Good Urbanism

Six Steps to Creating Prosperous Places

verfasst von: Prof. Nan Ellin

Verlag: Island Press/Center for Resource Economics

Buchreihe : Metropolitan Planning + Design

Enthalten in: Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" , Springer Professional "Technik" , Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

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Über dieses Buch

We all have a natural nesting instinct—we know what makes a good place. And a consensus has developed among urban planners and designers about the essential components of healthy, prosperous communities. So why aren’t these ideals being put into practice?

In Good Urbanism, Ellin identifies the obstacles to creating thriving environments, and presents a 6-step process to overcome them: prospect, polish, propose, prototype, promote, present. Ellin illustrates the process with ten exemplary projects, from Envision Utah to Open Space Seattle.

For planners, urban designers, community developers, and students of these fields, Ellin’s innovative approach offers an inspired, yet concrete path to building good places.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Frontmatter

1. Introduction

Abstract

A house I once lived in came with a potted grape ivy. I watered the plant regularly, but oddly, it never grew. It didn’t die, but during the two years I lived there, it never changed shape or sprouted a leaf. Leaving this grape ivy behind for the next inhabitants, it became emblematic for me of so many places that, while they may be surviving, are clearly not thriving.

Nan Ellin

2. Urban Desiderata: A Path toward Prosperity

Abstract

We use strong words when we talk about places, proclaiming our “love” or “hate” for a city, neighborhood, house, or other building. Indeed, we probably use these words more often with regard to place than people. Needless to say, the places we love support us, while the places we hate strain us.

Nan Ellin

3. The Tao of Urbanism: Rendering the Latent Manifest and the Possible Inevitable

Abstract

Artisans, artists, designers, choreographers, and other creators shape their work from the resources at hand: materials, dancers, money, land, and other given resources. If they devoted their time and energy to bemoaning what they lacked, they would never bring anything of value forth into the world. In similar fashion, when we build on our own gifts, rather than dwell on inadequacies, our strengths grow stronger. Some Native Americans consider these intrinsic gifts our “original medicine,” endowing unique personal power so we may serve the world most optimally.¹ The Taoist tradition, hailing from fifth century bce China, maintains that awareness and trust of our own inner nature allow us to be our best and avoid manipulation by others. These and other wisdom traditions exhort us to honor this rich source of authenticity and creativity.

Nan Ellin

4. Co-Creation: From Egosystem to Ecosystem

Abstract

Once people and place nuggets are revealed, transforming them into jewels is most successful when done collaboratively. Good urbanism invites others to contribute, welcomes them when they do, and brings them in as true partners (figure 4.1). In the words of Jaime Lerner (2010, 191): “A city is a collective dream. To build this dream is vital. [It involves] a process that acknowledges and welcomes the multiple visions that managers, inhabitants, planners, politicians, businesses, and civil society have of their city.… The more generous this vision, the more good practices will multiply.”

Nan Ellin

5. Going with the Flow: The New Design with Nature

Abstract

Good urbanism preserves the strengths of places and enhances what may be underperforming with minor adjustments. If it stopped there, it might be Celebrity Chef Urbanism, whipping up dishes from given ingredients. Instead, it may be more like Iron Chef Urbanism, judiciously adding new ingredients that “best express the unique qualities” of a featured theme ingredient (Iron Chef TV Program).

Nan Ellin

6. The Art of Urbanism:A Practice Primer

Abstract

The city is our canvas, and we are all urban artists. As anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss suggests, cities can be great works of art as people skillfully and lovingly shape them over time. Beyond two- and three-dimensional art, the places we live are 4-D, including the fourth dimension of human experience in space and time. Good urbanism regards our places as potential masterpieces co-created by all and for all to appreciate. The art of urbanism refers to (1) the city as a work of art (a product) and (2) the art of making cities (a process).

Nan Ellin

7. From Good to Great Urbanism: Beyond Sustainability to Prosperity

Abstract

A significant shift has been under way globally, emerging from broad-based sustainability efforts that have enhanced the quality of our places in recent decades. Thanks to these strides, we are now taking the next step, with an even smaller ecological footprint, moving beyond sustainability to prosperity. While sustainability is certainly an improvement over decline, better still are flourishing, thriving, and prospering. How are we moving in this direction, and how might we accelerate that movement?

Nan Ellin

8. Sideways Urbanism: Rotating the Pyramid

Abstract

Thomas Campanella recently touched a nerve in the planning field by exposing a concern that it had become a “trivial profession” (Campanella 2011). Asking “How did a profession that roared to life with grand ambitions become such a mouse?”Campanella (2011) posed this challenge:

Nan Ellin

9. Conclusion

Abstract

Good urbanists may be civic leaders, place-healers, creative entrepreneurs (who contribute unique local businesses), or entrepreneurial creatives (artists). Good urbanists can also be connectors, mavens (researchers), and salespersons (advocates), the three capacities required for real transformation, according to Malcolm Gladwell in The Tipping Point (2000).

Nan Ellin

Backmatter

Titel: Good Urbanism
verfasst von: Prof. Nan Ellin
Verlag: Island Press/Center for Resource Economics
Electronic ISBN: 978-1-61091-447-5
Print ISBN: 978-1-59726-359-7
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-447-5