The Inura common office just sent this link to an animated chart on the crisis.
http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/2010/debtris/
Author: Editors
Editor
A London utopia
This is roughly the text of a talk given on Friday 11 November at an Urban Geography conference called Alternative Urbanisms, held in UCL. Comments, criticisms and suggestions very welcome. Main text follows the abstract. Slide show not included because of some copyright problems. Email if you want to look. Very constructive review/ writeup by blogger George Carothers at http://www.thepolisblog.org/2010/11/sharing-city-on-knowledge-and-academy.html
Abstract
This paper tries to sketch an alternative future for London arising out of the current crisis (seen in broadly Harvey-ish terms), the need for some big jump out of the prevailing orthodoxy and the (relatively) mundane but stimulating experience of taking part in the Examination in Public of Mayor Boris Johnson’s slightly adjusted version of Ken Livingstone’s London Plan in alliance with a lot of citizen groups.
It is conventional in left circles to deplore utopias and instead to stress that a better future would and should be forged through dispersed innovations emerging from successive struggles and contradictions. Continue reading “A London utopia”
King's Cross – catch-up
There have been some events at King’s Cross, though not a lot. Continue reading “King's Cross – catch-up”
The crisis unfolds – catch-up /EiP / new paper
So much has been going on that all the web sites I’m responsible for got rusty. A few people have even complained, which is warming.
London Plan activity has been the elephant in the room year. After a summer break the EiP resumed with debates on transport, neighbourhood issues and all the housing material. About the only positive change in the Johnson plan is the espousal of the notion of Lifetime Neighbourhoods, a concept which Age Concern had nurtured in the spirit of the Lifetime Home standards Continue reading “The crisis unfolds – catch-up /EiP / new paper”
return of the puddle
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As the rains begin in October 2010, back comes the Euston Square Puddle. This most un-cared-for of London squares is as grotty now as a year ago. Long saga of multiple agencies, none taking proper responsibility. Back story is at https://michaeledwards.org.uk/?p=181 |
London Plan / Inura Zürich
London Plan Examination in Public (EiP) opened Monday 28th and I postponed travelling to Inura to be there for the first part. I have trouble taking seriously those introductory bits of plans about ‘vision’ and ‘objectives’ but people less cynical than me got it going well and perhaps we made some impact on the Panel – pressing for more serious commitment to equality, social housing, ‘sustainable development’ (which now seems like quite a progressive demand, the orthodoxy having slipped so far to the right) and for taking the crisis seriously. Skilled stonewalling from the GLA team. We are trying to keep rough track of the events on Just Space blog. Then off to Inura’s 20th birthday meeting in Zürich where it all began. Continue reading “London Plan / Inura Zürich”
The world's local language
HSBC, which already has its logo all over London’s airports, is distributing stacks of booklets at Gatwick called Welcome to London. Inside, it has descriptions of various locailities, including the news that Wimbledon Common is criss-crossed by bridal paths. Pity there’s no picture.
Nice local English in Rome though—probably Google’s:
Day in Rome
 Some sheep spotted in via dei Serpenti |
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I have now spent 3 weeks out of my planned 4 in Rome. Today is the first I spent entirely at home, in Leslie Caldwell’s flat near Piramide, which I have rented. I worked rather hard all day (relieved by trips to the adjacent cafe), trying to finish a write-up of a talk for Bob Colenutt, promised a year ago but just too hard to do. I made a lot of progress and the result so far is at http://societycould.wordpress.com. Do please look and comment if you have time. The other thing I did was the washing. Tricky because it keeps raining: shocking for everyone here because Rome should be dry and hot in May. But I’m on my third umbrella. Continue reading “Day in Rome”
If voting could change anything…
There we were, walking past the Baths of Caracalla in Rome when the Evening Standard phoned, asking for a critical comment on today’s leader which recommends David Cameron. So in rather a hurry I sent them this. We’ll see if they publish it. At least Anne Gray, our Green candidate in Haringey, should like it.
Your leader coming down on the side of David Cameron really is the wrong advice for the country, and especially for Londoners. You write exclusively about the three main leaders, but we are not electing a president. We are electing a party, so let’s look at them. Continue reading “If voting could change anything…”
Amsterdam visit, April 2010
On the way back from 3 very good days in Netherlands with Bob Colenutt on our Leverhulme project about fixing broken British urban development and housing systems. Highights for me were learning more about state leasehold forms of development and seeing the incredible variety of tenure forms and housing configurations in Ijburg. Lots more pictures if you click on one of these.
 collective / co-op project of flats, shared space, cafe, theatre in Ijburg. |
 …and some ideas not so easily transferred to UK: next house arrives at floating neighbourhood from factory 120km away. Small tug on right. |
michael edwards 