Urban Intervention Made Easy Through "Parklets"

Designing a practical public space, as many South Floridians believe, does not come easy. It must involve a large expanse of land and a transit accessible location, right? Sao Paulo, Brazil is yet another world city that demonstrates the opposite. Activists retrofit parallel parking spots into roadside cafes, street playgrounds, a venue for a local band to play a gig, or an outdoor studio for an artist to display their work for pedestrians and drivers to see. I have seen this popular intervention in Europe, and the reason it works so well lies in parklets' convenience: a business (i.e. a restaurant) may use the space for private gain but cannot deny access to public to use the space as well. You may find waitresses serving coffee drinkers, freelancers selling their work, or dance classes taking place in the same spot. That's what makes this concept a great one. Parklets encourage diversity at little to no cost which is much needed for the 21st century city to thrive. After all, the three steps of sustainability involve promoting quality, economic benefit, and social equality. But the concept does not work unless a city government produces some ground rules regarding maintenance of parklets. Sao Paulo, however, has established public policy on public space issues in ordinance with the city's master plan. Best of all, parklets indicate to drivers that pedestrians come first without taking away that much needed sidewalk space. I hope we have the opportunity to pilot parklets projects in cities in the years to come.

Cafe Parklet in Seattle 

Bike Parklet in Miami

Urbanization's Dark Side: China's Grand Plan

After witnessing the success of the "four tigers" of Asia (Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, and Hong Kong), it should not surprise us that China too wants to rapidly urbanize in order to compete better in the global economy. However, the government desires to move away from an export-based economy toward a different structure, one of consumer demand, much like the current world hegemon's. With this grand plan comes the forced exodus of Chinese farmers to newly constructed urban centers connected to China's great cities, including Shanghai and Beijing, by rail. I use the word "exodus" because the migration of China's farmers, which is meant to stimulate the state economy by transforming self-sufficient farmers into consuming urbanites, involves harsh measures including relocating thousands to cities where their rural skills never stood a chance. And often these so-called cities are often little more than miles of shoddy apartment complexes. As told in New York Times conducted video interviews, government officials will come to a rural area, physically forcing farmers and their families from their homes. They will either have them sign contracts they are not allowed to read or promise them some form of compensation including worker benefits, free housing, and public education for children. Sadly, the government rarely follows through. In case of local protest, authorities are not afraid to shut down public schools, so the future of rural children is at risk. Now, farmers turned city dwellers inhabit food deserts and lack the necessary skills to earn a living. Currently, tax and land rights' reforms are required for China's urbanization plan to succeed, and hopefully, one of them includes human rights considerations.

See video for more information: http://nyti.ms/1emn8Ru

Also, please read the New York Times coverage "Leaving the Land" for more comprehensive research on China's grand plan to urbanize in the 21st century.

Photo taken from The New York Times "Leaving the Land"

Microliving

Rewilding Cities: Bringing Biodiversity Back

Biodiversity includes species richness, the genetic variability of an individual species, and the ecosystem diversity (variety of interactions between biotic and abiotic factors within an ecosystem). Urban biodiversity includes biodiversity that borders human settlements, encompassing urban and suburban areas up to the rural periphery. Cities such as Curitiba, Brazil and Vancouver, Canada have kept much of the natural landscape protected even using design techniques to resemble the surrounding natural environment. We often think of human settlements as constantly posing a threat to nature. There is much reason to think this way given that human activities produce pollution, exploit resources and abuse arable land. As I see it, we use less land when we moderately increase density and fewer resources when we improve efficiency in municipal and residential buildings, industry, and transportation. This leads to an overall reduction of our impact on the environment, in addition to human health and wellbeing. Nevertheless, the global phenomenon of urbanization threatens to pull humans away from nature as more people move into crowded cities. One way to tackle this problem is through tactical urbanism including not only preserving whatever landscapes and preserves we can, but also by allowing nature to reclaim unused land. This is perhaps one of the best ways we can help solve the critical problems of biodiversity loss, improve stability of our urban ecosystems, and restore the appreciation humans originally had for nature before they moved into cities. Some ways we can promote biodiversity protection in cities include:

-       Using ecosystem goods and services with care and sustainability in mind

-       Conserving biodiversity in urban areas and allowing for maximum biodiversity support in current and future sustainable design projects

-       Engaging the public through awareness and demonstrating the values cities have in preventing global biodiversity loss

Methods of Progressive Street Design

Habitat (walkable, mixed-use, safe, alternative mass transit, people and bicycle-centered)

Machine (mechanized, economical, practical, automobile-centered)

Art (aesthetic, colors and shades, vegetation, environment-centered) (Photos taken from Google Images)

From Victor Dover's Street Design: The Secret to Great Cities and Towns