<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd"> <HTML> <head> <title>Smart Growth Leadership Institute | Featured Article</title> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-16"> <LINK rel=stylesheet href="main.css" type="text/css"> <link rel="shortcut icon" href="favicon.ico"> <! ----start of jscript to rotate images on right hand side----- > <SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JavaScript"> <!-- This script and many more are available free online at --> <!-- The JavaScript Source!! http://javascript.internet.com --> <!-- Begin // Set up the image files to be used. var theImages = new Array() // do not change this // To add more image files, continue with the // pattern below, adding to the array. theImages[0] = 'images/mainPIC1.png' theImages[1] = 'images/mainPIC2.png' theImages[2] = 'images/mainPIC3.png' theImages[3] = 'images/mainPIC4.png' theImages[4] = 'images/mainPIC5.png' theImages[5] = 'images/mainPIC6.png' theImages[6] = 'images/mainPIC7.png' theImages[7] = 'images/mainPIC8.png' theImages[8] = 'images/mainPIC9.png' theImages[9] = 'images/mainPIC10.png' // do not edit anything below this line var j = 0 var p = theImages.length; var preBuffer = new Array() for (i = 0; i < p; i++){ preBuffer[i] = new Image() preBuffer[i].src = theImages[i] } var whichImage = Math.round(Math.random()*(p-1)); function showImage(){ document.write('<img src="'+theImages[whichImage]+'" width=180>'); } // End --> </script> <! ----end of jscript to rotate images on right hand side----- > </head> <body> <! ----name of html document: feature.htm ----- > <! ----start of whole container----- > <div id="container1"> <div id="cleardiv"></div> <! ----start of banner----- > <div id="banner"> <h1><a href="index.htm">Smart Growth Leadership Institute</a></h1> <h3>A project of <a href="http://www.smartgrowthamerica.org">Smart Growth America</a></h3> </div> <! ----end of banner----- > <! ----start of navigation----- > <div id="navigation"> <ul> <li> <span title="Back to our home page."> <a href="index.htm">Home</a></span></li> <li> <span title="Learn more about who we are."> <a href="about.htm">About Us</a></span></li> <li> <span title="Learn more about our work."> <a href="ourwork.htm">About Our Work</a></span></li> <li> <span title="Read or download our reports."> <a href="downloads.htm">Our Reports</a></span></li> <li> <span title="News about SGLI and general news about smart growth."> <a href="news.htm">Latest News</a></span></li> <li> <span title="Links to other resources on the web."> <a href="resources.htm">Web Resources</a></span></li> <li> <span title="A venue for discussing smart growth implementation issues."> <a href="http://forum.sgli.org">Forum</a></span></li> <li> <span title="Need to email or call us?"> <a href="contact.htm">Contact Us</a></span></li> <li> <span title="Help us help more communities."> <a href="support.htm">Support Us</a></span></li> <li> <span title="A map of the SGLI website."> <a href="sitemap.htm">Site Map</a></span></li> </ul> </div> <! 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----end of sidebar----- > </div> <! ----end left block----- > <! ----start of right image box----- > <div id="container2"> <! ----start of right image rotate script----- > <SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JavaScript"> <!-- This script and many more are available free online at --> <!-- The JavaScript Source!! http://javascript.internet.com --> <!-- Begin showImage(); // End --> </script> <! ----end of right image rotate script ----- > </div> <! ----end of right image box----- > <! ----start of center block content----- > <div id="content"> <h2>Featured Article: April 24, 2006</h2> <h2>Bringing Environmentalism Back Home</h2> <h3><i>How Placemaking can reinvigorate the environmental movement</i></h3> <h4>By <b>Fred Kent</b>, President, <a href=http://www.pps.org/>Project for Public Spaces</a></h4> <blockquote class="quote2">A great opportunity now exists for the environmental movement to reach out to a broader base and new partners simply by expanding the scope of places it is willing to fight for. This expanded notion of the environment would encompass rural watersheds and town squares, coastal wetlands and neighborhood playgrounds.</blockquote> <p> When I coordinated New York City's first Earth Day celebration in 1970, I hoped that the new idea of environmentalism would launch a robust citizen's movement to create what today we would call "livable" and "sustainable" communities. But over the past three and a half decades, what began as an extraordinary outpouring of grassroots energy has turned into a professionalized movement that seems beyond the reach of ordinary citizens. Scientists and lawyers now dominate green discussions. </p> <p> While environmental organizations have made great contributions, we are increasingly confronted by problems that transcend science or law, from the deterioration of our landscape at the hands of out-of-control sprawl to the decline of once-vital communities in cities, suburbs and small towns. These realities are shaping the lives of tens of millions of people. </p> <p> In celebrating another Earth Day this year, we at PPS are reminded that creating great public spaces is one of the best ways to engage people in shaping the environment around them. In other words, Placemaking creates meaningful connections between people and their surroundings. This simple idea could have profound implications for the contemporary environmental movement. </p> <p> The environmental movement has raised its voice loudest in defense of rainforests, wetlands, and old-growth wilderness, sending a subtle message that the places most of us care about strongly--our neighborhoods, our hometowns--aren't really as important. But suppose for a minute that we enlarged the usual definition of the environment to include the places that people inhabit--where we live and work and play. Many people would then be willing to stand up as part of the environmental movement. </p> <p> We'd witness a new breed of environmental activists working to make streets safe from traffic so our children can walk to school. They would lobby for communities to be better served by parks and farmers markets, and against the proliferation of wider roads and vast parking lots. They would transform outdated shopping malls into neighborhood centers complete with housing and lively public squares, sidewalk cafes and convenient transit stops, even libraries or new schools. </p> <p> In short, this emerging vision of environmentalism protects both communities and nature by: </p> <ul> <li>Curbing sprawl by improving places in existing neighborhoods, creating less incentive for people to move to new homes in greenfield developments; </li> <li>Reducing air and water pollution by supporting small-scale, local economies, which by their nature are less resource-intensive; </li> <li>Reining in global warming by creating mixed-use destinations that shorten and minimize vehicle trips and reduce energy use. </li> </ul> <p> Campaigns that incorporate the common goals of environmentalism and Placemaking are already underway. For instance, the New York City Streets Renaissance, a partnership between PPS, Transportation Alternatives, and the Open Planning Project, seeks to reduce car use by creating places that prioritize pedestrians, transit, bicyclists, and above all street life. The challenge now is to make this kind of thinking--and this type of action--a model for environmental groups everywhere. </p> <p> Luckily, environmentalists have always embraced the idea of place, especially in its ecological sense. Kentucky poet and farmer Wendell Berry, one of the most influential spokesmen for environmental causes, has written eloquently about the role of local ecosystems--or "places"--in sustaining human civilization. Gary Snyder, another respected thinker in the movement, has stated that "community values come from deliberately, knowledgeably, and affectionately 'living in place.'" British green leader Jonathan Porritt notes, "the environment is rooted in our sense of place: our homes, our streets, our neighborhoods." </p> <p> A great opportunity now exists for the environmental movement to reach out to a broader base and new partners simply by expanding the scope of places it is willing to fight for. This expanded notion of the environment would encompass rural watersheds and town squares, coastal wetlands and neighborhood playgrounds. And by reinforcing the connection between public spaces and environmentalism, it would harness the energy of people who care passionately about Placemaking. It's a winning strategy to revive the movement and restore our planet. Let's bring the environmental movement back home. <br> <hr width="60%"> <br> <h4>PREVIOUS FEATURED ARTICLES: <ol> <li><a href="feature041206.htm">Otis White is W'ong</a> (April 12, 2006)</li> <br> <li> <a href="feature042106.htm">Ending America's Oil Addiction</a> (April 21, 2006)</li> </ol> </h4> <! ----start of spacer for short paragraphs----- > <div id="cleardiv2"></div> <! ----end of spacer for short paragraphs ----- > </div> <! ----end of center block content----- > <div id="cleardiv2"></div> <! ----start of footer----- > <div id="footer"> <ul> <li><i>page updated: April 24, 2006</i> | </li> <li><a href="mailto:info@sgli.org">email us</a></li> <li><a href="feedback.htm">send us feedback</a></li> <li><a href="sitemap.htm">sitemap</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.gvisit.com/map.php?sid=c9a41d62ad5af8dabdda4481401c2bd3">who's been visiting</a></li> <li> | </li> <li>Copyright 2006 by <a href="http://www.smartgrowthamerica.org">Smart Growth America</a></li> <li> <a href="http://validator.w3.org/check?uri=referer"><img src="http://www.w3.org/Icons/valid-html401" alt="Valid HTML 4.01 Transitional" height="22"> </a></li> </ul> </div> <! ----end of footer----- > <div id="cleardiv3"></div> </div> </div> <! ----end of whole container----- > </body> <! ----end of document, all rights reserved, created April 24, 2006, smart growth leadership institute----- > </html>