Cities Reimagined

Today we go back to the City of Mechelen, to find out how nature is making a comeback in Mechelen’s old town, why that is not only good for house sparrow, eels, and otters but for everyone living and working in the city and how residents are part of the journey for cleaner water, more biodiversity and green in the city.

Healthy rivers and rich ecosystems cool our cities, filter our air, and offer places for both people and wildlife to thrive. Yet, for decades, urban waterways have been neglected, covered, or polluted, breaking the vital link between cities and nature.

We have Michiel van Mele who is the City Ecologiest of Mechelen and Marteen de Jonge who is the head of the lab department of the Flanders Environmental Agency on the show. Tune in to find out more...

This episode is part of the Johannes' work with the City of Mechelen's WATSUPS project, a New European Bauhaus demonstrator. WATSUPS is an Innovation Action funded by the European Urban Initiatives. More information here:

• European Urban Initiative
• WATSUPS - Water as the Source of Urban Public Spaces project

In case you missed it: To dig in deeper into the amazing work of Mechelen's, you might want to give these past episodes a listen.

• Reimagining Mechelen Pt. 1 - Water as the Source of Urban Public Space with Nicole La Iacona
• Reimagining Mechelen Pt. 2 - Nature as a Stakeholder in the Revival of the River Dijle with Mark Van der Veken

Have you ever felt how different cities feel, look, and smell at night? How everything is seems to be so different than during the day… having organised punk rock concerts and worked in a club myself during my teenage and student years, I had many touchpoints with the nighttime economy from early on. You might think now of all the clubs and bars… yes, they are part of that, but there is much more to it: workers in culture, logistics, health care, communication, and many more.

In today’s episode, I FINALLY have Simone d’Antonio on the show. Simone is based in Rome, Italy, and you may have come across Simone’s name at some point. Because he’s a familiar face in urban innovation circles, both in Europe and worldwide.

Currently, he is working with 10 cities on their nighttime policies and activities (find out more about the Cities After Dark URBACT Network here), and it was high time to connect online

In our conversation, he convinced me that working on nighttime policies is more than hanging out in bars…

Tune in to find out why the night doesn’t only belong to lovers, as Patti Smith once claimed, but to everyone.

Tune in to find out:

• What if the night-time economy was about care, culture, and community, not just clubs and bars
• Why cities at night are fighting a quiet war against the sofa and the apps on your phone
• Why the right to the city should be a 24/7 thing
• Why Naples might be the northernmost city of the Global South
• How urban nightlife differs depending on cultures, geographies and climates.

Almost every city has them - spaces and places that feel like they’re waiting. Waiting to be reawakened, reimagined, and reconnected to the people around them. Too often, though, that reawakening follows a predictable script: maximise economic return, build apartments, squeeze in shops, add a parking lot. Little thought is given to anything beyond profit.

That’s exactly why I loved hearing Alenka Korenjak and Zala Velkavrh from Prostorož (a not-for-profit urban design agency from Ljubljana/Slovenia) speak about “unloved” places - because it shifts the lens. It’s not just about return on investment, but about how people relate to space, how public life can be cultivated, and how cities can become more liveable, more layered, more human.

So when I spent a few weeks in Klagenfurt, it was high time to jump over the Karawanken Mountains to Ljubljana and visit the Prostorož studio in person on a Friday afternoon in May 2025.

Further info:

• More on Prostorož: https://www.prostoroz.org
• Alenka, Zala and Johannes on LinkedIn
• Cities Reimagined on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/citiesreimagined/
• The book I mentioned in the show: Vocabularies for an Urbanising Planet: Theory Buidling through Comparison - https://birkhauser.com/en/book/9783035623031

Hi and welcome back to the first episode of season 3 of the Cities Reimagined Podcast.

To kick things off, I’m joined by Donagh Horgan — a social designer, researcher, and all-round urban thinker who’s doing some pretty exciting work at the intersection of placemaking and tourism. Donagh is based between Ireland and the Netherlands, where he leads the Urban Leisure & Tourism Lab at Inholland University. He’s also a lecturer at Erasmus University Rotterdam and works with cities around the world to make them more inclusive, creative, and resilient.

In this episode, we dive into the changing role of tourism in our cities. Urban tourism exploded after the 2008 financial crisis — bringing in money, but also creating real tensions: rising rents, disappearing housing, and a sense of alienation for many local communities. Together with Donagh, we explore how regenerative tourism might offer a way forward — one that puts local people, stories, and places at the centre. We talk about reimagining tourism as something that can give back rather than just take, and how we might start thinking about cities as ecosystems again, rather than playgrounds for capital.

Donagh popped by my apartment while in Vienna and we had a great conversation — I hope you enjoy listening as much as I enjoyed recording it.

Soon after I started the Cities Reimagined podcast 18 months ago, it became a tool for learning, exchange, and inspiration through deep conversations. Now we’re heading into Season 3.

Episodes for season 3 are in full production. Want to find out what’s in store? Tune in to the season trailer to hear more about the upcoming content and why deep conversations with people driving change in cities are more important than ever.

In the coming weeks and months, we’ll go to Ljubljana 🇸🇮, Ghent 🇧🇪, Mechelen, Bruges, and more. We’ll cover topics such as urban tourism 🧳, the urban night-time economy 🌃, biodiversity and water quality 🐝💧, rewilding streets and schoolyards 🌱, and much more.

Subscribe to the show to not miss an episode, follow us on Instagram to see more background content, reach out to me on LinkedIn or send me an email at [email protected].

Hardly any cities-related university programme gained so much attention over the last 15 years as the 4CITIES Masters in Urban Studies. For good reason. Over the two years, the students study at six universities in four different cities: Brussels, Vienna, Copenhagen and Madrid – with many many occasional visits to other cities in between. 4CITIES is located at the intersection of academia, activism, professional practice and urban exploration.

I had the privilege of being part of the second cohort of 4CITIES from 2009 to 2011… and it was a life-changing experience for me. With the 4CITIES programme coming to an end in September 2025, it was a good moment in time to sit down with two people who have been part of making 4CITIES possible since the beginning:

Yvonne Franz, Senior Lecturer from the University of Vienna and Stefan de Corte, administrative coordinator at the Vrije Universiteit Brussels.

Whether are one of hundreds 4CITIES alumni from around the world, involved in teaching and setting up urban-related programmes at your university or just want to find out why madness plays an important role in setting up such a programme, this episode is for you.

In this episode:

· Why a Eurocentric perspective on urban studies is not enough

· How the 4CITIES Master in Urban Studies changed the system from within

· Why a comprehensive set of skill between disciplines is needed applying urban knowledge(s)

· How the 4CITIES Master in Urban Studies shaped careers of former students but also of staff and teachers

· How moving to (at least) four cities within 2 years teaches invaluable life lessons

More information:

- Follow Cities Reimagined on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/citiesreimagined/

- https://www.4cities.eu

- Yvonne on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/franz-yvonne-8449913a/

- Send Johannes an email: [email protected]

Photos by Daniel Dutkowski (Yvonne) and Hadrien Durei (Stefan).

Have you ever wondered how to give nature a voice in urban development? The City of Mechelen in Belgium does exactly that while reimagining the connection between water, public spaces, animals, plants and people. In these two episodes of the Cities Reimagined Podcast we zoom in to reshape your understanding of how the interests of more-than-human inhabitants can be taken up in urban transformation projects. This is part one out of two exploring the work done by the WATSUPS project. Click here for part one where we look at the background of the City of Mechelen’s ambition to reconnect to the water.

In this episode:

· Why a river should be understood as an actor/stakeholder in urban transformation

· How empathy towards nature is essential for co-creating urban biodiversity

· How to organise a citizen panel that ensures that the voices of nature are heard in urban transformation projects

· How taking into account the voices of nature requires empathy, knowledge and “mildness”

· How Mechelen’s Citizen Assembly developed over 120 recommendations for enhancing nature along the river Dijle

More and more cities are reimagining their connection to their rivers, ponds and other water bodies. Whereas historically, cities have turned their back to the water as it was used primarily for economic purposes, in the 21st century, this perception has significantly shifted: Water in cities is a source of livability and sustainability.

The City of Mechelen has been taking a groundbreaking approach to reconnect its inhabitants (humans, animals and plants) to the water. As part of the “Water as the Source of Urban Public Spaces” (in short: WATSUPS - funded by the European Urban Initiative and running from 2024 to 2027) Mechelen is going to radically reshape the face of the city along the River Dijle while ensuring everyone has access to the water while making the more-than-human perspective a leading principle of the transformation. WATSUPS demonstrates how the spirit and principles of the New European Bauhaus can be translated into local, innovative actions.

Listen in to the two Cities Reimagined episodes where we explore how Mechelen is giving back the river Dijle to all inhabitants: human and more-than-human.

More information and materials mentioned in the podcast:

· European Urban Initiative: https://www.urban-initiative.eu

· Portico - The Gateway to Urban Learning: https://portico.urban-initiative.eu

· WATSUPS - Article: Beautiful, Sustainable, Together: Reimagining Mechelen’s Relationship with Water, Biodiversity in Urban Public Space while Tackling Gentrification

Water as the Source of Urban Public Space

Have you ever wondered how to give nature a voice in urban development? The City of Mechelen in Belgium does exactly that while reimagining the connection between water, public spaces, animals, plants and people. In two episodes of the Cities Reimagined Podcast we zoom in to reshape your understanding of how the interests of more-than-human inhabitants can be taken up in urban transformation projects. This is part one out of two exploring the work done by the WATSUPS project. Click here for part two (coming soon) where we talk about the voices of nature and the experiences of the citizen panel in WATSUPS.

More and more cities are reimagining their connection to their rivers, ponds and other water bodies. Whereas historically, cities have turned their back to the water as it was used primarily for economic purposes, in the 21st century, this perception has significantly shifted: Water in cities is a source of livability and sustainability.

The City of Mechelen has been taking a groundbreaking approach to reconnect its inhabitants (humans, animals and plants) to the water. As part of the “Water as the Source of Urban Public Spaces” (in short: WATSUPS - funded by the European Urban Initiative and running from 2024 to 2027) Mechelen is going to radically reshape the face of the city along the River Dijle while ensuring everyone has access to the water while making the more-than-human perspective a leading principle of the transformation. WATSUPS demonstrates how the spirit and principles of the New European Bauhaus can be translated into local, innovative actions.

Listen in to the two Cities Reimagined episodes where we explore how Mechelen is giving back the River Dijle to all inhabitants: human and more-than-human.

In this episode

· How the City of Mechelen is giving back the River Dijle to its inhabitants...

· How public administration needs to seek compromises between interests...

· Why being a civil servant is the most difficult job there is...

· How including artists in co-creation/participation processes might lead to a cultural shift...

· How fun and a positive energy are key to innovation...

More information and materials mentioned in the podcast:

· European Urban Initiative: https://www.urban-initiative.eu/

· Portico - The Gateway to Urban Learning: https://portico.urban-initiative.eu

· WATSUPS - Article: Beautiful, Sustainable, Together: Reimagining Mechelen’s Relationship with Water, Biodiversity in Urban Public Space while Tackling Gentrification

Here it is, the finale of the first season of the Cities Reimagined podcast and it is nothing shy of (plot) twists, secrets coming to light and what is to be expected for the way forward for the show, me personally and for Anthropocene.City: an idea I developed with today’s guest Jonas Bylund which is taking shape. Besides being a good friend and former year-long colleague, Jonas a researcher at KTH, the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden.

Tune into this episode to hear about…

🕵️ Unravelling Urban Mysteries in all corners of urban life with Anthropocene.City: From Godzilla friendships to reimagining cityscapes for all.

🔧 Embrace Do It Yourself Urbanism and how a 'naive' stance leads to groundbreaking urban insights. We're talking DIY empowerment, the wisdom of action, and the art of reflection.

🦖 The Journey to Urban Wisdom: What are urban transitions with a dose of love and care and what does it have to do with Godzilla or a dusty mountain bike?

🐉 Preview of Season 2: As we close this season, we tease the next chapter: a blend of mysteries, inspiration, and innovative urban connections.

🪕 A special Godzilla remix of the Cities Reimagined intro music.

When I started developing the first concept for Cities Reimagined 10 months ago, I did not imagine the feedback I received until now. Thanks to everyone who reached out, listened to the show, gave feedback and helped me along the journey! Honestly, thank you. It is what makes this work worthwhile.

For saying hello, reaching out with (cooperation) requests and anything at all, please send me an email: [email protected] .

Cities Reimagined will take a break from here and is planned to return in September/October 2024. In the meantime, I will be busy working with the City of Mechelen (Belgium) on a European Urban Initiative project alongside the blue-green corridor river Dyle which will connect people, water and nature, kicking-off Anthropocene.City and my ‘regular’ job working with the Management Board of the Driving Urban Transitions Partnership.

As the importance of city foods is growing, this episode of Cities Reimagined is all about the transformative potential of healthy and delicious (urban) cuisine We are jumping back and forth between the favelas of the metropolis of Sāo Paulo, Brazil 🇧🇷  and the allotment gardens in Leeds, in the UK 🇬🇧 and will explore how cities are redefining their foodscapes for a sustainable future.

Today’s guests are

• Marcella Arruda, an urbanist and permaculture designer and CEO of The City Needs You Institute [Instituto A Cidade Precisa de Você] from Sāo Paulo.
• Chiara Tornaghi. a critical human geographer and scholar-activist at Coventry University, with a focus on Political ecology, agroecology and politics of spaces from Leeds,

Be prepared to hear aspects of urban food you might have not considered before:

🍌 What stroganoff made of banana peals has to do with the favelas of São Paulo

🔍 Why the invisible production of food in cities is a reflection of a broken relationship to the planet

🥬 How agroecological inspires us to integrate aspects of sustainability, biodiversity, ecological balance and community resilience on the topic of food.

🇧🇷 How Marcella’s NGO A Cicade Precisa De Você works with farmers on informal land in the favela of Brasilandia.

🍲 How urban food can contribute to addressing the rising food poverty and what the difference between the UK and Brazil is

More information:

• Marcella’s NGO Instituto A Cidade Precisa de Você: https://www.acidadeprecisa.org/english
• The Urbanising in Place Project we talk about: http://urbanisinginplace.org
• Video on ECOCIDADES in São Paulo: https://youtu.be/_d4DvOWw5f8?si=-IuVUQx1kxM7JHmK
• Agroecological Urbanism: https://www.agroecologicalurbanism.org
• Landed Community Kitchen: https://www.agroecologicalurbanism.org/building-blocks/landed-community-kitchen

This is the last thematic episode of season 1 of Cities Reimagined. Up next is the season finale, where the truth comes out, cliffhangers are being built for season 2 and… and… where Jonas Bylund and I will have a good time summing up what happened so far and bringing that into a 🦖 godzilla context. Stay tuned.

If you like the content of Cities Reimagined, please consider subscribing to the channel, rate the show, follow us on Instagram for background stories or get connected to Johannes via LinkedIn or email ([email protected]).