Tag: Cities


What makes great cities succeed?

We attended the New York Times’ Cities for Tomorrow conference last week to find out. I mean, we have an idea or two around this topic (hint: open, urban green spaces), but we were excited to hear perspectives from expert leaders and innovators from around the country.  In short? Here’s what we took away: successful cities respect urban culture. We’re…

Encountering the Civic Sacred

Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where Nature may heal and cheer and give strength to body and soul alike. John Muir The Nature Sacred Principle is sponsored by the TKF family foundation, which has funded intimate, open, urban green spaces in the mid-Atlantic region of the…

Thankful for Smart Environments

Each month in our Open Voices blog we share insight from leaders in our communities who are advancing what it means to have sacred, open green spaces in our cities. This November we share in recognition of the 2014 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Landscape Architects. A couple of years ago we talked with…

Nature and Cities: An Interview with Armando Carbonell

About half of the world’s population currently lives in urban regions, making the future of our cities a topic of high priority in terms of social and environmental issues. That’s why this weekend, some of the chief thought leaders in the fields of urban design, development and planning are convening in Austin, Texas, for the…

Open Voices News Roundup: January 6

Every week, we bring you the latest news in placemaking, landscape architecture, the nature-mental health link, and much more. Check back each week for new roundups and items. Urban Nature: How to Foster Biodiversity in World’s Cities “A few years ago in Baltimore County, Maryland, environmental staffers were reviewing a tree-planting proposal from a local…

Open Voices News Roundup: December 23

Every week, we bring you the latest news in placemaking, landscape architecture, the nature-mental health link, and much more. Check back each week for new roundups and items. Hiking in a Winter Wonderland “Just because temperatures have dropped doesn’t mean outdoor efforts to elevate your heart rate should take a nose dive, too. New York…

Open Voices News Roundup: December 16

Every week, we bring you the latest news in placemaking, landscape architecture, the nature-mental health link, and much more. Check back each week for new roundups and items. ‘Wild Urbanism’ in the Middle of Putin’s Moscow “Just beyond Moscow’s Red Square, past the iconic domes of St. Basil’s Cathedral and the walls of the Kremlin,…

Mayors for Parks Coalition: Protecting Public Spaces

From Denver, CO to Fort Worth, TX, a new bipartisan coalition is on the rise to help support and protect public parks, trails and green spaces in urban areas. The Mayors for Parks coalition, a project from the City Parks Alliance, is aiming to remind Congress and the White House how critical parks are to…

Open Voices News Roundup: December 9

Every week, we bring you the latest news in placemaking, landscape architecture, the nature-mental health link, and much more. Check back each week for new roundups and items. Doctor’s orders: Get outside! “We all know the drill: Get sick. Go to the doctor. Receive a prescription for medicine. Take the medicine until you feel better….

Recommended Reading: First National Study of Urban parks and Physical Activity

How does your proximity and use of local parks contribute to your health? City Parks Alliance and the RAND Corporation will be investigating that question over the next four years in hopes of establishing a set of best practices when it comes to managing urban parks and encouraging physical activity. The study will include 200…

"Thank you for this tool I can share with my 7-year-old daughter, for this labyrinth makes meditation easy for the young to understand."

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