As urban designer Steve Mouzon states, there’s a lot of press on ‘gizmo green‘; the technology-oriented inventions from hybrids to bamboo floors. However, his website reminds us of The Original Green before technology as we know it today, consisting of the fundamental elements of what’s needed to truly go green

before gizmo green is introduced.

He defines The Original Green in two phases, with four foundations each:

Sustainable Places
Feedable - Starting with the basic needs, is a

read more…

Of course a coworking site in Paris would have a cafe. Strangely enough, it’s one of the only coworking sites to include one, especially given the official definition of coworking as a “cafe-like community/collaboration space for developers, writers and independents.“

La Cantine opened January 30, 2008, with 2200 square feet dedicated to three spaces:

- a café and coffee bar for meet-ups, information, exhibitions and project testing;
- a collaborative space for project development (shared

read more…

Here’s a much more conscientious alternative to the Hummer limousine (no, not a hybrid Hummer limousine)... Prague’s tram-based nightclub, known as Tramix. Yes, that’s a roving streetcar dance party with music, disco lighting and two bars, bringing new meaning to the term bar hopping.

The nightclub streetcar circuits the Czech capital late at night once a month. What’s the big deal? From an experience economy point of view, one of the event’s organizers, Honza Komarek, states it best, “When

read more…

This is another one of those ‘it was just a matter of time’ things…

We’ve gone over how to crowdsource places and scenes, but not events.  Well, here’s a real world example in Scotland…

The Tennent’s Mutual is a music festival with a quarter of a million $ budget (this can obviously be scaled smaller or larger depending on your market)... that its founders will allow music lovers to “shape, create and dictate gig provision - from selecting artists and debating locations to calling the shots

read more…

Already owning bragging rights to being the greenest city in the U.S. by one measure, Portland, Oregon believes it’s the most bicycle-friendly city as well. Their evidence:

- In the 1970s the state passed a bicycle bill requiring that all facilities be built with bicycle and pedestrian accommodations.

- In the 1990s, city councilor Earl Blumenauer worked to establish a bike program in the city, who has since become the leading U.S. congressman speaking on behalf of bike and

read more…

What’s a carfree conference? That’s probably what most U.S. citizens would wonder since the first six carfree conferences occurred only in Europe**. However, as you read through the list below, you’ll see that’s about to change…

Towards Carfree Cities I: Lyon, France; October 1997;
Organized by EYFA (European Youth for Action) and RVV (Regroupement pour une ville sans voiture, or Group for a Carfree City, Lyon), with 60-80 primarily young participants. This led to the founding of Car Busters,

read more…

At first glance this may seem like a lot of made-up words, but they’re actually specific terms for solutions to what are known as cloud problems - diffuse and impossible to pin down, requiring “cultural and behavioral change that yields intangible benefits of greater trust, respect, tolerance and social capital.  There are no easy answers to complex problems.

Each of these terms were defined separately: crowdsourcing (as it applies to placemaking), viral loops networks, natural cultural

read more…

First of all, what’s a viral loop? Viral comes from viral marketing - using pre-existing social networks to produce increases in brand awareness or sales. A loop occurs when a person is invited to a social network, accepts the invitation, then either:
1. invites others themselves or;
2. creates their own social network.

Pictured above is a series of these viral loops, called a viral loop network. Viral loops and their networks have long been happening in the physical world (e.g. tupperware

read more…

Not only are urban dwellers in select cities across the country about to enjoy their own Central Park, but ones that are even larger than New York’s 843-acre treasure, as reported in USA Today:

Staten Island, New York (pictured) - 2200 acres on what is currently the Fresh Kills landfill. You can’t ask for a better transformation than that, though let’s hope they don’t call it Fresh Kills Park. However, think of all the jokes…

Memphis, TN - Shelby Farms Park is being planned on a 4500-acre

read more…

Readers of this website know we don’t normally cover greenfield developments, that is, new communities built in the middle of wilderness or farm land. Some may see even eco-village versions of such communities on par with ads like this.

However, just as Starbucks helped spawn the next generation of local indie coffeehouse third places as we know and love today - and perhaps even coworking sites, sometimes there are valuable lessons in creativity, innovation and community to be learned from

read more…