Slums are one of the fastest growing forms of human settlement in the world. They as well have one of the youngest demographics. We cannot move forward sustainably as a planet without engaging the people of these communities. They are our hope, and, if ignored, our despair. Here are a series of aerial shots of…
Tag Archive: Urban Planning
Usahidi – Mapping the world one SMS at a time
I have been struggling to get my head around Usahidi, the Swahili for “witness” or “testimony.” I knew it was created during the post-election violence in Kenya in early 2008. I had many friends who went through that terrible time, and felt equally horrified and powerless. Did you like this? Share it:Tweet
Nairobi Reflection #4 – Up with Hope! Down with Poverty
This is an update from the Up with Hope folks working in Kenya. Some brief background – the genesis of Up with Hope was the Environmental Youth Alliance‘s project with the Soweto Youth Group in Kibera, a slum in Nairobi with a population of almost 1 million people. Three EYA folk, interns Sean and Justin…
Of Graffiti, Youth and Space #2 – Favela Painting
Cross posted from Sustainable Cities: PLUS Network Blog Favela Painting is a graffiti program initiated by artists Jeroen Koolhaas and Dre Urhahn. In 2005 they started a project focused on bringing works of art to unexpected places such as the slums of Rio. Their most current project entitled ‘O Morro’ (meaning ‘The Hill’), is in…
Nairobi Reflections
The Nairobi Notebook blog post from americancity.org is a thorough overview of Kibera and the work of UN-HABITAT and the residents there. If you are interested in more information on some projects going on in Kibera, go to the map kibera site to see how they are working with residents to tell the untold story…
And now that we have finished Earth Day, answer me this ..
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Of Graffiti, Space and Youth
Rio is a gorgeous city – stunning really. The city is up against both the mountains and the ocean. The people are vibrant. The music amazing. Yet one thing that I missed that my 12 years old son, Liam, noticed immediately was the graffiti. It was everywhere. The last time I noticed graffiti was in…
The Practical Radical
The origin of this blog has been a 20 year idea in the making of a practical radical. A little of my brief personal history might help this make more sense. I left my highschool years a conservative politically – my parents were conservative, and i didn’t have much time for any flighty lefty ideas….