Sustainable Cities

Here's a video that looks at simple ways to make cities more sustainable - by utilizing space more efficiently and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

VERTICAL FARMING...oh yes, it's here

          The Problem:

By the year 2050, an estimated 80% of earth's population with live in urban centers. Using the current demographic trends, the human population will increase by 3 billion people during the interim. A land area the size of Brazil will need to be available to feed the population if current farming practices continue.

         The Solution:

Vertical farming has been discussed many times in the past century, but technology has finally caught up to the  idea. Below is a picture of a proposed vertical farm.

The concept of vertical farming has been around since 1915 when the term was first coined, but Dr. Dickson Despommier from Columbia University has given it new life in the light of our present global conditions. In the clip below he talks about how the farms would work and how they can help.

Can the University Of Washington go without mowing?

This is a video on the topic of San Francisco California State’s decision to stop mowing three of their many lawns on campus after figuring out how much energy and resources it cost for the upkeep.

Using this model do you think it’s possible for the UW to stop mowing their lawns? Can the Quad stand to have two-feet grass in the middle of what is now a green lawn? Can the University of Washington save money by not managing the lawn so carefully? How much water is needed to keep the lawn so pristine and how much is needed to maintain the free growing one shown in the video. The interesting question posed to topic of Urban Ecology is can this type of growth spur a greater biodiversity to the lawns and if it does is this beneficial to the campus?

Battling the Heat Island Effect with a Roof

The heat island effect, in simple terms, is a phenomenon where urban areas are significantly warmer than their surrounding rural areas. This is primarily caused by the overabundance of concrete and asphalt (which hold heat in them and don't radiate it back out to the atmosphere), and the lack of "green material", which is essential to the movement of water in the water cycle, as well as the respiration of carbon dioxide. The less trees and more buildings you have, the greater temperature an urban environment will be.

Here are two ways cities can fight the heat island effect, just by adding a little something extra to their roofs.

1. Reflective Roofs.

Having dark roofs on every building in the city only increases the amount of heat that is being absorbed. Many cities are putting into place white or reflective roofs to help increase the city's albedo.

2. Green Roofs

Not only are "green roofs" aesthetically pleasing, but they are excellent at mitigating the effects of the heat island effect. They help cool buildings during hot summers and improve the air quality by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through respiration.

To read more about the heat island effect, reflective or green roofs, visit:

EPA: Heat Island Effect

Science 2.0: White roofs could reduce urban heat island effect by 33 percent

MSNBC: Green roofs popping up in big cities

We Are Part Of Nature

Many people have a clear idea of what nature is. “It is where animals live”. “It is in and around jungles”. “Somewhere with no development”. These are just some of the definitions people will give, and they definitely don’t think of their housing development or community parks as “nature”. These are the barriers that urban ecology tries to break.

Our civilization has triumphed by manipulating, altering and reshaping many ecological communities. What we have failed to realize is that when we settle in, we don’t erase the ecosystem, but instead become part of it. The following article by Hannah Waters (yes, that is her actual last name) sheds light on how people dissociate themselves from nature and how urban ecology can help us integrate into our environment.

"Urban ecology doesn't have enough humans in it" by Hannah Waters