Archive for May, 2013

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Kirby Hoyt: A couple weeks ago I had the pleasure of sitting in as a juror for a graduate-level design studio’s final presentation at Arizona State University. The topic of the class was landscape as infrastructure, something I have been interested for a long time. What intrigued me the most, I think, was not so much the work, but the interpretation of the concept of ‘infrastructure.’ While most people think of infrastructure as roads, bridges, utilities and the like, some of the class took the concept further to include other realms. This was…

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May 28, 2013

World Naked Bike Ride!

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet The World Naked Bike Ride in Portland is just a few short weeks away, taking place on Saturday, June 8th. Yes, people will be riding naked on their bikes, but for a good cause. The worldwide bike ride highlights “the vulnerability of cyclists everywhere and decries society’s dependence on pollution-based transport” and is meant to bring people together in support and celebration of cycling. A little bit of background: The first World Naked Bike ride took place in 2004, but before that, a lot of different organizations put on smaller naked bike rides around the world. In Germany, naked…

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Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Lucky Sharma: The Mission neighborhood in San Francisco has always amazed me in all its existential aspects. Whether it is its history of drugs and shootings or its current day hipster culture emphasized by the vintage stores and rogue bicyclists, I have been truly enamored by how much cultural inclusion this few blocks has to offer. Mission Street, also called as the “Mission Miracle Mile”, has historically been one of the largest and most active of the area’s shopping corridors. It runs north-south through the full length of the district. A diverse crowd…

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Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Bob Diehl. It was first published in the Historic Roosevelt Times. Right after Andy Brown, a 34 year old recovering globetrotter, moved into The Westminster on Roosevelt Row in Phoenix last year he heard that its owner Fenix Private Capital Group was looking for a way to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the building. So he came up with the vague outline of an idea, asked them to pay for it and just trust his artistic instincts. I suspect they’re glad they did – after all he fixed all the broken bits of brick…

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Tweet Today’s post is by guest writer Phil Allsopp. Phil is a writer, activist and speaker about reshaping human habitat to restore the unmet needs of people and community, supporting vibrant economies and responding more effectively to the climatic conditions where people live. By re-thinking design and the policies that shape the form and the performance of the places we inhabit, he believes that it is possible to create a future in which everyone can live healthier and more abundant lives without plundering and polluting the planet on which we depend. Phil’s diverse career in design, public policy and business…

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Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Lucky Sharma and is part of her series talking about her experiences trying to live a sustainable lifestyle in two cities – San Francisco and Tempe.  In 2010 my husband and I moved from the hundred year old Victorian San Francisco apartment to an apartment complex in Tempe, AZ. I had heard horror stories about the heat in the valley, but I did not pay them much heed. My friends told me that I could easily get a house with a yard for real cheap. But I knew I didn’t want to increase…

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Tweet The earth is our home. There is no other place for us to go. We can’t settle on the moon. So we must take care of it, not only for this generation, but for future generations. – His Holiness the Dalai Lama The Dalai Lama is very down to earth, laughs easily, and makes jokes even when he is talking about the gravest things like global warming or humanity’s tendency to deviate from its natural benevolence. I count myself fortunate to have gotten to see the Dalai Lama speak at the Environmental Summit at the Rose Quarter last Saturday,…

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Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Robert Diehl. Bob was born and raised in New York City. In college he published a literary magazine and produced performance art in the slowly re-filling area that came to be known as SoHo. His first 16 careerist years were spent in global finance and travel related services until he moved to Dallas with JCPenney. Warding off terminal boredom, a ‘when in Rome’ epiphany led to owning and breeding horses which brought him to the Valley of the Sun in 1990. He moved to a small horse ranch nestled in a desert landscape along…

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Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer James Gardner. James is a graduate student in Urban and Environmental Planning at Arizona State University. Having grown up in a small town in Arizona, James become attracted to the field of planning and urban design by taking a critical look at his surroundings. James has an interest in the integration of health, sustainability, and urban design, and how we can create communities that have access to a healthy lifestyle, be it through access to nature, or just a healthier built environment.  Tim Beatley visited Arizona State University on April 10th and gave…

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Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer, Lucky Sharma.  Lucky lives in two cities – San Francisco and Tempe. She’ll be sharing her observations of both cities in a series of posts about the sustainable urban lifestyle. This post will be published in two parts. If you missed part I, which was published yesterday, check it out here. Below is part II: My train of thought was broken by the ding-ding of a bus. I smiled because the bus reminded of the bus rides I took with my parents when I was younger, and it reminded me of how I could…

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