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Articles on Urban community

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Cars have taken over our neighbourhoods. Kid-friendly superblocks are a way for residents to reclaim their streets

Residential ‘stroads’ – neighbourhood streets that have become rat runs for through traffic – can be turned back into safe, mixed-use streets that put residents’ and children’s needs first.

10 images show just how attractive Australian shopping strips can be without cars

Beautiful shopping streets attract people — and that’s good for business. Images of ten reimagined local shopping streets show how they can become the beautiful hearts of their local communities.
School children walk along a quiet street in Nakano, Tokyo. Image: Rebecca Clements

Japan’s Old Enough and Australia’s Bluey remind us our kids are no longer ‘free range’ – but we can remake our neighbourhoods

Seeing Japanese parents send toddlers out on their own to do errands has shocked viewers. But not that long ago our neighbourhoods were also child-friendly, and we can make them so again.
Even without air conditioning, there are still many things you can do to prepare for extreme heat and stay comfortable on hot days. fizkes/Shutterstock

How to cope with extreme heat days without racking up the aircon bills

Air conditioning isn’t the answer for everyone, especially for residents of the less affluent – and often hotter – suburbs of our big cities. But there are other ways to make hot days more bearable.
Greater Dandenong Civic Centre was completed in 2014 with new council chambers, a library and Harmony Square. Photo: Hayley Henderson

Comeback city? Lessons from revitalising a diverse place like Dandenong

A major investment in renewing the urban centre of Dandenong is starting to pay dividends. But while research has found three keys to success, the benefits haven’t reached everyone.
One nine-year-old chose his local supermarket as a place he valued because he could “spend time with mum and help decide what goes in our trolley”. Shutterstock

Public places through kids’ eyes – what do they value?

When primary school children in a disadvantaged part of Sydney were asked to map what they valued in the area, their choices were revealing and sometimes surprising.

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