A first time for those words in one sentence.
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Urban Talk with Richard Florida and Brent Toderian at the World Urban Forum 7:
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Worth watching for the content, of course – but also to see how two of the fastest-talking urbanists in the world manage to get their words in edgewise.
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Here, too, is Brent’s Planetizen piece on “why global cities should be paying attention to what’s been happening in Medellin, and what will no doubt evolve even faster after the city successfully hosting the largest and “best” WUF in history.”
Medellin is smartly seeking to build on that reputation as a city of innovation, both in general in its strategies and projects, and specifically in the creation of a new “innovation district” next to the central area..Although their new land use plan and mobility plans started separately, they’re more recently embracing the idea of integrating the two into a more holistic approach to city-making, inspired by the Vancouver model and message that “the best transportation plan is a great land use plan.”
.Also like Vancouver, they aren’t just seeking to balance ways of getting around – rather, they’re proposing to prioritize walking, biking and public transit based on the recognition that multi-modal cities work better for everyone, including drivers. It’s a key moment in the city for this change in direction, as only 14% of the population own private vehicles, but this number has been increasing, fuelled by an increasingly out-dated notion elsewhere that car ownership equals status..Much of my work with the city is about rethinking the nature of traffic, as an issue of space, cost, livability and sustainability, and even as a form of “violence.”
I was there 🙂 You should have seen the crowds. The Metropolitan Theatre at the Medellin conference only seats about 1750 people, so they had it broadcasting not only in the major conference salons (indoors), but also on screen at the outdoor plaza. While Leon Krier managed only a modest outdoor audience, you’ve never seen so many people “past a certain age” sitting on the ground raptly watching the screen.