Last month it was the first time I took my kids to the closest beach by bike. Port Stanley is 45km from my house in London, Ontario. My three kids are 8, 10 and 12 years-old and when I announced the trip, they all had a skeptical look on their faces. They also knew that … More London Freedom Convoy
Imagine you are a friend from Brazil and I’m writing to you to share the wonders (from my point of view) of North American cities in my first year back in 2016. I don’t name the city I live in (although it is easy to find that out) because this little story applies to many … More Cultural Shocks in a Built Environment
In 2014, hundreds of people came together to literally rebuild a small park in the downtown of a big city. In 2018, an art hive experiment welcomed hundreds of people to share a space where they were encouraged to express themselves, make art for free as a community and improve individual and collective mental health. … More Urban Literacy: a place-making tool
Cycling is the most energy-efficient form of transport ever used by humans, requiring between one third to one half of the energy required for walking the same distance. Which transport is the fairest of them all? – The Conversation The book Bicycling Science (published by MIT press) shows that in ideal conditions (mild temperature, low … More Bicycle: The Apex of Energy Efficiency
You probably saw many “No Exit” signs in your city. And if you pay closer attention, there are quite a few of them that actually have exits. … More There is a path, we just need to see it
This post is simply a teaser for the video below. Prof. Julian Agyeman’s lecture is thought-provoking. I just want to share a few things that stood out for me: One of his core ideas is the concept of spatial justice. If you think about social justice, it means that everybody has the same opportunities and … More Just Sustainabilities
What do urban governance and the sustainable development goals (SDGs) have in common? How does it impact citizen engagement and city building? Those were some of the questions I had in mind when I was invited to give a guest lecture in the Governance Leadership & Ethics (GLE) course at Huron University. GLE goal is … More Sustainable Development Goals and Urban Governance
A city with a high urban literacy rate is a regenerative city. In other words, when you have people collectively engaged in the process of shaping the places they want to live, you build a thriving place. That is why citizen participation is an important topic in city building. The European Association of Cities in … More Shift to the Middle in Urban Planning
Collaboration and mutual understanding have always been key components of a thriving society. During uncertain and fast-pace changing times like today it is even more important to bring together different worldviews to learn from each other and co-create the city we want. According to the Integral City framework, there are four voices: Citizen (the conformity … More A shared understanding of the city
I want to start the year here at the blog with the right foot (on the pedal)! I’ve been the board chair of London cycle Link for about two years now. And on Jan 13 we will have our Annual General Meeting. I am super pumped to meet all the great candidates willing to join … More Cycling Towards a City for People
Luis Patricio 