking steps to address climate change, including adding bike lanes and adapting to future vulnerabilities. These measures to create climate...
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RECENT ROUNDTABLES...
Mar,2017
What are we trying to accomplish with biophilic cities? What are ambitious goals and targets, and measures of success?
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Jan,2017
You say po-TAY-to. What ecologists and landscape architects don’t get about each other, but ought to.
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MORE ESSAYS IN...
SCIENCE &
TOOLS
June 7, 2016
How Edible is My City?
I find myself choosing the title for this contribution at a time of personal, public, and professional dilemma. Strangely, the dilemma stems from the need to vindicate the question itself. While it is perfectly acceptable to...
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PEOPLE &
COMMUNITITES
January 2, 2014
Highlights from The Nature of Cities in 2013
A new vision of ecologically sophisticated cities has been gaining momentum. Today, in increasing numbers, scientists, designers, and practitioners create useful knowledge about the nature of cities through research and action that inspires public debate and decision makers. More citizens are becoming more engaged in the conversation about urban nature — a conversation that directly relates to today’s critical debates about the livability,...
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PLACE &
DESIGN
December 4, 2016
Dhaka’s Struggle with Traffic and Livability
Ding, ding, ding. Ding, ding, ding. Honk, honk. Hoooonk. Honk, honk. Toot, toot, toot, ding, ding, ding. Honk, honk, honk. This is the sound of Dhaka. All. Day. Long. There are only a few hours before dawn when there is quieter hum of traffic. But for the rest of the day, it’s a constant, maddening pummeling to eardrums and interrupts...
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ART &
AWARENESS
November 15, 2015
Close Encounters of the Moose Kind
Now a century old, Anchorage has at various times during its short history proclaimed itself the “Air Crossroads of the World,” a “City of Lights” and a place of “Big Wild Life” (the latter for the community’s “perfect blend of urbanity and wilderness”). But I have long believed—and yes, opined in my writings—that Alaska’s urban center could easily be called...
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