Roma Straordinaria (Extraordinary Rome)
I recently launched the bilingual Forum Roma Sostenibile to which I have been dedicating a few precious minutes each day to link to interesting articles, promote valuable initiatives and highlight critical issues, translating quickly back and forth from English to Italian or vice-versa as necessary. I recognize that by now this word “sustainable” is over-used and it’s not without a sense of irony that I apply it to Rome.
Rome is not a “normal” city but an extraordinary (straordinaria) one. In seeking to make it more “sustainable” I like to think we are making it more like itself and less like normal, standard, global cities. We don’t want Rome to be Tokyo or Vancouver or even Paris. Sustainability means providing the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to provide for their needs, and Rome has been doing that pretty well for dozens of centuries—thus the “still” in this blog’s title.
A sustainable Rome doesn’t need to be less passionate, less chaotic, less magical, less comically astounding, less Roman. There are centuries of accumulated experiences, materials, traces, memories and more to be shared and only a fool would try to clean that up and replace it with a sanitized “green city.” A sustainable Rome would be filled with sounds, smells, tastes, chance encounters, vistas, poetry and contrasts. Minus certain blight that we have come to associate with the city: motor-vehicles, globalized advertising, disorganized waste, privatized common space and resources, and a handful of other common injustices. Fighting these doesn’t necessarily mean fighting Rome any more than curing a disease necessarily means killing the patient.
It’s not an easy task to get Rome back on course, but neither is it “idealism” as I so often hear. Italians adapt pretty well to change when it has clear advantages (the internet is pretty much ubiquitous now but I remember in the late nineties working for an internet company and hearing that Italians would never get on board!). This weekend we will see the streets of Rome filled with bicycles, as it has more and more of late, and those willing to make the switch will realize that cycling is another win-win for Rome. The same can be said of a return to more frugal lifestyles which consume less energy, water and other resources and produce less trash.
We’re talking about improving the quality of life for everyone, launching sustainable economic growth, and if you want to wave the sustainability flag as well, yes, ensuring that future generations can also provide for their needs. What’s not to like?
Rome Chooses Green (Cars)
I biked over to the convention on Sustainable Mobility this morning. I wasn’t the only one; there were at least three other bicycles on the bike rack there, plus a very cool white bike (I’m not sure if the color was intentionally a reference to cyclist mortality as white bikes have become worldwide) with a Copenhagen wheel produced by Ducati Energia.
Otherwise, it was all about cars. The sponsors were car makers, the discussion was about fuel for cars. Outside, under the shade of beautiful trees of the gardens of the San Sisto Aranciere, men (why is it always men) in suits were fondling shiny new cars. The message was clear: cars are here to stay, but it would be better if they pollute less and consume fewer fossil fuels.
I disagree. Richard Register, in a wonderful book called Ecocities, says that clean cars are worse than dirty ones because they give us an alibi to prolong the automotive culture which has devastated our cities. Smog is not the only problem; the decline of quality of life cars have caused is also about danger, inefficiency, enclosure of public space, visual pollution, social blight and more. And the electricity for electric cars has to be produced somewhere, using which renewable sources?
The Copenhagen wheel version Ducati Energia (not the same as Ducati motors I learned).
I presented this talk at a conference yesterday entitled Grand Tour of the 3rd Millennium, hosted by the University of Rome at Tor Vergata. I chose the topic when I looked at the calendar. On April 21 Rome celebrates its 2,765th birthday. The following day is Earth Day, a holiday that has been celebrated only since 1970 but which marks a planetary history of roughly 4.5 billion years, in comparison to which Rome’s long history is minuscule. While it’s easy to associate cultural heritage with Rome and environmental sustainability with the Earth, I am interested in building bridges between these two fields both locally and globally since I see the city not as the source of our global environmental problems but as the solution…. Can Rome leverage its richly layered history to sustain itself economically and ecologically? Can it re-use the resources accrued over time to avoid excess consumption? I believe it can and teach a course called Ecological Urbanism which uses Rome as a Laboratory to address themes such as waste, energy, water, transportation and land use.
Historically we can register the city’s swings between moments of material growth and moments of frugality and adaptation. While conventionally the growth periods are considered the high points, I subscribe to an upside-down view of history, inverted to recognize those moments when limitations have lead to frugality which has nurtured innovation, whereas the periods generally identified as ones of great “success” (the Roman Empire, the Renaissance, or the late 20th century economic boom) have been those of greatest inefficiency, inequality, waste and environmental destruction. In Rome we can see relatively clearly these urban cycles, this swinging of the pendulum, from expansion to frugality.
One thinks of the agricultural austerity of the early Republic as opposed to the excesses of the Roman empire when growth began to exceed sustainable limits leading to deforestation, over-grazing and collapse. Douglas Rushkoff writes in Life, Inc. of how the so-called “dark ages” were actually a time of great advances before the Renaissance went about monopolizing prosperity (and he cites medieval historians’ claim that the quality of life for the average European in the 11th through 13th centuries was better than at any time since. Read more…
19th century public space
Piazza San Silvestro. 2012. The newly renovated square off Via del Corso in the neighborhood of Piazza di Spagna was inaugurated today and I biked over to see it. It was a nice day, not too warm, and the hard stone benches were doing their job, filled with lounging people. The elliptical space which makes up one component of the square (the other is a rectangle, separated by a bumpy paved non-road in between) recalls the Campidoglio, of course, but without Marcus Aurelius. Without any central focus, in fact, until street artists are allowed to move in. People seemed to be watching the absence of cars and little more.
Today there were police enforcing the rules of civic behavior which seemed to mean no art, no sports, and no commerce. I wasn’t exactly reprimanded for my bicycle but kindly told that bikes weren’t allowed in the pedestrian zone, and that the only bike rack in the neighborhood had been removed. In 2012 designing an urban space without considering bicycles must be a crime somewhere, but apparently not in Rome.
There were a lot of proposals submitted for this space–I had done a few sketches myself–and many of them included the elements that one expects of a 21st century public space in a dense metropolis: a fountain, shade, art, transit, bike racks (and better, bike-sharing), green space, a range of seating for a range of users. Piazza San Silvestro rather looks like a picture of a public space, not really intended to work for long, especially not in the summer when the lack of shade will be excruciating. It’s a place that tries not to offend but neither to offer itself as a democratic space.
I suspect it will be just a question of time before the Alfa Romeo’s of the politically entitled move in to idle where the public buses once waited.
Like this:
The Internet of Things
image courtesy of worldwiderome.it
As so often happens in this world of constant information bombardment, today I found myself juggling overlapping, interconnected bits of information and ideas. A paragraph on the city of Rome website caught my eye as I was searching for information on a conference on Rome’s Sustainable Future or something, a reference to which I had caught a fleeting glimpse of on a poster plastered to the wall by Porta Portese. My rough translation follows:
Hundreds of discarded articles including old refrigerators, washing machines, boilers, televisions, cookers, stored and disassembled without the required authorization and prerequisites necessary to protect the environment and public health….The operator of the area was found not to be enrolled in the National Order of Waste Management.
I was fascinated that the project that I have been proposing for years for the site, a center for the green economy where items currently considered waste could be treated as resources, seemed to have become a reality. I was outraged that such an activity was being treated as criminal instead of ecologically sound. After all, these are items that previously were safe enough for our homes but now suddenly can’t be handled without public safety permits. But it’s ok to send them to a landfill as long as it’s run by a member of the right professional organization?
And then I read another blog post complaining about how the city does nothing to prevent people from dumpster diving, an activity practiced especially by Romany people in Rome. I have great respect for these people who work hard to salvage the useful stuff that we thoughtlessly discard. If anything, the city should prevent people from throwing good stuff so casually into dumpsters.
My day improved later as sat in great hall of the former Aquarium, now Rome’s “Casa dell’Architettura”, listening to speakers at the World Wide Rome conference, a day long event focused on the new economy of digital fabrication. Finally I was hearing voices discuss the absurdity of the waste of our consumer lifestyles. Enrico Bassi of FabLab Torino described workshops on electronic recycling and re-use. I missed the talk by Chris Anderson of Wired, entitled “ATOMS ARE THE NEW BITS”, but caught Roberto Bonzio and Massimo Menichinelli who shared stories of startups and innovation. Terms like social ecommerce, sellsumers, user generated goods, and Fab money were being thrown about. The whole event had that upbeat feel of a self-improvement seminar, amplified by the very 21st century phenomena of multiple screens, throbbing base soundtrack, and an audience half-listening, half chatting distractedly, tweeting, status-updating, or sampling images and video to process, cut and splice and share later. I loved it.
During a less interesting talk I checked Facebook on my iphone, followed a link from my friend Doug Rushkoff to a blog post he wrote on CNN where he said very much what I was hearing in this conference in Rome. “We need to begin by abandoning the fruitless quest for gainful corporate employment, and instead start working for ourselves and one another. We must stop outsourcing our savings and investments to bankrupt corporations, and instead invest in the people and businesses in our own communities — however we define those.” This is happening and I, for one, am on board.
Like this:
Zolle. Fresh Roman Food from Farm to Doorstep.
Yesterday I witnessed the future. Smart, creative, green food distribution, fresh local produce delivered on souped up cargo bikes to subscribers around the city. The company is called Zolle and I’ve run into them before here and there, promoting the idea at the Campagna Amica market for example. This time I watched as they unloaded crates from their van onto bikes for the “final kilometre.” According to their website, the food arrives at your door within 24 hours of being harvested, which is a pretty incredible freshness record. 90% from the Lazio region, the food is local and seasonal and selected by the people who know it best. My favorite feature: Zolle highlights the producers on their website so you know whose tomatoes and whose artichokes you’re eating. Any readers subscribe to this?
Like this:
SustainableRome Blog Supports #salvaiciclisti
Throughout Europe appeals are going out to Mayors and administrators to sign the 8 points for cycling safety promoted by the Times. Here is the Italian letter, in this case appealing to Rome’s Mayor Gianni Alemanno. In this second phase the points have become ten, including an appeal to the mayor to set a good example by bicycling to work (something I suggested in a previous post).
Caro Sindaco,
Come avrà già avuto modo di apprendere dalle notizie degli ultimi giorni, l’Italia si posiziona al terzo posto in Europa per mortalità in bicicletta. Negli ultimi 10 anni, ben 2.556 ciclisti hanno perso la vita sulle nostre strade ed è per porre freno a questa situazione che due settimane or sono abbiamo lanciato in Italia la campagna#salvaiciclisti con cui abbiamo chiesto al Parlamento italiano l’applicazione degli 8 punti del Manifesto del Times.
In questi i giorni il Parlamento sta facendo la propria parte ed una proposta di legge sottoscritta da (quasi) tutte le forze politiche è pronta per la presentazione alla Camera e al Senato.
Senza il suo preziosissimo contributo di amministratore locale, però, anche la migliore delle leggi rischia di restare lettera morta ed è per questo che siamo a chiedere la sua adesione alla campagna #salvaiciclisti per il miglioramento della sicurezza dei ciclisti nella sua città.
Aderendo a #salvaiciclisti si impegnerà quindi a:
1. Garantire l’applicazione a livello locale degli 8 punti del Manifesto del Times per le aree di competenza comunale,
2. Formulare le opportune strategie per incrementare almeno del 5% annuo gli spostamenti urbani in bicicletta nei giorni feriali,
3. Contrastare il fenomeno del parcheggio selvaggio (sulle strisce pedonali, in doppia fila, in prossimità di curve ed incroci, sulle piste ciclabili),
4. Far rispettare i limiti di velocità stabiliti per legge e istituire da subito delle “Zone 30″ e “zone residenziali” nelle aree con alta concentrazione di pedoni e ciclisti,
5. Realizzare, qualora mancante, un Piano Quadro sulla Ciclabilità o Bici Plan,
6. Monitorare e ridisegnare i tratti più pericolosi della città per la viabilità ciclistica di comune accordo con le associazioni locali,
7. Redigere annualmente un documento pubblico sullo stato dell’arte nel proprio comune di competenza della viabilità ciclabile indicando i risultati dell’anno appena trascorso e gli obiettivi futuri,
8. Dotare ogni strada di nuova costruzione o sottoposta ad interventi straordinari di manutenzione straordinari con un percorso ciclabile che garantisca il pieno comfort del ciclista,
9. Promuovere una campagna di comunicazione per sensibilizzare tutti gli utenti della strada sulle tematiche della sicurezza,
10. Dare il buon esempio recandosi al lavoro in bicicletta per infondere fiducia nei cittadini e per monitorare personalmente lo stato della ciclabilità nella sua città
È perché riteniamo che la campagna #salvaiciclisti sia dettata dal buon senso e da una forte dose di senso civico che chiediamo un suo contributo affinché anche in Italia il senso civico e il buon senso prendano finalmente il sopravvento.
Chiunque volesse contribuire al buon esito di questa campagna può condividere questa lettera attraverso Facebook, attraverso il proprio blog o sito, attraverso Twitter utilizzando l’hashtag#salvaiciclisti e, ovviamente, inviandola via mail al sindaco della propria città e ai sindaci delle città capoluogo di regione.
Puoi scaricare da qui la lista degli indirizzi mail delle città capoluogo
Se non conosci l’indirizzo mail del tuo sindaco, puoi trovarlo a questo sito
Il gruppo su Facebook sta aspettando nuove idee per continuare la campagna.
Hanno lanciato la seconda fase della campagna #salvaiciclisti:
- piciclisti.wordpress.com
- amicoinviaggio.it
- rotafixa.it
- biascagne-cicli.it
- nuovamobilita.wordpress.com
- mazzei.milano.it
- www.ediciclo.it
- www.ciclomundi.it
- festinalente.ztl.eu
- milanonmybike.blogspot.com
- areabici.blogspot.com
- greenMe.it (www.greenme.it)
- www.bicizen.it
- Fiab-onlus.it
- LifeGate.it
- lifeintravel.it
- Lucaconti.blogspot.com
- www.raggidistoria.com
- Associazione ciclonauti
- riky76omnium.wordpress.com
- 34×26.wordpress.com
- ilikebike.org
- rotalibra.wordpress.com
- mammiferobipede.wordpress.com
- Urbancycling.it
- biciebasta.com
- muoviequilibri.blogspot.com
- confindustrial.noblogs.org
- ciclistica.it
- milanox.eu
- Casertainbici
- sustainablerome.net
- wildpigs.it
- gherociclo- gheroarte.com
- http://www.magociclo.blogspot.com/
- http://ciclofficinabc.blogspot.com/
- anconasocialclub
- http://cicloappuntamenti.forumfree.it/
- Propulsione Umana http://www.propulsioneumana.it/
- http://anemmuinbiciazena.wordpress.com/
- www.ecocorner.it
.png "http://www.facebookloginhut.com/facebook-login/")
.png "http://www.facebookloginhut.com/facebook-login/")
