Archives: 2007 December

Archive for December, 2007

Green Map 2007 Wrap Up!

Posted in Models, Movements by fedwards on December 12th, 2007

Below is the Green Map 2007 Wrap Up! To visit the Green Map website go to http://www.greenmap.org.

What a year!! We’ve accomplished many of our dreams and plans, from the re-launched GreenMap.org and the complete updating of our mapmaking resources to our new look and outreach package to exciting new mapmaking partners worldwide. 2007 was the year our movement spread to its 50th country, impacting over 435 diverse communities throughout the world. Now, there are over 330 published Green Maps – each is an action-generating process, a guide and inventory, an authentic expression of community character, a record of change and a perception-changing landscape o

Green Map System has received wonderful accolades, including this recent email:

“Those maps are absolutely incredible! It’s truly inspiring to me that a firm of your size can positively impact hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people. My hope is that Green Map’s influence will continue to grow and that even more local communities will benefit from what you do.” David D, NYC, 12/6/07

Thank you, David, we could not do it without the contributions of people like you, donated through our website or by making purchases in our Store or directly supporting the wishlist of a local Green Map project. Contact us with your comments and ideas, as well as questions about tax-deductible donations and sponsorships or mail them to Green Map System, PO Box 249, NYC 10002. Our year-end letter explains more about the ways Green Mapmaking impacts ecological health, climate care, social justice and security across many nations, motivating more people to act for the common good.
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Tags: networks, Resource, Urban Design and Built Form
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Event - Nature and the Network: 2008 Conference on Urban Ecosystems, Orlando, Florida, 28-30 May 2008

Posted in Events, Models, Research by fedwards on December 11th, 2007

Nature and the Network: 2008 Conference on Urban Ecosystems, Orlando, Florida, 28-30 May 2008

This conference brings together a diverse audience, with seemingly different viewpoints to inspire a new approach—one that addresses nature and the network as one problem with one common solution—building eco-efficient networks.

For more information visit the website at http://www.americanforests.org/conference/.

Tags: climate change, Health, Urban Design and Built Form
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Event - Ecocity 2008, San Francisco, California, 22-26 April, 2008

Posted in Events, Models, Movements, Research, Visions by fedwards on December 10th, 2007

Ecocity 2008, San Francisco, CA, April 22-26, 2008
http://www.ecocityworldsummit.org/program.htm#main

Like the preceding six International Ecocity Conferences, the Ecocity World Summit’s focus is on how, through rebuilding our built environment (our cities, towns and villages) in balance with nature, citizens can, now and into the deep future, inhabit healthy and vibrant cities.

Visit the Ecocity 2008 website for more information http://www.ecocityworldsummit.org/program.htm#main
.

Tags: climate change, energy, networks, Resource, Urban Design and Built Form, waste, Water
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Event & Call for papers - World Urban Forum, Nanjing, China - 13 - 17 October 2008

Posted in Events, Models, Movements, Research by fedwards on December 9th, 2007

From the World Urban Forum website, http://www.unhabitat.org/categories.asp?catid=535.

Fourth session of the World Urban Forum, 13-17 October 2008, Nanjing, China

The World Urban Forum was established by the United Nations to examine one of the most pressing issues facing the world today: rapid urbanization and its impact on communities, cities, economies and policies. It is projected that in the next fifty years, two-thirds of humanity will be living in towns and cities. A major challenge is to minimize burgeoning poverty in cities, improve the urban poor’s access to basic facilities such as shelter, clean water and sanitation and achieve environment-friendly, sustainable urban growth and development.

The World Urban Forum is a biennial gathering that is attended by a wide range of partners, from non-governmental organizations, community-based organizations, urban professionals, academics, to governments, local authorities and national and international associations of local governments. It gives all these actors a common platform to discuss urban issues in formal and informal ways and come up with action-oriented proposals to create sustainable cities.
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Tags: climate change, energy, Health, networks, Transport, Urban Design and Built Form, waste, Water
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Model - “Bike City USA” goes to Portland!

Posted in Models by fedwards on December 7th, 2007

Portland, Oregan, has been receiving some positive recent publicity due to its bike-friendly layout. In “Portland, Cultivating a culture of two wheels“, the New York Times has recognised that Portland has a “bicycle-friendly culture and infrastructure, including the network of bike lanes that the city began planning in the early 1970s. Now, riders are helping the city build a cycling economy”.

Tags: Carbon-neutral, energy, Health, Transport
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Model - Low Impact Urban Design & Development

Posted in Models, Research, Visions by fedwards on December 6th, 2007

I recently attended a conference in New Zealand and while I was there met a person who works in Landcare Research with a focus on “Low Impact Urban Design & Development” (LIUDD). According to their website, http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/research/built/liudd/, low impact and water-sensitive approaches to urban development have been evolving in New Zealand since the late 1990’s. LIUDD comprises design and development practises that utilise natural systems and low impact technologies. Key elements include working with nature, avoiding or minimising impervious surfaces, minimising earthworks in construction, utilising vegetation to assist in trapping sediment and pollutants.

The website has information about research, case studies, material from presentations and more. To learn more about LIUDD visit http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/research/built/liudd/.

Tags: energy, networks, Resource, Urban Design and Built Form
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Event - SEASINK 2008 International Conference, Oporto, Portugal, 26-28 June 2008

Posted in Events, Research by fedwards on December 6th, 2007

SEASINK 2008 International Conference - Oporto, Portugal, 26-28 June 2008

Researchers, students and other professionals are now invited to the SEASINK 2008 Conference, to be held in Oporto, Portugal on 26-28 June 2008.

The conference is organised by the Global Change, Energy, Environment and Bioengineering R & D Unit at the University Fernando Pessoa in Portugal. Oceans, representing about 70% of the earth surface, are considered as deposits for a large number of anthropogenic residues.

Receiving input from human activities through land drainage, atmospheric deposition, rivers, and direct dumping, oceans act as sinks for several classes of compounds. There are many problems associated with the deposition of residues in the oceans, both from an environmental and a health perspective. Indeed, one of the most important scientific challenges today is to prevent that the carrying capacity of marine ecosystems to human induced stresses is exceeded.

SEASINK 2008 is being organized aiming at discussing approaches, methods, projects and other initiatives related to the deposition of residues in the oceans. The thematic sessions are as follows:
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Tags: climate change, Food, Health, waste, Water
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Review & Call for bids - The State of Australian Cities conference 2007

Posted in Events, Models, Movements, Research by fedwards on December 5th, 2007

Below is a notice from Professor Steve Hamnett, Chair of the recent State of the Australian Cities conference held in Adelaide last week. I attended this conference and thoroughly enjoyed it - it was wonderful to experience the breadth and depth of issues that face our cities in addition to meeting the people involved in the research. The website for the State of the Australian Cities conference is www.unisa.edu.au/soac2007.

STATE OF AUSTRALIAN CITIES CONFERENCE 2007
The 2007 State of Australian Cities Conference was held in Adelaide from 28-30 November and seems to have been regarded as a great success by the 300 or so academics, researchers, students and policymakers who attended.

The conference attracted over 120 excellent research papers on the current state of research relating to Australian Cities and current urban policy challenges. Submitted papers and the four keynote addresses by Brendan Gleeson, Pauline McGuirk, Steve Dovers and Ruth Fincher will be made available on the conference website in the near future (www.unisa.edu.au/soac2007).

SOAC 2007 also saw the launch of the ‘Australia Futures Task Force’ report by Professor Bob Stimson. For details and a downloadable copy of this, go to www.siss.edu.au.

The Australian Sustainable Cities and Regions Network

NOW INVITES BIDS TO HOST THE 2009 SOAC CONFERENCE.

An outline of the purposes of the SOAC Conference and of the Selection Principles and Process can be obtained from the website (www.unisa.edu.au/soac2007).

On behalf of the Conference Organising Committee, I should like to express my sincere thanks to the authors, speakers, delegates, panel chairs, track chairs, referees, keynote speakers, sponsors, host universities, student guides, support staff and the many other contributors who helped make SOAC 2007 a success. The State of Australian Cities Conference is now firmly established on the Australian academic calendar and we look forward to another outstanding conference in 2009.

Steve Hamnett

Chair, SOAC 2007

Professor of Urban and Regional Planning
University of South Australia
Tel: +61 8 8302 2297; Mobile: 0407 728 339
Email: steve.hamnett @unisa.edu.au

Tags: climate change, energy, Food, Health, networks, Transport, Urban Design and Built Form, waste, Water
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Model - Green Taxis in Cities

Posted in Models, Movements, Visions by fedwards on December 5th, 2007

According to the Australian ABC News, http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/11/28/2103832.htm, the New South Wales Government has recently given its approval for companies to use hybrid cars as taxis and hire vehicles. The story reports that:

“A Sydney company has been trialing a hybrid cab for the past 12 months to assess if they are commercially viable. Transport Minister John Watkins says more of the environmentally-friendly taxis should start appearing on Sydney’s streets soon. But he says taxi companies are still assessing their cost-effectiveness. “There are some other issues about maintenance and the costing of a vehicle over the length of its life,” he said. “Those figures will become clear through the test that is currently under way, but this is good news for people who want to see a better environmental outcome.”

Alternatively, SKY News, Australia, reports that this environmental shift may not be quite as simple as stated above. As evidenced by Russel Howarthe, a taxi driver who “is trying to sanction a new Lexus Hybrid, which is runs half on petrol and half on electricity, but is having trouble getting a licence. ‘This business was predicated on just trying to do a little bit for the environment, we have had a phenomenal response and I am concerned as to why the state government wouldn’t be interested,’ Mr Howarthe said.” The report from SKY News continues, “An official from the Ministry of Transport knocked Russel back due to the fact that the car is not long enough. ‘I’m advised that the current vehicle does not meet the regulations’, NSW Transport Minister John Watkins said. Despite the setback, Mr Howarthe is stopping at taxi ranks and carrying passengers for free.”

At the very least these news stories show that an interest in greening taxis - a shared resource - is becoming a public issue of interest. Do any readers of Sustainable Cities Network know of other models around the world that have implemented “greener” taxis? If so, Sustainable Cities would welcome your input. Please place any comments in the comment box below. Alternatively, email Ferne Edwards at fedwards @unimelb.edu.au.

Tags: Carbon-neutral, energy, Transport
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Chicago to go green!

Posted in Models by fedwards on December 4th, 2007

Reported on 8 November in The Oregonian, CITY UNVEILS CARBON TAX PLAN by Dylan Rivera and Scott Learn, city officials in Chicago plan to charge builders for new homes built that are not extremely energy efficient in addition to requiring an energy efficiency report completed by home inspectors. Alternatively, officials will pay cash rewards to developers who make buildings that save at least 45 percent more energy than the code requires.

The plan will go before Portland, Chicago, residents, in hearings, in January. With passage, the carbon-fee rules would be in place by 2010. However, builders are already pushing back.

To read the full story visit http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1194497715108680.xml&coll=7.

Tags: Carbon-neutral, energy, Urban Design and Built Form
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