In the last couple of months, our streets were empty and our cities quiet. Behind this seeming tranquillity, there has been a storm raging through our values and structures. It has given us the space to think about a complete ‘reset’ of the dysfunctional systems in our society. In this series, we showcase the perspectives of a variety of thought leaders who will reflect on our present-day situation. Through the lens of their own area of expertise and with an emphasis on the power of design and imagination. The corona crisis is, without a doubt, a crisis that is leaving behind a trail of victims. But which transformations will we be left within the aftermath? In times as these, it is the creatives, philosophers, scientists, makers, and designers who can visualise new scenarios, and develop new insights for our future.
Urban planner Lior Steinberg helps cities to look beyond functionality and to plan urban spaces that make people smile. All the projects he participates in have one thing in common: they create people-oriented cities. Lior is co-founder of Humankind, a Rotterdam-based agency that helps cities, organisations, and urban change makers to tackle the most complex urban challenges, and create a better future together. The agency works in a holistic approach with a multidisciplinary team of urban planners, creatives, transition theorists, communication specialists, social entrepreneurs, and psychoanalysts to design places, programs, products, and processes that make a real impact in the lives of people. Using instruments derived from transition management and urban planning tools such as tactical urbanism and experiments they get things done. What can we learn from this crisis on the environment that people strive in? And how can we work together to make it happen?
How do streetscapes appear from the very low perspective of small children’s eyes? For the city of Tel Aviv-Yafo, young children have become a cross-cutting strategic priority. Keren Raz is the Tel Aviv’s project leader at Urban95, an initiative of the Bernard van Leer Foundation’s seeking to make lasting change in the city landscapes and in the opportunities that shape the crucial first years of human’s lives. Urban95 works with urban leaders, city planners, designers, managers, and other urbanists to understand how their work can influence child development.
