Many older women are in desperate need of affordable housing where they can age in place securely, with dignity and as part of a community. The siheyuan model offers ways to meet these needs.
As our cities get hotter, rebuilding whole suburbs better suited to the heat is not an option. Instead, we can draw from the best examples of how to adapt neighbourhoods and behaviours.
We can design parks, open space and public infrastructure to hold excess water when flood strikes. That means better control of where floodwater ends up, reducing the risk to lives and property.
Most Australians working from home were happy to do so before COVID hit, but research has identified several key factors in whether these arrangements are likely to work out well for you.
Cities occupy just 3% of the Earth’s surface, yet more than half the world’s population live in urban environments. We need nation-wide plans to keep our cities cool so no one gets left behind.
Brisbane City wants to preserve backyards, but they account for much of the open space lost to development under policies that also aim to increase housing density in existing urban areas.
Instead of free parking, our post-COVID CBDs need a big vision to become attractive destinations that aren’t car-friendly at the expense of being people-friendly.
Electric vehicles would lower emissions, but if their lower running costs lead to increased car use that creates a whole lot of other costs for our cities.
Are regional cities like Toowoomba about to become hot property?
Porgo, Wikipeida
The pandemic has driven Australian workers and their employers to embrace the option of working remotely. And that has opened people’s eyes to the possibilities of living in regional Australia.
The COVID-19 pandemic has seen an increase in people cycling as an alternative to public transit.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
An increase in cyclists due to the COVID-19 pandemic means that cities need to look at what it means to develop and maintain inclusive bicycle infrastructure.
CBD retailers were already struggling before the pandemic. The contrast in fortunes with suburban retail activity is stark, and there are good reasons to think the shift could be permanent.
The Bay department store in downtown Winnipeg will close in early 2021.
(Jino Distasio)
In October, the Hudson’s Bay Company announced that it would be closing its flagship location in downtown Winnipeg. This closure is reflective of the changing nature of downtown neighbourhoods.
City by city, the data on CBD visitors vary with the severity of COVID-19 outbreaks and restrictions. But none of the CBDs has recovered former activity levels, and some might never fully recover.
If Australia created more age-friendly neighbourhoods — which really are more liveable for everyone — then we wouldn’t have to rely so heavily on underfunded, substandard aged-care homes.
The historical city of Kumasi is undergoing significant change.
Daniel Mensah Boafo/Shutterstock
All parks are not equal. The response to the opening of golf courses to the public during the COVID pandemic shows the quality of green open space is a big issue for city residents.
Real estate prices are still related to a neighborhood’s racial composition, despite laws prohibiting the explicit consideration of race in appraisals.
Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images
New research shows homes in white areas have appreciated $200,000 more since 1980 than similar homes in nonwhite areas – a result of both old racist housing policies and modern real estate practices.
Makoko neighbourhood in Lagos, initially founded as a fishing village.
Frédéric Soltan/Corbis via Getty Images
If we learn from COVID-19, there are three key areas to tackle to make cities safer from outbreaks of future infectious diseases.
A woman sits at a site in James Town, Accra, demolished in May 2020 to make way for a new fishing port complex.
Photo by Nipah Dennis/AFP via Getty Images
Designing urban neighbourhoods with connected streets supports walking and cycling. However, street-network sprawl is increasing globally due to urban growth via the suburbs and gated communities.