Thursday, October 26, 2006

WTK

That's 'War Torn Kosovo' to the cool kids...

To further my planning nerdness I have taken a position with UN Habitat in Kosovo as an 'International Municipal Spatial Planning Advisor'. Now if that ain't a wanky long title for planning nerd, nothing is...

I've been here two weeks and its taking time to settle in and for this country to sink in. Its hard to know where to start in describing what life is like here.

For a start, its reasonably safe. Probably as safe as many western countries are at any rate. Pristina is somewhere between a European city and a Middle Eastern one, with much of the relics of the former Communist days alongside the riches of the Muslim culture and the worst outcomes of a newly market driven economy.


As for planning, Pristina is a mess. Insane traffic, haphazard development and a mix of uses that often don't mix. Its dusty in summer, muddy/slushy in winter, the roads are potholed, pedestrians have to fight the cars for walking space and your ears are assaulted at every turn.

The pollution is terrible with the air and solid waste almost unbearable some days.




But there are some positives to find here. A beautiful mosque (or hundred), a city park in town and a regional park on the edge of town. Also people's homes are the welcome respite from the outside world and are kept as palaces - they even mop the carpet!


Nerdness Confirmed


Ok its official - when I was in London a few weeks back I took a photo of this bike lane in Hoxton.

State Planning Conference

Ok so maybe I am a planning nerd. I recently attended the Victorian State Planning Conference in Ballarat and actually attended all the sessions - what's more I took notes!

Highlights included the Dean Hutton from the Curiosity Show, the Japanese Drummers at the Gala dinner















and meeting David Suzuki.

















Highlights of the presentations:
Dr Dean Hutton (from the Curiosity Show!)
- If you want to control your future you have to know what has been past
- Until you do it - it is only an opportunity, transform the opportunity
into an action
- Preparation, Opportunity, Action
- Every Atom in the world has energy stored within it
And he showed various new technology materials that could revolutionise the
way products are made - a titanium wire that springs back into the shape
it was originally bent into when heat is applied, and an unbreakable
ceramic material...

Dr Terry Turney - CSIRO
- 1 nanometre = 1 billionth of a metre
- Nanotechnology has helped develop self-cleaning windows, concrete and
showers
- Bio-mimicry (abstraction of good design from nature) and nanotechnology
has helped develop non-reflective surfaces for glass based on the cicada's
wing, 'gecko' tape - sticky and holds lots of weight, sea cucumber inspired
adhesive that sets underwater in less than 10 seconds

Dr David Suzuki
- Foresight was the great survival attribute of early humans that
compensated for the lack of physical and sensory attributes that the animal
world had
- In 1992 there was a warning from hundreds of the world's top scientists
regarding environmental degradation, global warming, population issues etc
but no media took any notice - Why have we turned our backs on foresight?
The tragedy of New Orleans was predicted and measures outlined but
ignored...
- "Human brain is hard wired for order" it doesn't like chaos
- "Conventional economics is a form of brain damage" - Economics is a set
of values posing as a science with externalities removed from the equation
but externalities are the real world, the earth, the environment
- But then much science also removes natural interactions and processes
- We are using up the rightful legacy of our grandchildren
- We are hooked on growth and change, since the 1950s there has been
unprecedented and unsustainable growth
- We have passed the '59th minute' - it could be almost too late to save
the earth?
- We are a part of a single system - held together by air
- What we do to the air we do to ourselves

Andrew Bolt - "Journalist" Herald Sun
- thinks it is sad that people say that nature cannot spare water, wood,
ore for human use
- "our home is girt by sea is now 'our home is girt by urban planning
restrictions'
- asks if we should all live like people in Seoul or Hong Kong in 'chicken
coop' apartments?
- he doesn't see the impending doom - there is no black down descending
- "nothing is bad or good, but thinking makes it so"
- believes it is not healthy to follow green policies
- "we are pleasing nature gods but we are hurting people"
- the backyard is now so despised but that is what most of us have - why is
it 'beyond nature' to tend to a backyard and water it?

Shelley Penn - Associate Victorian Government Architect
- High quality buildings and public spaces engender pride, confidence and
well-being in our communities
- Good design, looks good longer and ages gracefully, and does cost more
upfront
- There is an unprecedented period of human possibility

Dr Ian McPhail - Commissioner of Environmental Sustainability
- Every plannner is an 'Environmental Planner
- There has been a 30% increase in carbon monoxide between 1970 and 2003
- Households are isolated, the modern age is unhealthy - less exercise and
more food
- Urban planning - environment is too dangerous and too unhealthy, today's
children have a lower life expectancy than their parents
- Sustainable solutions - innovation required - aim to reduce car travel
demand, enhance public transport
- There needs to be financial incentives and disincentives ie:
- salary packaging public transport tickets (instead of cars), offer tax
breaks for use of P.T.
- developers could have reduced fees if it is located close to P.T. and
services
- 'greener' cars could have lower taxes / fees

Jim Betts - Director of Public Transport
- P.T must be good and affordable, good is reliable and speedy
- Buses will increase services in Melbourne by 40% over next 4 years
- There is a need to update the technology for Melbourne's P.T. especially
trains
- A long lead time is needed for new infrastructure
- if council's have ideas or projects to integrate land use planning and
public transport planning - talk to Jim (or his department) they have $2 -
3 million available per project

"Are Planners Worth their Salt?" Debate
- Planners = megalomaniac, egomaniac, sex maniac
- Planners have an inflated idea of self importance
- But also low self-esteem?
- 'fat man walks in to a bar' - treatise on obesity, sustainable transport
and alcoholism
- Urban Growth Boundaries are a plague and will be responsible for all the
ills of the world
- We need to release more land!