The Big Picture

Exploring the trends shaping our modern cities through a curated collection of articles and op-eds

Collaborating Towards a More Resilient City

Oct 01, 2019

Urban Resilience. A notion so wide it can be seen from many different perspectives of understanding. Whether it is to prepare for a shock that may happen suddenly or tackle a stress that has been constantly disrupting the city’s function, being ‘resilient’ means that a city needs to have the capacity to prepare and bounce…

Mitigating Risk and Protecting our Cities from Disaster

Oct 01, 2019

On August 28, 2019, a few days before the anticipated landfall of Hurricane Dorian (the strongest on record to strike the Bahamas), the Florida Action Committee issued a press release: “As Hurricane Dorian approaches, don’t wait until the last minute”. It warned people of the complications of emergency evacuations and to not delay making plans.…

Working to Rebuild and Strengthen After Sandy

Oct 01, 2019

There is only one landlord in the United States that is spending over a billion dollars on resilience measures on multi-family buildings: the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA). The Authority is rebuilding and protecting buildings – some almost 70 years old – against storm surge and sea level rise. In the aftermath of Superstorm…

Cities at Night

Août 26, 2019

When speaking about how our cities promote active, social, positive space for residents, many of our conversations end at sundown. Our streets and parks which are vibrant and full of life during the day, are often viewed as symbols of fear, danger, and vacancy at night. This Big Picture editorial, presented by Toyota Mobility Foundation,…

Transport After Dark

Août 26, 2019

Every morning millions of city dwellers wake up unaware of the legions of hard-working citizens that keep our cities moving, clean, safe, and maintained at night. For many of these workers that help make our cities hum while most of us are sleeping, their movement is far from seamless or easy [1], [2]. While some…

A Superkilometer as a New Territory

Août 26, 2019

In 2018, I was appointed Director of Nuit Blanche in Paris, the most important outdoor cultural event initiated 18 years ago by the Paris City Hall. Every year, the Mayor gives a wild card to an Artistic Director to imagine, all over the French capital, a meeting between the public and contemporary creations. For my…

Keeping Orlando Moving Through the Night

Août 26, 2019

For years, Downtown Orlando has been one of the city’s, and the region’s go-to entertainment destinations. Unlike its biggest competitors; Disney Springs (formerly known as Downtown Disney) and Universal Orlando’s City Walk which, for all intents and purposes, were planned-developments backed by seemingly endless budgets, Downtown Orlando over the years has been “retrofitted” to accommodate…

Unlocking the Night: Public Space, Nightlife, and Culture in Buenos Aires

Août 26, 2019

The nightlife of Buenos Aires is one of the attractions that both Porteños and visitors, value the most. Our city has one of the largest cultural circuits in Latin America, comprised of public, private, and independent activities. More than 400 bookstores, 150 theaters, and thousands of bars and restaurants make Buenos Aires a vibrant city…

Parks and Recreation: Night Version

Août 26, 2019

Los Angeles is often referred to as the entertainment capital of the world. This is not surprising given that the city is the center of the nation’s film and television industries, and offers a wide variety of activities, events, and amusement attractions for locals and tourists alike. However, this means little to residents in underserved…

Harnessing the Energy of the Market to Improve the Night

Août 26, 2019

The urban night has been a place for cultural innovation for many decades. Entire social and cultural streams have been created through artistic communities breaking the rules and experimenting with different forms of expression. Music is one of the best examples of how a genre can influence the way how people think, dress, and act.…

Toward a 24-Hour Sydney

Août 26, 2019

All great cities must find a way to create and maintain a vibrant, exciting night time economy while balancing the needs of local residents and keeping everyone safe. In Sydney, we’re charting that course with a vision developed over the last decade, which puts residents, businesses, and visitors – as well as world-wide best practices…

Making Cycling at Night Count

Août 26, 2019

Cities around the world are experiencing a cycling revolution. In the face of congestion, rising commute costs and climate change, more and more urbanites are choosing the bicycle as a form of transportation. From smaller cities, such as Halifax, Canada, who just last month installed their first ever protected bike lane, to sprawling metropolises, such…