While some trains allow bicycles and the occasional city bus will let you load your cycle, public transport systems often discourage bicycles from being brought on. I get it: they take up space, can be bulky or cumbersome to load, and take time. Besides we should be encouraging more people to hop on the bus… Read More Stuttgart: taking your bike on the tram? No problem!
Stockholm is often referred to as one of Europe’s greenest cities – in terms of environmental policies, its attitude and ethics, advanced (and efficient) public infrastructure and close proximity to nature. It was the home of the 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, paving the way to some of the today’s environmental governance… Read More Stockholm: local food cravings in the city
Urban sustainability initiatives are my passion; and while bicycles lanes, solar panels and urban farming are my favorite blogging topics, a sustainable city also requires eco-entrepreneurs. After all, sustainability is for more than just treehuggers – it’s also about looking good, living well and eating delicious, healthy (eco) food. Enter eco-boutiques for trendy urbanites: a… Read More Amsterdam: eco-boutique & café in one
Food logistics & food trade are complicated issues these days and they don’t always make sense. In the Netherlands for example, almost as many potatoes are imported as exported: there are strict guidelines which often prohibit Dutch farmers from selling potatoes inside the country. As a result, it may be easier to buy potatoes from… Read More Amsterdam: urban food revolutions | power to the pieper (potato)
In the Netherlands, every year the ‘Orange Fund’ organizes a set of national volunteer days; this year they fell on 15 and 16 March 2013. Thousands of organizations all around the country in need of some extra help sign up. This day, called NL Doet, has become the largest voluntary action in the Netherlands. It… Read More Rain, snow or shine – to the (urban) farming fields we go
In Zurich, most citizens hop on their bikes at least two times a week and it is quickly becoming another one of Europe’s cycle cities. Some people, it seems, don’t want to hop off their bikes – not even when enjoying a cup of coffee. So this city, with a great cafe culture and blossoming… Read More Zurich: drive-in cafe for the urban cyclist
I spent Easter weekend in the lovely city of Salzburg, Austria – Mozart’s birthplace, the setting for the Sound of Music and famous for its ancient Hohensalzburg Castle dominating over the city. With a four-day holiday weekend for Easter, it seemed like the perfect getaway. Besides, we were trying to escape the unseasonably cold spring in the Netherlands; however,… Read More Salzburg: rich in history, culture – and bicycles
As spring and summer again approach the Northern Hemisphere, here’s a fun idea for a picnic, party and bike – all in one. Shared on Bike Bistro‘s page with credit to Fat City Cycles – but originally of Swedish design – this bike combines a picnic basket, stereo system, air pump and other gadgets into one bike. Perfect… Read More Parks, bikes & picnics – all in one
Former mayor of Curitiba, Jaime Lerner is a city evangelist. For Lerner, the city is not a problem; it’s a solution. An architect and urban planner by training, he brought many innovative strategies to his Brazilian hometown of Curitiba during his terms as mayor (1971–75, 1979–84 and 1989–92). The now famous bus rapid transport system… Read More Curitiba: visions of a better city & creative solutions to get there
Copenhagen competes for one of the world’s most bikable – and livable – cities; but it wasn’t always that way. Like many cities in post-war Europe, as cities were rebuilt, bike lanes were taken over by the car. It wasn’t until the oil crisis of the 1970s and the start of the environmental movement that people started… Read More Copenhagen: taking back the city | car-free streets & slow speed zones
The Urban Observer 