Clipmarks | urbanlife's 'future' clips

Yellowstone's Greatest Threat: the Loss of Habitat to Development

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 21:42:05 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: The world's first national park is concerned about the fate of wildlife in the park: Each year their habitat is slowing disappearing. Yellowstone gets millions of visitors each year, which makes preserving the park even more challenging.

Achieving a balance between the ecosystem and the visitors is what was originally intended in creating the park. Congress told the rangers, 'You will conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife in the parks, and you will manage them in such a manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for future generations'

Clip Source: www.bundubashers.com

Clip Source: www.npr.org

Harsh winters in Yellowstone drive the animals to more suitable winter habitats, where they can find food. In many cases, those areas are being lost to development.

the greatest threat to the park in the next 10 to 20 years is the loss of winter habitat

the animals can't survive without this scarce habitat type and it's disappearing rapidly

Yellowstone can recover from fires, it can recover from a lot of things — it can't recover from permanent loss of winter habitat

Clip Source: www.nature.org

Clip Source: www.npr.org

only about 10 percent of the greater Yellowstone area, almost none of which is in the park, is suitable for wildlife during the winter

Of that percentage, a third is already developed and another third is slated for development.

The Nature Conservancy is advocating for the last third — about 1 million acres — to be protected under some kind of conservation status

The future of the park depends on striking a balance between preserving the ecosystem and allowing visitors to get the most they can from their time there.

Clip Source: www.naturalsciences.org

Clip Source: www.nationalparkstraveler.com

Clip Source: www.itsnature.org

Tags: wildlife, conservation, protect, future, winter, development, plan now

The Fall of Great Cities: America's Fastest-Dying Cities

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 18:53:24 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: The former manufacturing backbone of the U.S. is in rougher shape than ever, still searching for some way to replace its long-stilled smokestacks. Where's it worst? Ohio has 4 of the 10 cities and Michigan has 2 cities making the ranking.

So far this decade, 115,000 people have left Cleveland. Smaller changes in other regions can be just as painful: People are leaving in the thousands and they are not being replaced by either new babies or new immigrants.

These cities face fleeing populations, painful waves of unemployment and barely growing economies... And they face even bleaker futures.

Once great centers of business and industry, these cities now are shells of their former selves. They will have to re-shape their image & think outside of the box in order to try to attract future residents and businesses.

The top 5 fastest dying American cities:

1. Canton, Ohio

2. Youngstown, Ohio

3. Flint, Mich.

4. Scranton, Pa.

5. Dayton, Ohio

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Charleston, W.Va.

Migration (since 2000): -5,776

Total population change: -5,682

Unemployment: 4.8%

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Detroit, Mich.

Migration (since 2000): -174,592

Total population change: +15,033

unemployment: 9.7%

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Buffalo, N.Y.

Migration (since 2000): -51,302

Total population change: -41,926

Unemployment: 5.7%

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Springfield, Mass.

Migration (since 2000): -16,626

Total population change: +2,643

Unemployment: 5.9 %

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Cleveland, Ohio

Migration (since 2000): -115,411

Total population change: -51,539

Unemployment: 7.7%

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Dayton, Ohio

Migration (since 2000): -33,499

Total population change: -12,616

Unemployment: 6.9%

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Scranton, Pa.

Migration (since 2000): +2,431

Total population change: -11,197

Unemployment: 6.2%

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Flint, Mich.

Migration (since 2000): -17,221

Total population change: -1,433

Unemployment: 9.7%

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Youngstown, Ohio

Migration (since 2000): -28,435

Total population change: -32,260

Unemployment: 7.3%

Clip Source: www.forbes.com

Canton, Ohio

Migration (since 2000): -7,807

Total population change: +212

Unemployment: 6.7%

Tags: revitalization, suburban sprawl, unemployment, population, migrate, future, vacant, planning, industry

2030 Face It: Reverberate “No Coal” Body Paint Design Winners

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 14:27:23 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: Students were told to spread the word about the negative impacts of coal on our natural ecosystems and its role on greenhouse gas emissions. Face Color Winner: Emily Bibler, Iowa State University. Face B+W Winner and Metropolis Ad Winner: Jackie Fabella, Cal Poly Pomona. Body Winner: Miles Courtney, Pratt Institute.

The Reverberate competition brought together students from a range disciplines to take direct action on the topic of climate change. 4,500 attendees participated in a variety of activities relating to global climate change - ranging from architecture to agriculture; from politics to poetics; from green jobs to green food.

Through their involvement, they put their ideals into action. As future environmental stewards, these students have every right to ask: why are we all not doing the same?

Clip Source: www.metropolismag.com

Clip Source: www.architecture2030.org

Clip Source: www.metropolismag.com

the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo campus

the “Reverberate” competition

part of Architecture 2030’s Face It events

The competition, aimed at universities around the country

charged students to broadcast the message about the negative impacts of coal on our natural ecosystems and its role on greenhouse gas emissions

students produced face and body paint designs that conveyed the “no coal” message as directed by the competition

At Cal Poly, students and faculty wandered around campus, into classes and faculty gatherings with painted faces that ranged from stark “NO COAL” scrawls to artfully illustrated American flags urging students to cast their votes with the environment in mind

“The entries varied in meaning: some depicting strong political messages about health and environmental impacts, while others took a positive approach by displaying a set of alternatives to coal.”

Through their participation

students have come to recognize that their work can affect the awareness of those around them

Clip Source: www.architecture2030.org

Tags: body paint, no coal, ecosystem, future, environment, steward, college

Tree Nation To Plant 8 million Trees in Niger: You Can Adopt One!

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 15:43:08 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: “A people without children would face a hopeless future; a country without trees is almost as helpless.” - Theodore Roosevelt

More than 90% of Niger is in a deserted zone and is the poorest country in the world: To not plant in a deserted area in Niger would be to abandon the best hope of development for the country.

Tree-Nation: an online community, where members can buy their own tree and become the guardian of a tree that Tree-Nation will plant in its park in Niger.

Members can play an active role in the development of the project online: contributing suggestions, sharing photos and gathering ideas in the Tree-Blog or creating their own projects.

Prices range from USD 10 for an acacia to USD 75 for a baobab tree. So far, over 26,000 members have raised money to plant over 19,000 trees...with the goal of a park of 8 million trees in the shape of a giant heart, visible from space.

Clip Source: www.tree-nation.com

Tree-Nation is an ecological project with a focused objective: To plant 8 million trees in Niger, Africa to fight desertification!

Large-scale plantation of trees will increase the land's productivity and re-generate the soil.

you can buy your own tree and become the guardian of a real and happy tree

you will play an active role in the development of the project

The project will benefit local populations in terms of welfare, education and farming practices.

Primarily environmental, but also closely linked to the humanitarian aid

"Desertification is potentially the most threatening ecosystem change impacting livelihoods of the poor."

Niger, the poorest country in the world

most affected by desertification and poverty, which is why we are concentrating our efforts in this region

Tree-Nation is a company whose fundamental philosophy is to use business enterprise for ecological projects.

By planting your tree, you are not only investing in your own future, but also the future of others.

Clip Source: www.tree-nation.com

Tags: trees, thinking outside the box, climate change, africa, make the heart grow

Photographs of a Generation "It's Complicated: The American Teenager"

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 15:09:13 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: “Whatever their identity or station in life, the young people were candid and poignant in talking about themselves, often revealing estrangement from parents or ostracism by peers, discomfort with their bodies, or worry about the future.”

A diverse set of teenagers, less-common subjects, such as a country preacher, a coal miner, a 19-year-old girl in prison, a Maine lobstergirl, a Georgia transvestite, and a 16-year-old female "naturist," photographed nude at a family resort in Florida.

Sometimes she was not welcome and "chased out of towns," for asking questions such as "Have you been sexually active?"

The New York Public Library has purchased a complete set, along with transcripts of the interviews (not all appear in the book), with the intention eventually to mount an exhibition.

Please check out the photo gallery: beautiful photos and emotional quotes:

http://www.npr.org/programs/atc/features/2008/mar/bowman/bowman_gallery/index.html

Clip Source: www.robinbowman.com

Clip Source: www.npr.org

photojournalist Robin Bowman

spent four years driving across the United States, covering more than 20,000 miles, and photographing and interviewing more than 400 American teens

those pictures — and the teens' words — are included in her new book, It's Complicated: The American Teenager.

Bowman asked each teen a set list of questions about family, school, drugs, money, aspirations and fears

Clip Source: www.boston.com

Some appear with friends, lovers, or babies of their own, a few with a parent or grandparent

Almost all appear in their homes or neighborhoods

In 419 black-and-white portraits, the book captures a generation, in all of its diversity, longing, humor, worry, tenderness, and pain

Clip Source: www.boston.com

"I allowed them to have a voice, feel secure, and share their lives,"

"Teenagers are given a bad rap in many ways,"

People are terrified of them. They're very controlled in those years, very influenced by family, community, school, church. They're trying to break away and to form themselves.

Clip Source: www.npr.org

Tags: teen life, across the country, future generations, how to survive, growing up in america

Island Wood: City Kids First Visit with Nature & Environmentalism

Fri, 22 Feb 2008 18:16:39 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: An environmental learning center—nestled into a rustic 250-acre nature preserve—plays a dual role as symbol and teaching tool. "We envision a future in which all people view themselves as lifelong learners, and share an extraordinary bond of stewardship for the environment, for their communities and for each other." Raising of environmental consciousness, one child at a time.

“The center is primarily for inner-city kids who don’t have an opportunity to connect with the natural world. And when kids are uncomfortable, they’re not open to learning. So we wanted them to be as comfortable here as possible.”

The mission of IslandWood is to provide exceptional learning experiences and to inspire lifelong environmental and community stewardship.

Clip Source: www.metropolismag.com

Clip Source: www.islandwood.org

Clip Source: www.metropolismag.com

Island Wood, a six-acre environmental learning-center campus built carefully, almost apologetically, into a 255-acre nature preserve on Bainbridge Island, Washington

to demonstrate architectural environmentalism and to elicit kids’ questions and interest

to address two apparently unrelated problems: environmental degradation and shortfalls in inner-city education

now covered with second-growth forest, and features—among other natural wonders—a pond, a bog, a marsh, an estuary, a deep ravine, and a harbor

brings in children and teachers from inner-city schools and hosts them for the better part of a week, giving them intense, hands-on outdoor science education and indoor exposure to “green” architecture

Washington State’s first LEED Gold project

everything from photovoltaic roof panels to a rainwater-capture apparatus and a greenhouse, called the Living Machine, packed with plants that filter Island Wood’s gray water for reuse

We don’t preach

we just make it obvious so they’ll ask questions

Tags: environment education, green design, sustainable, forest friendly, children hold our future

Underground City? The Future of Amsterdam

Fri, 15 Feb 2008 19:52:11 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: Dutch engineers have proposed building an underground city 6 floors under Amsterdam's picturesque canals, which would be drained section by section during construction.

It is both feasible and sustainable, creating a city beneath the city is not futuristic, it may be a necessity in this day and age.

And what will this city hold? Parking, shopping and "leisure".

Should they be digging up Amsterdam for parking and shopping, OR should they have added public transit and bike lanes instead?

Construction could last up to 20 years.

Clip Source: www.treehugger.com

Clip Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Dutch engineers have unveiled plans for a £7.4 billion underground city providing one million square feet of underground retail, leisure and parking facilities.

what we are doing is building a city under the city by using a new construction technique, which will not interfere with street traffic

Amsterdam was originally built on drained, swampy marshland and many of the classic Dutch gabled houses along its canals are still precariously supported by underground wooden beams.

canal water will be temporarily pumped out in order to start construction beneath.

Amsterdam sits on a 30-metre layer of waterproof clay which will be used together with concrete and sand to make new walls

Once we have resealed the canal floor, we will be able to carry on working underneath while pouring water back into the canals

The project has been approved by Amsterdam's city council. Construction work, lasting up to 20 years, is expected to begin in 2018.

Clip Source: www.treehugger.com

Tags: amsterdam, moving underground, city of the future, parking, retail

Eco-Equity? Green Jobs Act Passed: Part of 2007 Energy Bill

Fri, 11 Jan 2008 15:47:00 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: The Green Jobs Act is a crucial building block of the clean energy future. The Act creates a pilot program to train workers in the new skills required for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects, and will help to alleviate the skills shortage that impairs growth of the clean energy sector.

By requiring business and labor to work together in developing training programs, it ensures the high-quality training needed for high-wage jobs in this new growth sector.

The Act also specifically funds training for low-income workers, providing a pathway out of poverty into emerging “green collar” jobs, helping to ensure that everyone has a chance to help our country build the new energy future.

Clip Source: www.treehugger.com

the 2007 Energy Bill did contain one surprise piece of legislation

The Green Jobs Act, passed as part of the Energy Bill, commits the federal government to funding job training for 35,000 people a year to work in environmentally-friendly fields.

The Act allocates $125 million yearly for green job training programs all over the USA. Of that:

$25 million will be allocated to create "green pathways out of poverty," i.e. job training for low-income people in fields like solar power installation and green roofing.

$80 million for "just transitions" - green job re-training, for example teaching construction workers competency in green construction techniques.

$20 million for renewal energy and energy efficiency research

showing that it is possible to achieve economic growth thorough protecting the environment

The law is the first to link social justice with environmentalism in this way on the national level

Tags: green jobs act, poverty, eco-equity, 2007 energy bill

Hedge Fund Analysts Turned Philanthropy Analysts

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 19:37:17 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: Helping you make a smart donation.

"We believe you can accomplish a lot more good - and change a lot more lives - by finding the best possible charity in your area of interest"

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

As hedge-fund analysts, Holden Karnofsky and Elie Hassenfeld made six-figure incomes deciding which companies to invest in

Now they are doing the same thing with charities, for a lot less pay.

the founders and sole employees of GiveWell

which studies charities in particular fields and ranks them on their effectiveness

GiveWell is supported by a charity they created, the Clear Fund, which makes grants to charities they recommend in their research.

shaking up the field of philanthropy

once fascinated and discontented by their inability to get data that would illustrate charities’ impact.

GiveWell’s findings are available on the Internet, without charge, at www.givewell.net.

existing systems for charity evaluation

rely largely on the charities’ tax forms, known as 990s, are basically worthless

I have literally read thousands of 990s, and they tell you nothing about whether a charity helps people

charities ponder what, if anything, their rigorous approach to evaluation means for the future.

Tags: charity, hedge fund, givewell, clear fund, karnosfsky, hassenfeld, donation

Planning the Future of Rwanda

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 18:33:11 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: "A bit perversely, the genocide itself has become a sort of psychic engine for development, the glimpse of darkness that inspires the light"

Capital of Rwanda: Kigali
Population in 1990: 7 million
Killed in the 1994 genocide: 800,000
Population today: 9.7 million
Estimated population in 2030: 20 million
Urban population in 1990: 5.3%
Urban population in 2003: 21.8%
Kigali annual growth rate: 7–9%
Kigali population in informal settlements: 83%
Average per-capita annual income: $280
Population with regular access to electricity: 5%
Projected population with access to electricity in 2011: 10%

Clip Source: www.metropolismag.com

Thirteen years after the genocide, the tiny African nation begins imagining its future

Kigali, the capital of Rwanda

the conceptual master plan for the future of Kigali

to turn today’s red-dirt ad-hoc city into a verdant capital with tree-lined boulevards, mixed-use neighborhoods, a new university, parks, and a network of wetlands

its president, Paul Kagame

has fostered a powerful vision of Rwanda’s future as a kind of Singapore for sub-Saharan Africa, a center of medicine, banking, and technology for the region’s 770 million people

ensuring the “triple bottom line”—environmental sustainability, economic sustainability, and social equity

the plan to be “pro-poor, not just for the elites,”

This project is an urban planner’s dream

In Rwanda, planning is seen as a tool for survival

to implement today’s best practices in infrastructure

Rwanda has

minimal corruption, empathetic political leadership, manageable geography, incredible natural beauty

if we want to evolve, change is unavoidable

Tags: rwanda, planning, urban, sustainability, africa, hub, oz architecture

The Pink Project: Make it Right for New Orleans

Wed, 05 Dec 2007 18:02:00 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: Rebuilding affordable, safe & sustainable homes in the Lower Ninth Ward

Clip Source: makeitrightnola.org

the Lower 9th Ward was devastated in the wake of Hurricane Katrina

Pink Project represents opportunities hidden within this tragedy and focuses attention on the plight of the Lower 9th

Brad Pitt

Working together with GRAFT

the idea was born to merge film and architecture into an installation that would bring immediate global attention to a pervasive local issue

only through monetary donations that these pink placeholders will become reassembled

ultimately enabling the construction of 150 real homes

Pink, a symbol rich with the promise of homes that will be constructed

the pink monopoly house reassembled from smaller individual components intentionally focuses attention on a problem of manageable scale, allowing the individual to physically participate in the installation through donations

a transformation from an individual American Dream into a collective one

Pink does not dwell on the past but rather empowers the future

Creating a call to action filled with hope and promise

bringing people home

Tags: new orleans, pink project, katrina, brad pitt, hope, graft

Apollo Alliance for Good Jobs and Clean Energy

Wed, 21 Nov 2007 17:09:09 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife
clipper's remarks: 10-Point Plan for Good Jobs and Energy Independence

Clip Source: www.apolloalliance.org

The Ten-Point Plan for Good Jobs and Energy Independence

1. Promote Advanced Technology & Hybrid Cars:

2. Invest In More Efficient Factories:

3. Encourage High Performance Building:

4. Increase Use of Energy Efficient Appliances:

5. Modernize Electrical Infrastructure:

6. Expand Renewable Energy Development:

7. Improve Transportation Options:

8. Reinvest In Smart Urban Growth:

9. Plan For A Hydrogen Future:

10. Preserve Regulatory Protections:

Tags: energy, jobs, apollo, alliance, oil

Can the Earth Survive Urbanization?

Wed, 21 Nov 2007 16:39:38 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife

Clip Source: www.ens-newswire.com

Rapid and chaotic urbanization is taking a massive toll on human health and the environment

How the world tackles the social and environmental challenges of urbanization,

will determine the future of humanity and the fate of the planet

The global shift from rural to urban is the defining trend of our time

"The international community has been too slow in recognizing the growth of urban poverty,"

many cities are "environmentally unsustainable" and "rapidly becoming socially unsustainable."

environmental problems facing cities are profound, including energy and food production, air pollution, transportation and waste disposal.

those challenges are providing fertile ground for new sustainable solutions

"Cities are great centers of innovation and that is even more true today than it has been in the past,"

Cities are also increasingly realizing that they are on the front lines of climate change

and that could provide momentum for a global cooperation on the daunting issue.

Tags: urban, environment, future, sustainable

World Future Council

Mon, 19 Nov 2007 20:21:30 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife

Clip Source: www.worldfuturecouncil.org

The World Future Council
Long-term thinking for today's world

The World Future Council is a new voice in the global political arena - one that draws on our shared human values to champion the rights of future generations, and works to ensure that humanity acts now for a sustainable future.

Facing global challenges

Despite having the means to tackle many of the problems we currently face, the existing global system of governance has so far seemed incapable of addressing them, often failing to adopt available solutions

The World Future Council will identify and promote successful policies, using existing networks to connect with over 25,000 parliamentarians, and more than 8,000 civil society organizations worldwide, arguing not for an ideology or a nation or a religion or a political party but for one thing only: our common future.

Tags: future, global, policy, world, change

The Sustainable Rebuilding of New Orleans & the Gulf Coast

Fri, 16 Nov 2007 17:18:28 GMT

clipped by: urbanlife

Clip Source: www.globalgreen.org

New Orleans is poised to begin rebuilding in earnest and it is crucial that this nascent effort be aided by qualified green building experts including Global Green USA, the American affiliate of Green Cross International.

The hurricanes and the devastation left in their wake have served as a wake-up call to the region, the nation and the world. The citizens and policymakers are beginning to realize that the rebuilding efforts must include sensitivity to the environment. They are also recognizing it is an opportunity to do things differently, creating a new future based on green building and clean technologies.

The opportunity to rebuild New Orleans as an international example of sustainability comes in the aftermath of what is increasingly being recognized as the tipping point for global awareness of climate change and its potentially devastating impacts. On this front, New Orleans is and will remain an international focal point.

Tags: new orleans, green building, sustainable