My love of “a good city” stems from a belief that high quality, mixed-use and dense urban living can ensure that the natural places I love endure. While I originally thought to write about Amsterdam in this regard, I will move that to Part Two of the Good City, Good Nature series (if I can call… Read More Seattle: Good City, Good Nature
January may seem like an odd month to post about urban agriculture undertakings in the Northern Hemisphere; but it’s now that preparations for our community plot are under way. In fact, last January (2013) I first became involved with a new urban agricultural plot in Amsterdam – and inspired by our own resident finch, it’s… Read More Amsterdam: Full Circle Harvest
Photo taken from Grist. Detroit has had a rough recent period of history. Since the 1950s, more than a million people have left, fleeing as Detroit’s industrial base dwindled. Despite bankruptcy, unemployment and crime, Detroit has also attracted artists and urbanists. It has become famous for creative uses of abandoned buildings and infrastructure. Artists, such as the Heidelberg Project and the… Read More Detroit: Abandoned Buildings Offer New Urban Skiing Challenge
It’s that time of year again in the Northern Hemisphere: it’s cold, dark way too soon (if the sun even shows) and often rainy. To compensate, cities fill with colourful lights and decorated trees. I’ve done a bit of decorating, but just the bare minimum – what I can get on a bicycle and up… Read More Three years and counting: Amsterdam Cycle City
Watching the rain fall relentlessly outside, there’s no denying it: it’s mid October in the Northern Hemisphere. And while I love this season’s colours, it is equally apparent that my Amsterdam balcony garden will soon be tucked away until spring. But, I guess that is a big part of it. Learning (again) to understand the… Read More Balcony Garden Bliss: Season 2013
Admittedly I’m North American – proudly from Seattle. However, after 10 years living in Budapest, Malmö, Nairobi & Amsterdam and with a Swedish mother, I’ve become a modge-podge of sorts: European as much as anything, especially in my transportation habits. I haven’t driven in 10 years and anymore I’m scared to get behind the wheel.… Read More Copenhagen cycle culture through North American eyes…
Paris has an amazing public space project underway along the River Seine that I’ve followed for the last several months. It intends to permanently deviate vehicular traffic along some of the city’s busiest roads, transforming a few kilometers of this arterial into a cycling and pedestrian zone: full of cafés, art and entertainment spaces, bike paths and floating… Read More Paris: reclaiming the city for cyclists & pedestrians – an update on Les Berges
In April I traveled to Bali, Indonesia for the 7th Regional Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST) Forum in Asia, organized by the UN Centre for Regional Development, and the Environmental Ministries of Japan and Indonesia. Bali, the Island of the Gods as it is known by the locals, is famous for its beaches, its surf, its rice fields,… Read More Balinese dreaming: UN meetings on transport systems and real-life traffic problems
I was recently in Copenhagen, Denmark for the Nordic Environmental Social Sciences Conference. Afterwards, I took a few days to return to one of my all-time favorite sustainability stars – Malmö, Sweden. Having studied and worked in Southern Sweden, I always enjoy returning ‘home’ and remain fascinated by how these two cities continue to drive… Read More Copenhagen & Malmö: Scandinavian sustainability superstars
In May 2013, I was in Reykjavik for a PhD course on Climate Adaptation Strategy and Economics at the University of Iceland. It was coordinated by the Nordstar Research Programme (my second time to the Icelandic capital with Nordstar). Reykjavik has a great small-city meets big-city feel, with many fun surprises worth blogging about. This is the second… Read More Reykjavik: the city as a canvas
The Urban Observer 