threesixtyCITY

As the suburbs become the dominant living condition for most North Americans, the challenges associated with their low-density, car-centric development pattern prove more problematic. Planners, architects, and developers are starting to reimagine ways of designing and retrofitting the suburban model to increase connectivity and provide a better mix of uses. Today we're joined by the Department Chair at the City College of New York's Spitzer School of Architecture June Williamson and urban geographer Joel Kotkin to explore how history led to the suburbs we know today, and how emerging mobility solutions may ease the transition.

This conversation is part one of a Virtual Learning Series on the next generation of American Suburbs in partnership with the Toyota Mobility Foundation.

Cities face a dual housing crisis, on the one hand, providing equitable housing at an affordable price, and on the other, designing for climate resilience despite often higher upfront costs. The two dominant housing models we see today—urban compression and suburban sprawl—both contribute to an incredible sense of isolation and increased greenhouse gas emissions. Solving both crises in tandem will require alternative models that holistically address the financial, social, and environmental impacts of housing on people and places. Joining us today is Maria Yanez from Nightingale Housing, a Melbourne-based non-profit that is revolutionizing the way we live together through low-cost, high-performance multi-family housing in Australia.

Like many places around the world, housing prices in Canada have skyrocketed over the course of the pandemic—the standard home now costing nearly twice as much as in the US. In an attempt to cool the market, the Canadian government will spend $10B over the next 5 years on a new housing package that includes policies such as a two-year ban on sales to foreign buyers. However, critics argue the measures fail to address the root causes of housing inequity and the realities of the financialization of housing in Canada’s rising housing costs. Today we’re joined by the Global Director of Make the Shift and former UN Special Rapporteur Leilani Farha to discuss the importance of a human rights-based housing strategy and how cities and governments can better ensure adequate and affordable housing for all.

While the narrative has spun around the urban exodus over the course of the pandemic—leaving home for quieter, safer, and usually greener places—we neglect to consider the beauty of the hometown. For many Black and Brown Americans, success is measured by how far you can escape the low-income status of the place you grew up. But for Majora Carter, an Urban Revitalist and MacArthur Fellow, the belief is that nobody should have to move out of their neighborhood to live a better one. Today, she joins us to share her story and discuss how sustainable economic development and mixed-use can be powerful tools for retaining bright homegrown talent in the communities that need it most.

Check out her new book Reclaiming Your Community: http://www.majoracartergroup.com/home.html

How we design the built environment has the unique potential to bring people together and combat one of the biggest issues we face in cities: loneliness. However, there is a lack of evidence-based tools to understand how design directly supports social connections, often leaving it aside for other metrics such as building costs. One architecture studio in Vancouver, BC, has created an AI tool to bring sociability metrics to the building design conversation. This week, we're joined by the Principal of Human Studio, Bruce Haden, to learn more about FLUID sociability and how it's reducing social isolation through design.

More about Human Studio: https://www.humanstudio.ca/

The end of vaccine passports and mask mandates has led to an appearance of pre-pandemic normalcy in most areas of American cultural life, with one notable exception: no one wants to go to the office anymore. Data from Kastle System, the building security specialist, shows that office occupancy is sitting around 40% of pre-pandemic levels. What is to be done with downtowns and central business districts? Should offices be converted into housing, and how can we rethink flexible office space for landlords? Today we’re joined by Tracy Hadden Loh, the Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Fellow for Transformative Placemaking at Brookings Metro, to get her take on the future of downtown cores and America's walkable urban places.

What should it mean to design affordable housing—beyond providing affordable rent? The Brunson Terrace project, located at the heart of one of Santa Monica’s most vibrant and historically disadvantaged neighborhoods, is reimagining affordable housing to address issues of wellbeing and economic resilience. Today, we are joined by two of the project creators, Julie Rusk, Founder of Civic Wellbeing Partners in Santa Monica, and Tara Barauskas, the Executive Director of the Community Corporation of Santa Monica, to talk about how bringing together housing and businesses can holistically improve community wellbeing.

What will it take to decarbonize the world? That is the $3.5 trillion question — the hypothetical cost per year — on top of what the world already spends on energy, mobility, and the built environment — to achieve net zero. How will we get there? How will we pay for it? And who will reap the benefits are all questions raised in McKinsey Global Institute’s new report on the net-zero transition. Joining us today to discuss the technology and financing necessary to achieve these audacious goals — and, of course, what they mean for cities — is MGI partner Mekala Krishnan.

Read MGI's report "The net-zero transition: What it would cost, what it could bring": https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/sustainability/our-insights/the-net-zero-transition-what-it-would-cost-what-it-could-bring

Cities face unprecedented health challenges, from the increased demands on health systems due to rapid urbanization to acute dangers posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Data and digital solutions have the potential to greatly improve population health, but how can we reduce the barriers to the implementation of innovative technologies? This week we speak with AI pioneers from Quebec and Sao Paulo to break down the findings from our AI4HealthyCities Dialogues, an initiative to accelerate collaborations between governments on digital innovations and health, in partnership with the Novartis Foundation.

Learn more about the AI4HealthyCities Dialogues: https://www.ai4healthycities.com/

While self-described climate mayors posture about fighting climate change, much of the transformative action that we see today is originating at the community and grassroots level. How can all segments of society work together towards this common goal—since climate change should matter to all of us? This week, we’re joined by Alison Sant, Co-Founder of Studio for Urban Projects and author of the new book From the Ground Up, to talk about examples on the ground and the unique ways in which cities are working to mitigate and adapt to climate change while creating more livable and especially equitable communities.