Welcome to
My Urban Curious Blog:
Authoritative, Affectionate, and Occasionally Absurd
I have been writing about cities, urban design, and the quirks of how people live together for more than twenty-five years. Some of that writing has been technical, or professional. Some has been quirky, or heartfelt. Some has been—let’s be honest here—slightly absurd, usually after an unusually strong espresso.
Five Surprises from My 1st 24h in Copenhagen
I arrived in Copenhagen expecting good urbanism. I didn’t expect to be so quickly, and so thoroughly, surprised.
Here is what I learned.
The Granola Theory of City Building
I wrote in The Tyee this weekend about the creative generosity showing up on our city blocks — and in my Urban Curious blog this week I discuss why planners (and perhaps granola makers) are drawn to neighbourliness.
Loving cities in a broken world
Being urban curious is the first step toward caring for our cities: nurturing what makes them greener, and thinking seriously about how to improve them.
Loving the world means loving cities.
Hope blooms from asking questions and finding solutions.
Adaptive Idealism: Delusional Optimism, Practiced Daily
Let’s hold fast to a clear and ambitious vision of what should be, while moving toward it through small, deliberate steps; adjusting course as we go; learning from failure; and refusing to give up on the possibility of better cities. I call my personal planning theory “Adaptive Idealism.”