As big cities get even bigger, some residents are being left behind
Cities with above-average knowledge economies and below-average levels of social vulnerability are better placed to cope with the dual challenges of technological change and social inequality. Photo: Public Domain Pictures
In the fight against climate change, cities need not be hotbeds of environmental degradation
Instead of thinking of cities as pressure points for the global environment, we need to see them as innovation hubs for solutions to address climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss. Compact, green, inclusive urban centres are a critical weapon in our quest to keep the…
As climate risk grows, cities test a tough strategy: Saying ‘No’ to developers
Last year Virginia Beach became one of a small but growing number of communities willing to say no to developers when it rejected a proposal to build a few dozen homes on this soggy parcel of 50 acres. A judge recently ruled that the city…
Zagreb Mayor Milan Bandić protest ‘enough’ draws 20,000: Stops traffic
Around 20,000 citizens protested in early February against Zagreb’s mayor and USKOK indictee Milan Bandić demanding his permanent removal from politics. Bernard Ivčić, from Green Action, said that citizens had come to say enough to Bandić’s system of clientelism, which is destroying Zagreb. Photo: Anna…
The commune of communes in Commercy: French municipalist movements coming together
On January 18–19, 2020 the first gathering of free municipalities and municipal initiatives took place in the city of madeleines, situated in eastern France and organised by the Citizens’ Assembly of Commercy. This first-person piece exposes what’s at stake behind the democratic citizen movements active…
French municipalism(s): From roundabouts to the commune of communes
This piece is an Interview with Camille, spokesperson for the Citizens’ Assembly of Commercy. This platform is an example what democracy can look like when it is not headed by an elite, a demonstration of how self-determined education among the people is capable of bringing…
Without cities there will be no Green Deal
In order to tackle such an ambitious climate agenda as that which the European Union proposes with its Green Deal, cities must be taken into account. It would not be realistic to go ahead with the plan for zero emissions by 2050 without including cities….
Study: Global megacities to experience significant climate change
Major cities such as Amsterdam, Bangkok and Nairobi, Kenya, could experience major climate change impacts by 2050, according to a new study. Photo: Mumtahina Rahman
Chicago’s little-known experiment in radical democracy
In the 1970s, Chicago’s 44th Ward was placed under direct democratic control of its residents, challenging the corrupt mayor’s near-total control over the city. The objective of the ward assembly was two-fold: first, to direct the alderman on legislation in the city council, and second…