A simple idea can help build a smarter planet. Check out this one, A flashing Zebra crossing.
What’s your Big Idea for making cities more sustainable?
IBM UK are at Base London today discussing Big Ideas for sustainable cities with the event’s attendees. But we want your ideas too!
So what’s your Big Idea for making cities more sustainable?
50 Ideas For The New City
Urban Omnibus has created a list of 50 ideas for new cities. Each idea links to a related article. The first idea, Combat climate change by adapting our existing building stock, relates to this article. The list is part of an online project from the Architectural League to create a new kind of conversation about design in New York City, but the ideas can be applied to any city.
The list can be found here and an article explaining the list can be found here.
via urbanplanner:
110 readings on smart cities
I have just completed a series of posts about the smart city reviewing the most significant elements: the conceptual confusion between its energy and environmental management approach and issues related to digital apps and data, the role big companies are playing to market their urban technological solutions, new urban developments that are self-proclaimed smart city, the ability of these strategies to promote local technological systems and, finally, their social and political implications.
As smart cities are gaining great attention lately, I have compiled different sources of information I have used lately and here you can find a list of links of resources you may find interesting. Of course, it is impossible to have a fully comprehensive catalogue, so other resources could be included. Feel free to suggest others.
via humanscalecities:
The City in Mind
The City in Mind: Notes on the Urban Condition by James Kunstler is a really terrific book, I highly recommend it. I learned a lot and have a new perspective on a few things because of it. Parts of it are extremely depressing; I’m not sure I have much hope for the future of American cities. Perhaps if enough people read this book, the trend towards city disasters in this country can be reversed. I’m not holding my breath. See also James Kunstler’s home page; of particular interest is the Eyesore of the Month and a very interesting excerpt from this book, an essay on Las Vegas.
The Top 25 Words of the Decade from 2000 - 2009
1. Global Warming (2000)
2. 9/11 (2001)
3. Obama (2008)
4. Bailout (2008)
5. Evacuee/refugee (2005): (Survivors of Katrina who had to be rescued)
6. Derivative (2007)
7. Google (2007)
8. Surge (2007)
9. Chinglish (2005)
10. Tsunami (2004)
11. H1N1 (2009)
12. Subprime ( 2007)
13. dot.com (2000)
14. Y2K ( 2000)
15. Misunderestimate (2002)
16. Chad ( 2000): (a la "Hanging Chad" in Florida after the Bush vs. Gore election)
17. Twitter (2008 )
18. WMD (2002) (Weapons of Mass Destruction)
19. Blog (2003)
20. Texting (2004)
21. Slumdog (2008) (Popularized by Slumdog Millionaire)
22. Sustainable (2006)
23. Brokeback (2004) (From Brokeback Mountain)
24. Quagmire (2004) (Referring to the Iraq War)
25. Truthiness (2006) (A contribution from Stephen Colbert)
A city is a living environment of different cultures, peoples, ideas and systems that are interdependent yet all determine and shape the others identity.
Its where all the ways in which the world works come together — from transportation, to energy, to healthcare, to commerce, to education, to security, to food and water, to neighborhoods and beyond.
And if we want to make our cities truly smarter, we need to have a keen eye for the way all the different parts brilliantly come together and take shape.
