EARTH WEEK 2020

Now more than ever, the world is at a crossroad. We do have a choice: cities can continue to grow without the inclusion of social needs and environmental consequences, or we can embrace a sustainable and equitable process that builds community, enhances the quality of life, and creates safe and prosperous neighbourhoods.

In many ways, the efforts to protect people from COVID-19 have demonstrated just how unevenly public space is distributed.  If you have the ability to stay indoors, do yoga in your living room, or some gardening on your balcony, that’s clearly a better option than going out right now. Still, we should go outside every once in a while to boost our (mental) health. With that being said, not everybody has access to these benefits. People who live in neighbourhoods with wide sidewalks and mature trees can easily step in front of their doorstep and go for a walk, but what about those who live in small apartments, far from urban greenery with pretty much non-existing sidewalks?

Besides the question of safe access to public space and of course the threats to vulnerable groups, we should also talk about children. Especially children have a hard time understanding and coping the situation around Covid-19.

We have to rethink public space to create more liveable and resilient cities - now more than ever!