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Creative Gravitation and Placemaking in Berlin
by Vivien ParkArtists and bohemians have been flocking to Berlin since the wall came down in 1989. Affordable rents and vacant spaces allowed room for experimentation, as diversity in numbers created a dynamic infrastructure for cultural exchange....
The Sharing Economy: A Conversation with Neal Gorenflo
by Emily MarshSource: Shira GoldingAs co-founder and publisher of the online magazine Shareable, Neal Gorenflo aims to bring the "sharing economy" into the mainstream. This model — also known as "collaborative consumption" — promotes efficient use...
Mapping the Aftermath of Historic Storms
by Jeff SatterlyThis year marks the centennial of one of the most devastating weather-related disasters ever experienced in the United States. During the week of Mar. 21-26, 1913, a series of late winter storms formed over the Midwest, spawning...
Online in Public Spaces
by Anja WolfStudying at a cafe recently, I noticed that most of the people around me were sitting alone in front of computers. Others had come to meet and talk, but the majority were focused on their screens. It seems that computers, phones and...
Suburban Public Transit Revolution
by Laurent VermeerschSource: SprachcafeParis is on the verge of a massive transportation upgrade, largely for the benefit of its long-neglected suburbs. The Boulevard Périphérique is currently a physical and psychological border between two unequal...
Urban Agriculture in Caracas
by Teresa García AlcarazGreen space in and around San Agustín. Source: Metro Cable San AgustínSan Agustín, a parish in Caracas, Venezuela, is known for open plots of land where the hillside is too steep for habitation. A group of activists led by...
Developing an Ecosystem for Social Enterprise
by Melanie FriedrichsCities around the world are struggling with unemployment, troubled school systems, violence and environmental degradation. Government welfare programs and traditional charitable organizations have been throwing money at the same...
Alternative Globalization in 'Ordinary Cities'
by René BoerTunis, Tunisia, site of the 2013 World Social Forum. Source: Paix & DéveloppementOn Tuesday, hundreds of thousands of people will gather in Tunis for the World Social Forum (WSF). They plan to discuss alternatives to...
Visualizing a Walkable City
by Eduardo AresThe city of Pontevedra in northwest Spain has become a leader in walker-friendly urban policy over the past 15 years. In light of its relative anonymity and population of 83,000, one might find it difficult to imagine the traffic...
Abandoned Homes: An Interview with the Director of "Facades of Crisis"
by Katia SavchukA vacant house in Detroit, where decades of economic decline and population loss have produced about 90,000 abandoned homes.Photographer and filmmaker Eve Morgenstern has been travelling throughout the United States...
San Francisco's New Favorite Bridge
by Emily MarshAlthough the Bay Bridge opened six months before the Golden Gate Bridge, it is widely considered the lesser of the two. The Golden Gate's Art Deco design in strikinginternational orange has made it a global icon, while...
Public Transit: Tramway Arrives in Casablanca
by Cristiana StravaAs Morocco's largest city and business center, Casablanca suffers from infernal traffic congestion, related air pollution and insufficient public transit. The municipal government has yet to realize longstanding plans...
