Avsnitt

  • “I would be really framing a lot of my conversations about this… about the long-term health and wellbeing and prospects of our youngest citizens.”

    “Insight for politicians, anyone who's listening to this who wants to kind of shift the needle on creating more sustainable neighborhoods. Talk about children, talk with children, get children's views into the conversation, and that will help you have a more concrete vision of what direction you need to be going in.”

    ________________________________________________________

    Join Boopsie Maran and Bea Enriquez in conversation with Tim Gill author of Urban Playground, How Child-Friendly Urban Planning and Design can save Cities

    ________________________________________________________

    Episode Notes:

    “The municipalities hold most of the levers of power. Of course, what they do is shaped by the central government, and there are messages here for, for the central government as well. But, there's a lot that any municipality can do if they want to. And so the hub and spoke model, It really was what I was seeing when I visited these cities that were doing good things and in lots of cases … What was the catalyst for change? It was an officer, it was one or maybe more than one person in the municipality who took up this issue. Who said to themselves, I'm going to try and make good things happen for kids. And I'm in a position to do that.”

    So just like that.. Enter the mayor of Tirana, Albania: Erion Velia. The mayor of Tirana decided to structure his vision for urban change around children.

    “Norway is one of the few countries where it's written into law that children's views and concerns have to be taken into account in planning. So, you know, every municipality has to show that it does that.”

    It is because of this policy that in order to respond to parent’s fears and tackle traffic issues head on, Oslo created a pioneering app, “The Traffic Agent.” The app provides “child’s eye” feedback to enable both real time and long term improvements in road maintenance and infrastructure planning.

    “On a simple level, in the app kids could say to the transport team, oh, you know, there's this bush and it's just growing too big and it needs to be trimmed down, and by that afternoon it had been done. The result is simple because they just sent somebody out to do it. But, then for more complicated issues like traffic junctions or you know, badly planned routes, the people in the highest department could then put it into their longer term planning. To say, oh, you know, this junction is really important for children.”

    ____

    "It's only where you've got both a lot of choice of places and things to do and go, and it's very easy for children to get around on foot or by bike. It's only where you've got both of those, that you're in that child-friendly spot or quadrant.”

    We do live everywhere in cities that have basically been designed around the needs of the car for the last a hundred years. And it takes energy and commitment and actually courage to turn that around.

    And that's why we are seeing some pushback around some of these ideas

    Focus on the streets where people live

    Think about life from the point of view of a child, the streets are the beginning of our literal and figurative journeys. Have programs that change the way people think about streets, encourage children to walk, cycle, and create a safe place for play.

    Useful Links & References:

    https://rethinkingchildhood.com/urban-playground/

    Read the first 20 pages from Tim Gill's new book 'Urban Playground: How Child-Friendly Planning and Design Can Save Cities.' Courtesy of the Bernard van Leer Foundation.

    Show Credits:

    Music by: Max Epstein

    Sound Engineering and Editing by: Andy Day

    https://www.handytrainingonline.com/audio-laundry

  • Our guest today is a first-generation Turkish-American cultural producer with a background in clean energy engineering.  She currently is the manager and curator for the SF Urban Film Fest.  This festival uses the power of storytelling to celebrate local culture while generating civic engagement to holistically explain and work through urban issues. She can be found in the Bay Area, working on environmental justice issues, counseling tenants’ on their rights,  or supporting volunteers in the Shanti Project.

  • Saknas det avsnitt?

    Klicka här för att uppdatera flödet manuellt.

  • -The case of Play Africa, "Our Ideal World"

    A conversation on Design Thinking with Children approach, and how their work supports creativity while empowering them with a problem solving tool they can apply in many areas of their lives.

    Our Guest :

    Zviko Kanyoka is a Project Manager for placemaking programmes at Play Africa with a background in architecture. Her work is driven by her passion for supporting children’s right to the city through participatory development and by exploring the intersections of child development and the built environment.

    Project Description:

    “Our Ideal World” is a flexible, adaptable workshop that was designed by Play Africa for children between the

    ages of 7 and 12, teaching creative problem solving.  It was developed in collaboration with local and international

    design thinking experts, to create customized design thinking approach that helps children understand social challenges, and how to generate, 

    prototype and test possible solutions that can be shared more widely.  In addition to providing a powerful opportunity to engage

    with local neighbourhood challenges, throughout the workshop, children learn literacy, problem solving, creativity, critical thinking, and other 

    skill sets that develop capabilities in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) and the creative arts.

    Importantly, children feel seen, heard and valued as adults recognise their creative solutions to real world issues, developing their confidence as 

    inventors and innovators with original solutions. Play Africa has gone on to scale this programme broadly.

    Link to Play Africa : https://playafrica.org.za/toolkit/

    ______________________________________________

    PLACES WHERE PLAY HEALS PEOPLE

    PLACES WHERE PLAY SUPPORTS CLIMATE ACTION

    PLACES WHERE PLAY UNITES US ALL

    _____________________________________________________

    The Real Play City Challenge awards inspiring cities and urban practitioners that have successfully used placemaking to create environments that give people time, space and opportunities to play. The Real Play City Challenge is an international competition led by the Real PlayCoalition (Arup, Ingka Group [IKEA], The LEGO Foundation, National Geographic, and UNICEF) and PlacemakingX (represented by STIPO and Huasipichanga).

    Register Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/2022edition 

    Apply Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/apply

  • The case for why it is important to make the connection to places for play and the climate. 

     A conversation on how placemakers can be at the forefront of climate adaptive practice through tapping into their strong sense of community and localised sense of where the opportunities are. 

    Our Guest :

    Minouche Besters is partner and urbanist at the STIPO team for Urban Development.  Her work focuses on creating better places by among others developing inclusion, strengthening the social fabric, organising the commons, working towards the energy transition and involving digital technologies.

    Project Description:

    Placemakers are the best in activating the community. And they know how to be creative in finding smart solutions. Even when there doesn’t seem much space or streets are small or money is tight. We have a major crisis to fix together, and Minouche hopes that all placemakers out here will share their best examples so we can have solutions together and get our streets and parks playful and climate proof!

    Placemakers are using: 

    Streets for open play Climate action to connect people and with people Butterfly gardens for nature play  Tiles OUT .. plants IN also called Tegelwippen  Water puddles for climate resiliency and a splash of fun Bring existing climate activists closer to people on the ground

    Link to her work: https://stipo.nl/projects/?lang=en

    Link to Dutch Championship Tegelwippen: https://nk-tegelwippen.nl

    PLACES WHERE PLAY HEALS PEOPLE

    PLACES WHERE PLAY SUPPORTS CLIMATE ACTION

    PLACES WHERE PLAY UNITES US ALL

    _____________________________________________________

    The Real Play City Challenge awards inspiring cities and urban practitioners that have successfully used placemaking to create environments that give people time, space and opportunities to play. The Real Play City Challenge is an international competition led by the Real PlayCoalition (Arup, Ingka Group [IKEA], The LEGO Foundation, National Geographic, and UNICEF) and PlacemakingX (represented by STIPO and Huasipichanga).

    Register Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/2022edition 

    Apply Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/apply

  • How play can help children and caregivers to recover from the impact of COVID19 in their mental health?

    Healthy environments in all neighborhoods to promote family mental health in a post-pandemic context in developing countries.

    Our Guest :

    Vanesa’s professional career focuses on the design and management of innovative social projects. Expert in process management, and creating conditions for adequate early childhood development in local urban settings. President of COPERA Infancia for the period 2022-2023.

    COPERA Infancia is a network of organizations (12), from different specialties, and independent professionals (21) that advocate for better conditions for Peruvian youngest children to grow up.

    Project Description:

    Neuroscience has shown the effect of the experiences of babies in their first years of life. These shape our developing brain architecture and determine the quality of our future mental health. The Harvard Center on the Developing Child (2020) warns that "the emotional well-being of young children is directly linked to the behavior of their caregivers", so it will be "essential to treat the mental health problems of young children in the context of their families, their homes and their communities”.

    COPERA has been collecting data since 2020 on indicators that measure the effects of COVID-19 in the development of children (indicators of complaining behavior, fear or psychosomatic difficulties) and other variables of the caregivers (behavior, stress and mental health of the caregivers) and of the family (access to health services , satisfaction of economic needs) based on the report of caregivers of children between 6 months and 6 years of socioeconomic status.

    Recent studies show that the lack of access and current degradation of the environment not only have direct effects on the increase, for example, in the incidence of diseases such as asthma in young children, but also pose significant challenges to the mental health of adult caregivers.

    In COPERA, our organizations and professionals advocate for transforming streets and public spaces into better places where to meet others, play and reconnect with nature.

    Link to her work: https://coperainfanciaperu.com/

    PLACES WHERE PLAY HEALS PEOPLE

    PLACES WHERE PLAY SUPPORTS CLIMATE ACTION

    PLACES WHERE PLAY UNITES US ALL

    _____________________________________________________

    The Real Play City Challenge awards inspiring cities and urban practitioners that have successfully used placemaking to create environments that give people time, space and opportunities to play. The Real Play City Challenge is an international competition led by the Real PlayCoalition (Arup, Ingka Group [IKEA], The LEGO Foundation, National Geographic, and UNICEF) and PlacemakingX (represented by STIPO and Huasipichanga).

    Register Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/2022edition 

    Apply Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/apply

  • The Case of Mexico by Fundación Placemaking Mexico

    Low-Cost High-Impact Strategy: 30 Friendly Places for Early Childhood in Mexico

    Our Guest : 

    Guillermo Bernal is the Executive Director of Fundación Placemaking Mexico and Board Member of PlacemakingX. With ten years of experience, he has worked with over 200 public spaces in Mexico, focusing on creating participatory and sustainable communities.

    Project Description:

    LAPIS is an acronym in Spanish for "Early Childhood Friendly Places." How is this ordinally said in spanish (LAPIS)?Lugares Amigables  para la Primera Infancia

    The adaptability of materials to the context, local talent, and participatory workshops that lead to a community design with children and caregivers are the core principles of LAPIS.

    In the first phase of LAPIS, from January to May 2022, the first 10 of 30 planned for 2022 were built, designed to meet the needs of ten diverse communities around Mexico and eight different typologies: School pedestrian crossing, School playground, Urban garden, Rural park, Urban park, Bicycle school, and Nature Reserve.

    Placemaking Mēxico Foundatiōn - https://placemaking.mx/noticia/620fac1b4991ad03420b01cf

    _____________________________________________________

    PLACES WHERE PLAY HEALS PEOPLE

    PLACES WHERE PLAY SUPPORTS CLIMATE ACTION

    PLACES WHERE PLAY UNITES US ALL

    _____________________________________________________

    The Real Play City Challenge awards inspiring cities and urban practitioners that have successfully used placemaking to create environments that give people time, space and opportunities to play. The Real Play City Challenge is an international competition led by the Real PlayCoalition (Arup, Ingka Group [IKEA], The LEGO Foundation, National Geographic, and UNICEF) and PlacemakingX (represented by STIPO and Huasipichanga).

    Register Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/2022edition 

    Apply Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/apply

  • The Case of Bar Elias, Lebanon 

    Participatory Spatial Intervention by Catalytic Action
    Winners of the Real Play City Challenge 2020

    Our Guest :  

    Riccardo Luca Conti is the Co-founder and Executive Director at CatalyticAction. He is an architect and urban designer. He has led numerous initiatives, overseeing the design and construction of built interventions with vulnerable communities. He holds an MSc from University College London in Building and Urban Design in Development, and a BSc in Architecture from Politecnico di Milano.  

    Project Description: 

    This project in Bar Elias was aimed at reducing vulnerabilities and improving the wellbeing of the community. It sought to do this through spatial interventions that would be co-produced with the active participation of the local community (refugees and hosts). https://www.catalyticaction.org/bar-elias-psi/ 

    PLACES WHERE PLAY HEALS PEOPLE 

    PLACES WHERE PLAY SUPPORTS CLIMATE ACTION 

    PLACES WHERE PLAY UNITES US ALL

     _____________________________________________________ 

    The Real Play City Challenge awards inspiring cities and urban practitioners that have successfully used placemaking to create environments that give people time, space and opportunities to play. The Real Play City Challenge is an international competition led by the Real PlayCoalition (Arup, Ingka Group [IKEA], The LEGO Foundation, National Geographic, and UNICEF) and PlacemakingX (represented by STIPO and Huasipichanga).

    Register Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/2022edition 

    Apply Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/apply

  • PLACES WHERE PLAY HEALS PEOPLE

    PLACES WHERE PLAY SUPPORTS CLIMATE ACTION

    PLACES WHERE PLAY UNITES US ALL

    _____________________________________________________

    The Real Play City Challenge awards inspiring cities and urban practitioners that have successfully used placemaking to create environments that give people time, space and opportunities to play.

    The Real Play City Challenge is an international competition led by the Real PlayCoalition (Arup, Ingka Group [IKEA], The LEGO Foundation, National Geographic, and UNICEF) and PlacemakingX (represented by STIPO and Huasipichanga).

    Register Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/2022edition

    Apply Here:  https://www.realplaycitychallenge.org/apply

  • Join Boopsie and Matias as they delve deep into the streets of La Boca and San Telmo, some of the oldest barrios of Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Matias brings his expertise in social architecture, urbanism, art, and design. 

    He can be found with his urban design team Urbanismo Vivo.

    Episode Notes:

    9:40 Participatory process as a crucial step before any design begins.  The team will gather information directly from the people living there : from the residents who  have the knowledge and who know the neighborhood better than anyone.

    14:30 The most important thing is qualitative data. It is what we need that these interventions are making a change.  We mainly measure the amount of  people.. The speed of cars passing through the area in an effort to improve the walkability.  Humanscale of the street in an effort to empower safety.  We measure activities and we interview people to ask them about the perception of the space: quality of the equipment , cleanliness, safety, quality of the public space, quality of the public furniture to create a result that includes perception from the point of view of the humans in the space.

    22:44  Public Space became crucial last year. It was the only space where we were able to share the power of public space.  Last year, we tried to create a good quality public space in a neighborhood where there is a huge lack of public space. No space for kids , no sitting, no trees, and it is a very grey area of the city .

    25:30 Urbanismo Vivo provided tool to help people organize and create a co -design proposal to deliver to the city that outlines the identity of the community and the project as the neighbours of the area.  Bottom-up - From this the government and people gained a high-quality public space

    33:28 Urban Kintsugi - The whole concept is to use the resources you have and to show the breaks and joints of the problems.. Keep them visible and make it still beautiful.  We don’t cover the entire area.. But, we ensure we maintain the shape, cracks, and integrity of the specific street site.

    40:20   The importance of multi-disciplinary teams in urban spaces .  We need sociologists, we need social workers, we need lawyers, we also for sure need urbanists and architects.  But, the mix of the social sciences, the technical aspects, and the regulatory aspects of the use of plan need to work together to achieve that common goal to create more equal, accessible spaces that represent the desire of the residents. We need to get used to have more debates in the field of urban space. Generating the debate with local residents and reducing the helicopter view of our cities.

    55:08 The sense of Walking Festival is that each walk is self organised and designed by the leader of that walk. It is a very collective process.  We invited people to create their own walks and create the base of the objectives that we want.

    56:20 - The purpose of the festival is to connect people with the city. Link people with the history of the city  and attempt to stop the alienating process of cities that separates humans from the intangible stories that are part of our social patrimony and heritage of the city

    The story of the public space - what happened, what is the history to bring new life to a place from the old stories.

    Useful Links & References:

    https://urbanismovivo.com.ar/

    https://festivaldecaminatas.com.ar/

    https://www.linkedin.com/company/urbanismo-vivo/

    https://www.instagram.com/urbanismo_vivo/?hl=en -

  • "How do you make sustainable places and communities that recognize human rights and also understand what it means to ensure that everyone has access in a space of rapid urbanization?"
    In this episode we delve into the work of Maria Adebowale - Schwarte with the Foundation for Future London
    Episode Notes:
    - Foundation for Future London is focusing on a specific area in East London.  It is part of a new cultural quarter, and we are there to democratize creativity, access into arts, culture, and placemaking. Our major focus is ensuring that we have open doors into space.
    - Covid-19 has really highlighted the fact that places and green spaces are not "nice to haves." 
    - It is absolutely crucial anything that happens in East London is about communities leading and the feeling that everyone can be part of that decision-making.
    - We need to resource that kind of intelligence, and lived experience in place, and it would need be at the center of all the policies that we do.
    - Place led , not place based.
    - Share your learning and share your data.
    - Funding should be fair - Ask yourself: Who has been part of the agenda? Who has had a say, but not only who has had a say but who has been resourced to be involved?   ----- Resource local intelligence  ------
    - Democratize creativity : access into the arts, culture, and placemaking.  ----- Apply a social lens in decision making. -------
    - Create a place that is inclusive - At all times.

    Contact: 
    LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/mariaadebowale
    Useful Links & References:
    Foundation for Future London
    Living Space Project
    Placemaking Factor
    London Sustainable Development Commission - Social Value in Regeneration and Placemaking 
    Guest's Bio:
    Maria is the founding director of Living Space Project a think and do place making social enterprise. She advises on strategy and project design for collaborative, inclusive place making and cities. She is a CEO with Foundation For Future London. She is co-founder of the UK Placemaking collective and part of the global collective Placemaking X.  Her latest book, the Placemaking Factor focuses on the dynamics of grant-making and philanthropic giving, and how it can lead us to a fairer greener future.


    -



  • "We never closed the road... we opened the roads, to children."
    From train station libraries to the impact of Skawina's own local mobility hero, Roman, this episode takes us through what soon might be a 10-minute city.
    Episode notes:
    Maciej and his mobility team strive to model that most problems are solvable and the team is there to help share solutions.
    If we manage safe and sustainable last kilometers to school, we have the ability to improve entire villages.
    We are trying to break the cycle and humanize the technical processes.
    In translating the needs of all people we can break from the belief that cars must flow and anything that disrupts the flow of cars is bad.

    Contact: Maciej Zacher
    Twitter - @mhzacher
    LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/maciejzacher/
    Useful Links & References:
    https://www.gminaskawina.pl/
    Facebook -  https://www.facebook.com/lubieSkawine/
    Library / Train Station - https://biblioteka-skawina.pl/

  • How can we open up the barriers of access to public space to more diverse artists and citizens?

    In a world where it is normally all about success, public space is an opportunity to trial, experiment, and play in spaces.  Parklets provide an opening to actively listen and experiment with solutions that allow us the space to do something differently.

    Episode notes:

    In this episode we meet with global academic scholar and passionate public space activist Luisa Bravo.  Discussing case studies and her practice, we grapple with the complexity of establishing a new mindset that is created when you are able to gather a group of citizens and delve deeper into their urban daily lives and the pursuit of happiness.

    Starting with a simple question:  Would you be happier if urban conditions would change?

    Together we reiterate the need to see public space as an experimental space for performative action, community participation or just to explore the possibilities for new identities and creative opportunities for civil engagement.

    People simply need to have:

    enough sensitivity willingness to listen passion commitment to co-design

    Contact: Luisa Bravo  https://www.linkedin.com/in/luisabravodesign/

    Useful Links & References on City Space Architecture’s projects and initiatives:

    City Space Architecture  www.cityspacearchitecture.org

    Parklet in Bologna (Italy)  https://www.a-place.eu/en/placemaking-activity/17

    Parklet campaign https://www.a-place.eu/en/placemaking-action/61

    Public Space Museum in Bologna  https://www.museospaziopubblico.it/

    Survey: Urban daily life and the pursuit of happiness http://www.cityspacearchitecture.org/?p=happiness-survey

  • Reducing the supremacy of the car is a movement that has been percolating in cities across the globe.   Celebrated advocate for urban mobility, Chris Bruntlett uses his knowledge and passion to share practical bicycle solutions. Join us, as we deep dive from Delft in the Netherlands to talk all things sustainable safety design, and even learn a little bit about Vancouver's very own "Jane Jacobs"... Shirley Chan.

    Episode Notes:

    The first 25 years of cycling infrastructure change in the Netherlands was full of innovation and experimentation.  It was also full of high profile failures that led to the sustainable safety policy. This policy shift was realised once the Netherlands began viewing road fatalities as preventable.

    Half of all cycling infrastructure in the Netherlands has been built since 1996.

    Some key aspects to the change towards safer cycling and mobility:

    - Improve cycle intersection design 

    - Networks of safer streets

    - Sustainable Safety Design

    - Mandate physical separations between a range of users

    - In the Netherlands, kids under 12 ride completely free 

    - Minimise stoppages

    - Encourage cycling so that it becomes a time competitive journey

    Contact: 

    [email protected]

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/cbruntlett/

     

    Useful Links & References:

    http://www.modacitylife.com/curbing-traffic - Curbing Traffic - The Human Case for Fewer Cars in our Lives

    https://islandpress.org/books/curbing-traffic

    https://dutchcycling.nl/en/news/blog/5-design-principles-for-successful-bicycle-infrastructure

    https://crowplatform.com/product/design-manual-for-bicycle-traffic/

    https://www.swov.nl/en/publication/sustainable-safety-3rd-edition-advanced-vision-2018-2030

    https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-strait-and-narrows/episode/episode-3-from-a-to-b-49342131  - Interview with Shirley Chan about the Vancouver freeway fight. 

    https://www.placesthatmatter.ca/location/walter-and-mary-lee-chan-house/

    https://youtu.be/0JtoSafhvLM - Not Just Bikes video about garbage collection. 

     

  • How can we Bridge the trust divide between citizens and their city?

    Join Boopsie as she chats with Bea Enriquez - Systems Innovator - Play at Healthy Families Waitākere, Sport Waitākere.  Bea works alongside children, community, and stakeholders to support them to think differently.  She works tirelessly to  improve access to play through influencing planning, urban design, policy, investment and settings so every young person and old in West Auckland can reclaim their childhood.

    In this episode we delve deeper into the sharing of ideas and practice to shift investment to be more community centric.

    Episode Notes:

    Design that raises the voice of your community champions.

    Design that is co-created with the people , that actually live there.

    Design that include safe and inviting spaces that provide a sense of "permission to play"

    The importance of intersectional relationships that can bring about change.

    The need for cups of coffee and a muffin for that kanohi ki te kanohi (face to face) connection.

    If we ignore meaningful connection to people in the spaces we design, we ignore that necessary link or bridging of trust between political policies and people.

    Contact: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beaenriquez/

    Useful Links & References:

    https://www.healthyfamilieswaitakere.org.nz/

    https://www.facebook.com/healthyfamilieswaitakere

    https://www.facebook.com/sportwaitakerenz

    https://www.sportwaitakere.co.nz/

  • If we can't say yes, how can we say maybe.

    In this conversation with Nate Hommel, Director of Planning and Design for the University City District in Philadelphia we discuss how we can work together to reach that MAYBE.

    During the COVID-19 pandemic he served a an expert advisor to the City of Philadelphia to develop the Pandemic Outdoor Dining Guidelines for the entire city in 2020.  Aligning his practice with Mike Lydon's belief in "renderings in real-time," Nate talks us through some of his non-permanent trials to give restaurants a chance at survival amidst the pandemic.

    Episode Notes:

    When informing the public about projects and only 6 people turn up ... you need to ask yourself, why?

    - Did we fund and provide childcare during the meeting?

    - Did we provide a meal?

    - We're participants paid for their time and expert opinions?

    As the city we have a responsibility to try or best to keep businesses open.  And sometimes this can mean taking care of the red tape stuff, while also finding creative solutions to allow people to share their opinion.  

    In this iterative trial process we might ask citizens to fix something because in inhibits access or is dangerous, but we can try our best not to punish.

    We also need to think of all the languages that are spoken by different owners, and consistently ensure we are searching for opportunities to maintain an equitable lens towards our solutions.  In this cast the weekly zoom meeting created by a council member allow a restaurant working group to be a space to share raw lived experience and work together across expertise towards shared solutions.

    It is a beautiful thing when something can happen and residents understand and accept that the first time around it may not be perfect.

    William H Whytes' Social Life of Small Urban Spaces video 

    City of Philadelphia Temporary Sidewalk Cafe License Application 

    2022 State of University City Report 

    The Philadelphia Citizen article 

  • The way you are connected to the place goes beyond just yourself.

    In this cross-continental conversation with Viviana, she shares parts of her ongoing practice and passion for creating more playful inclusive and liveable cities.  As co-founder of Huasipichanga her team works to bring children into the core of the design processes of place.  Her organisation encourages and includes the curiosity and lived experience from all stakeholders through public space activations and interventions in the city.

    Episode Notes: 

    Through her practice we learn tools that can enhance the role of the municipality.  They do this by iterative processes including 10 day workshops and 100 architecture students from all over Latin America, or a long-term commitment with a school meeting each week for 25 weeks.

    Child-friendly cities in relationship to spatial science mean a commitment to maintenance and replicability.  When done successfully we can achieve safe passages for every where.

    Currently , placemaking seems to be a movement working towards being more collaborative.  We can teach children and a wider range of people how to collect data, how to meet the neighbours, and survey their parents. The way the money is moving around the municipality and partnerships needs to move toward a more neighbourhood oriented practice really bringing in the community through schools and to have professionals supporting community, on the ground.

    Together we can apply child friendly principles in our cities... Providing children an independent opportunity for safe mobility says a lot.

    The first step is awareness

    Episode Links:

    Exploradores de la Ciudad

    Spanish guide translated to ten languages

    Learn to apply child friendly principles in your city

    THE CITY AT EYE LEVEL by Stipo

    Create a different level of awareness through games and through playfulness

    The Faculty of Spatial Sciences 

    Provides education and research within Geography, Demography and Planning.

     The research theme is Wellbeing, Innovation and Spatial Transformation

    Huasipichanga

    Iterative urban strategies 

    Regenerating public spaces and bringing people together

  • How do we measure a safe and compassionate city?

    In this candid conversation with Gilbert we delve into some historical “illegal acts of love.”( ie: tactical urbanism / placemaking).  Learn more about some of his more recent projects like the “new local,” and his emphasis on building deep regenerative capacities for renewal.

    Episode Notes - 
    What value do we put on culture? Here are some key moments that sparked notes …
    The MPavilion as the cultural anchor of Melbourne
    Moving towards a more citizen based and participatory exchange in our places.

    As good placemakers we need to connect and unleash the potential of community wisdom.
    It takes many hands to create a place, and we’re gonna need more adaptability and community spaces
    Community Spaces that are:

    Trauma informed
    Socially creative spaces
    Help people linger longer
    Safe beautiful places where people can connect
    Lifting the human experience
    Expanding your horizons
    Where amenity can be clustered
    Create a sense of vitality, connection, and celebration


    Placemaking is all about sparking energy
    Immersive participatory process
    We are in the time of risk taking
    We need to not be comfortable in our context anymore.
    Website links for Gilbert;
    https://www.villagewell.org/
    https://www.epochinstitute.com.au/
    https://www.gilbertrochecouste.com/