Showing posts with label urbanmanagement. Show all posts

Nov 2, 2023

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

When the economy has to serve its purpose!

🏭When not producing anything is not an answer and when shutting down industries, businesses and operations may not be an option!

Then we need a statutory mechanism, moral pivot, and disruptive but viable business model, where every new and existing industry and business may still continue to function, but upskill themselves at the facility scale (and sectoral level) and devote up to half (not a token) of their capacity, resources, and skills to make things right, neutralizing the externalities that another half of their current business model or establishment generates. To be achieved either through circular procurement, reverse logistics, repurposing production, decarbonization, resource efficiency, or carbon offset.

This is highly important in today’s race of production and overproduction, as by any estimate for example, as on date -

👔There must be enough clothing stacked in the warehouses, stores, wardrobes, second-hand market, and on the way to landfill, that may serve what the entire world population requires for the next month or even a year or more

🏢There must be enough sum total square feet of real estate inventory, to give a respectable unit area of habitation to everyone in the world, considering all the vacant and under-utilized residential stock, all the extravagant properties, and all other land use that sits idle half of the time.

And more.

All of this that is currently being done, to serve inflated demand, and due to lack of a mechanism to recirculate material that is considered waste, and the inability to manage mismatched resources.

A new way of industrial and business operation will be a welcoming change!

Author: Anoop Jha

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please Note, that I am also conducting a FREE 45-minute online individual consultation on your interior design and home decor needs and aspirations if you are in the Netherlands or even internationally. Drop me an email at anoop.jha@gmail.com

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

#Circulareconomy #urbanplanning #urbanmanagement #urbandevelopment #economics #finance #industries #comemrce #World #EU #Europe #netherlands #Amsterdam #Rotterdam #Hague #DenHaag #Delft #Lieden #Sustainability #Resislience #Climatechange

One of the most important and underrated aspects of material flow.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

The conservation and (re)utilization of embodied energy - from the scale of the product to the built environment.

Yes, materials have been extracted and refined, and the products have been made, and transported for intended use, with all its embodied energy, the product that went through energy-intensive processes, leaving environmental externalities. What next?

It will be unreasonable and illogical to keep producing, while not knowing what to do with the product or refined material after the end of its first functional or fashionable life. The thing we know and focus on today is to grind and smelt products back to their granular, sometimes molecular constituents, or ship them to grey markets and landfills of less well-off places, after sometimes their deliberately short, designed, perceived, and valued life. Maybe it’s the only choice for some in their given context, maybe it’s a problem of not knowing whose Lifecycle responsibility it is after the product leaves the factory.

In any case, the post-perceived functional life of products, it becomes a problem of “compound” embodied energy associated with refined materials and products at a global supply chain level.

Once a product or refined material enters into local geography through a global supply chain, with all its embodied energy associated with processing, transportation, etc., it is the responsibility of the local economy, regional industry, and governing institutions to create enabling grounds for maximizing the use, reuse, and repurpose of refined materials/components and products at varying scale, be it extension of life, second, third and fourth life or reinvented multi-functionality of such products. Just because we have figured out how to make new products or refined material from scratch, doesn’t make it necessary to discard old and create new at the pace at which it is being done, just because you can.

Be it paper, plastic, cardboard, and glass products, packaging and residues (which hold high circular potential due to their numeric strength), or of course concrete (that holds circular potential due to sheer scale), or discarded EV batteries, chemicals, PV modules, wind turbine components (that holds less explored circular potential in the need of hour).

A product or refined material of any scale, at any historic or contemporary timeline, once produced, with or without thought of the future or post-functional life, becomes immensely valuable due to all the efforts, time, and embodied energy associated with it, and its never too late to reassess the real value of such product, to explore how these can be put to best use tomorrow and in times to come, especially within the local geography.

Author: Anoop Jha

Image: Author

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

#circulareconomy #urbanplanning #resourceeffeciency #materailflowanalysis #LCA #climatechange #systemthinking #designthinking #Amsterdam #Rotterdam #Utrecht #Netherlands #EU #Europe

The dilemma of oversized urban houses.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

Yes, they live in oversized houses, as they gradually reached there, as they wanted to, as they needed it, and as they could afford it at one point in time. They still continue to live in oversized houses even if they don’t want to as it becomes unmanageable with age and weakening abilities, even if they don’t need it as they become empty nesters, and even if they can’t afford it at another point in time, with drying wherewithal and acclivitous expenses.

Yes, it’s not that easy to reconfigure something made of brick and mortar, at the unit scale and at the neighborhood scale. It’s difficult with architectural rigidity that doesn’t consider modularity in its inception. It’s harder still with binding urban design regulations that don’t consider such future reconfiguration requirements and possibilities in the first place. Even more difficult with land use restrictions, that don’t consider real-time land-usage convertibility, and are nearly impossible amidst stringent building bylaws that are dictated by the idea of dimensions.

Having a choice is fundamental. We are discussing reconfiguration, from a house to a neighborhood scale, not with the conventional idea of accommodating more people per unit or per acre, not with the sole idea of co-location or sharing; but to offer inhabitants a choice that they deserve, the choice to sequester their operations in the humble Sqft of area, carved out of their own house, that is still respectable for a home, that is manageable, and affordable with growing age. If we end up gaining room for more inhabitants per acre through the reconfiguration of houses and neighborhoods that is a byproduct.

In any part of the world, it’s counterintuitive even from a policy perspective, surrounding this phenomenon of living in oversized houses at a growing age, with household size considerably reduced, when many of them may not require it or want it but still live there in the absence of choices. Counterintuitive, as administrations may choose to offer money as a social welfare gesture only to take some of it back unintentionally in the form of higher energy bills generated and associated higher property taxes due to those additional sqft of area which many residents might not require.

While the discussion around retrofitting and circular built environments is gaining traction, we should further move beyond the idea of material trade-offs, and, design, plan, and strategies to consider the matter of mutating requirements and choices and focus on this much-ignored immutable fact that human spatial needs drastically change with time. Technologically, reconfiguration and retraction of the buildings and larger built environment is not impossible, possibly focus has to be on statutory reconfiguration and policy reengineering.

Author: Anoop Jha

Image: Author

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

#urbanmanagement #urbanplanning #urbandesign #smartcities #circulareconomy #Rotterdam #Amsterdam #Utrecht #Netherlands #EU #Europe

What makes a great city?

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/
************************************************

Luck, inheritance, coincidence, distinct leadership, resourcefulness, and experimentation

LUCK

· Geographic positioning – less susceptible to seasonal and weather extremities, and diurnal variations

· Environmentally guarded geography – less vulnerability to climate change catastrophe

· Regional positioning (sea coast, river bank, hills, valley) - economic and ecological potential

· Natural resources (minerals, ecological assets)

COINCIDENCE

· On a trade route – economic edge

· Twin city or polycentric regional setting – symbiotic advantage

INHERITANCE

· Heritage – something to nurture and to build on

· Legacy institutions (industries/ businesses/ hub of public and private institutions)

DISTINCTIVE LEADERSHIP

· Transformative vision (planned spatial growth and development blueprint, policy formulation, sectoral roadmap, city branding)

· Creating economic and knowledge ecosystems (anchor industries and MSME, commerce, startups, universities)

· Tackling socio-economic challenges (poverty, inequality, crime)

· Controlling demographic indicators (education, gender ratio, vocation, etc)

· Mitigating environmental impact

· Preparing for climate resilience

RESOURCEFULNESS

· Finding means of revenue generation

· Attracting investments

· Assuring funding

· Attracting human capital

· Attracting footfall

· Creating a network of global and regional partnerships and a support system

EXPERIMENTATION

· Living labs

· Districts of experimentation

The above factors and possibly a few others, dictate the present and future of metropolitans, cities, towns, and “would-be cities”; these are interdependent factors. While luck, inheritance, and coincidence have their own place, and sometimes cities have no choice; going beyond, theoretically and technically any city can be a great city if it decides to be one, if it focuses on leveraging what is coincidental, building on what has been inherited, finding right leadership, being resourceful and experimentative!

Author: Anoop Jha

Image: Author

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

#urbanmanagement #urbanplanning #smartcities #urbandesign #landscape #ecology #economy #heritage #tourism #municipality #Amsterdam #Utrecht #Rotterdam #Netherlands #EU #Europe

Revisiting the impact of mega infrastructure development.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

The nature of mega infrastructure projects is such that their impact goes beyond its physical dimensions and boundaries. The impact goes even beyond its defined catchment, described objective, perceived externalities, and statutory confine.

When a mega infrastructure of any kind is introduced in a geographic system, the morphology of the immediate and distant built environment is either going to be evolved, shaped or redefined, ecological and bio-diversity reconfigurations may just get triggered, microclimate are going to undergo changes, socio-economic and demographic equilibriums are bound to change, power dynamics are bound to shift, a period of destabilisation and adjustments are sure to be witnessed, the upheaval of opinions, emotions and aspirations are mostly assured, the opportunity-scape are obviously to be developed and redefined, and vested interests are bound to surface, and of course, few consequences beyond human grasp may also surface.

Build a ring road, make an airport, build a dam, or channelize a river, and all or most of the above phenomenon gets activated and rarely gets acknowledged or addressed in their impact assessment in the totality, complexity, and subtlety of it.

There are certainly positive externalities, but currently, any (negative) impact of mega infrastructure that comes as a surprise, we tend to label them as unintended or link them to external factors or define them as non-linear and characteristics of wicked problems.

The possible reason for the shortsightedness of impacts and events followed by the advent of mega infrastructure are the practical limitations of prescriptive statutory compliance. That is understood, as one has to stop somewhere and define the boundary of impact, contours of liability, and exactness of liability. But it is still wise to consider and assess the impacts beyond the statutory confine and unresolved interests, for the common larger good.

Thankfully, today or anytime soon, most of the impacts of mega infrastructure can be defined and visualised based on historical observations and near-infinite scenario modelling, can be predicted, forecasted and modelled accurately with modern tools, and can be empirically constructed, or imagined beforehand by logic, wisdom and diverse consultation.

Author: Anoop Kumar Jha

Image: Author

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

#megastructure #infrastructure #urbanmanagement #urbanplanning #smartcities #urbandesign #landscape #ecology #economy #heritage #tourism #municipality #Amsterdam #Utrecht #Rotterdam #Netherlands #EU #Europe #Asia

Individual tax reform - empowering citizens to help build community they want to live in.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

We increasingly see people getting more and more aware, vocal and affiliated with one and many causes they care about. Many have accordingly started to make their choices, adapt their behavior and shape their lifestyle. It would have been great if they had actual say, tangible control, and power to influence level of impact, for the causes they care about.

In different parts of the world, you see homeless people on street and want to bring them out of that situation, you see poor uncared or abandoned animals on street and want to do something about it, you care about safety in your neighbourhood and want to do something about broken or absent street lights; you see mound of waste on street and want to see your city clean, you see your city getting flooded every year and want to do something about it.

The tax money one pays goes into solving these issues anyways, but the priorities and fund allocation against each issue is decided by someone's else, i.e., by government. By paying the tax money you acknowledge your contribution to making a livable city and a reasonable society, but you dont feel the satisfaction of actually, in tangible ways, contributing to the specific cause you cared about, through your tax contribution.

There is a possible way that you may have actual control on directly contributing to cause you care about, if we do a creative reform in the individual taxation. If you as an individual are given the choice, power, and means to assign and distribute part of, say 50% of your applicable tax amount to one or many causes you care about, from a long list of possible issues, where you want your part tax money to go. Also having the choice of whether your part tax money goes to national or regional or local tax reserve, depending on the scale of issue and nature of cause you care about.

This way you assure that you made the direct financial contribution to the cause you care about, get the sense of satisfaction that you helped ameliorate the specific situation within your community, neighbourhood and country, that bothered you for long. You can even measure the direct impact you made there through observation over time.

If central, regional and local government, and tax authorities, in any part of the world, in any country, in any city, jointly decide to do such tax reform, and if they do the math, the sum total of funds available for various investment priorities, should theoritically remain same as they projected upfront, despite citizens making random choices about their part tax money distribution. If not so, it only shows that citizen and community priorities are different than what government and city adminstration thought, which will in turn further prompt alignment of national/ regional/local priorities with citizen aspirations.

Author: Anoop Jha

Image: Author

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

#Amsterdam #Utrecht #Rotterdam #Hague #Netherlands #EU #Europe #India

Apr 24, 2023

Revisiting landuse

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

If any part of city, neighborhood, plot or real estate inventory is not performing optimally, or partially vacant or deserted; then possibly assigned land use is not appropriate, which is required to be heterogeneous and able to be readjusted in near real time. The definition of land use as well need to be re-examined.

Land use regulation in any part of world usually has inbuilt provisions of land use conversion, sometimes by complex and lengthy statutory provisions; while land use remains binding for five to ten years or longer. Also, today’s land use plan, might be based on 5 to 10 year or older idea of what growth is or what growth should be or what growth may look like in future.

The actual current growth, desired land use composition and today’s socio-commercial dynamics may or may not match the historically envisaged growth pattern, land use classification; or land use spatial distribution; which usually leads to mismatch in current land use demand, supply, and mix. Hence the nobel intention of development control regulation, though may serve its intended purpose of stopping haphazard development, may also prove to be insufficient or counter-productive due to its rigidity. Further the definition of land use in terms of its current broad categories, and manner of current application in three dimentional space may remain a barrier for quick adaptation to market demand and supply, in absence of further granularity.

The traditional land use regulation is usually top-down, many a times fails to respond to emerging unforeseen bottom-up requirements over years; especially short-term requirements and rarely corresponds to real time requirements. City scale development control regulations or meso scale land use regulations and urban design guideline in all its legitimacy and validity, still by its very nature, may also create a rigid abstract three-dimensional regulated space which may act as a self-limiting criterion, failing to respond to present and real time land use demand pressure and socio-commercial aspirations.

While land use remains, an indispensable city planning tool, it a) may require to reinvent itself to be agile, allowing land usage conversion in near real time; b) may require to factor in dynamic property pricing and associated economic cost-benefit so that not a single acreage of potential urban space or single square feet of precious real estate remain underutilised in a city; c) may require to be implemented at a more granular level i.e., looking at a mixed-use zone or mixed-use building for instance not just as a spatial land use demarcation or a vertically stacked land use, but to be seen as mosaic (pixels) of variety of land usage both horizontally and vertically; compatibility of which can always be worked out.

Author: Anoop Jha

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

Apr 8, 2023

Analyzing network characteristics.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

Networks often have two juxtaposed characteristics, one vulnerability, and the other redundancy/ resilience. Vulnerability in a sense that even a single or few weak links or blockages may interrupt the functionality of the network. Redundancy/ resilience because, due to multiple nodes and links, in case of disruption there might be multiple alternate paths that exist to continue the intended process.

Let’s take a case of business as a network. If there is a missing link or continued blockage in the supply chain, for instance, due to logistics infrastructure under-capacity, it may disrupt a business or even prompt some businesses to close down their operations. This is an example of vulnerability. On the other hand, if there is a policy change for instance that makes it impossible for a traditional business to serve a particular client base, in that case, the same business may either choose to serve a different market or mutate its business to offer another kind of product or service, using same logistics and supply chain. This is an example of redundancy.

If we acknowledge the dyadic nature and potential of the network from the very beginning, we may be able to plan better, may be able to plan in advance, we may be able to minimize vulnerability, and leverage redundancy, possibly through scenario building.

Author: Anoop Jha

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

#urbanmanagement #urbandevelopment #governance #egovernance #publicpolicy #Rotterdam #Amsterdam #DenHaag #Delft #Alkmaar #DenBosch #Eindhoven #Utretch #Hague #Netherlands

Apr 5, 2023

What AI might have to do with anthropology, culture or linguistics?

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

AI certainly gives us a reason to cherish and leverage history, tradition and culture. It empowers us and generation to come, to instantly connect to roots and increasingly getting the grip of lost anthropological and cultural context. You not necessarily have to visit museum, or open encyclopaedia or search in gazette documents, to trace and learn about tradition and once thriving culture, as AI comes to rescue.

Why its important? Because, in very short span of time we observe how our language changes, once common words disappear from our lingo, once commonplace household items disappear from our day to day life, once common cultural practices disappear from modern lifestyle.

Not necessarily one must continue to use certain elements, items, or practices from past; as relevance, context and validity of some of those may remain futile or sometimes questionable. But what may be of interest here is the immense knowledge and several practices from past which AI makes more accessible. Also, making world of knowledge a more equitable playfield.

For instance, drawing inspirations from past culture and tradition has became much more easier for those in creative fields - designers, multiple forms of media creators, artists etc.

Also, finding the root cause and mapping certain geographic and cultural behaviour and traits have become more accessible for those on cultural exploration and for business communities, where personalised experience, products and services have become key to success. Ease and timely access to such wealth of historic quantitative and qualitative information may also help city planners, urban designers and architects to provide more humane solutions and urban fabric, that corresponds to aspirations of local community.

Most importantly, making a rational decisions might have become easier considering Open AI and alike gives quick insight based on a large body of work (including text from deep in past, and referring to texts from left, right and centre perspective), hence providing us with a additional validated input, to base our decisions on. Acknowledging that personal opinion, undocumented knowledge (to which AI might not have access to) and intuitions, may still continue to play a key role in decision making in near future, at individual and Institutional level.

Author: Anoop Jha

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

#technology #AI #Chatgpt #openAI #anthropology #urbanmanagement #Amsterdam #Utretch #Hague #Delft #Eindhoven #Rotterdam #Netherlands

Analyzing network characteristics.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

Say if we visualize the transportation system as a network, if there is a missing link or persistent blockage (obstruction) in the bicycle route it may deter users to use bicycles altogether. This is an example of vulnerability. On the other hand, if your vehicle malfunctions at a certain place, you can always switch to an alternate parallel transportation mode like public transport. That is an example of redundancy within the same network of the transportation system.

Let’s take a case of business as a network. If there is a missing link or continued blockage in the supply chain, for instance, due to logistics infrastructure under-capacity, it may disrupt a business or even prompt some businesses to close down their operations. This is an example of vulnerability. On the other hand, if there is a policy change for instance that makes it impossible for a traditional business to serve a particular client base, in that case, the same business may either choose to serve a different market or mutate its business to offer another kind of product or service, using same logistics and supply chain. This is an example of redundancy.

We also see this juxtaposition at the societal level, if we consider society as a network. For instance, once the traditional rural fabric grows bigger to become a town and once the urban boundary is drawn, it tends to disrupt the social fabric on both sides of the urban-rural border. But using the same residual network, society on both sides of the border adapts to new socio-economic order within the newly established identity. i.e., the mutation in economic activities and readjustments in social characteristics.

If we acknowledge the dyadic nature and potential of the network from the very beginning, we may be able to plan better, may be able to plan in advance, we may be able to minimize vulnerability, and leverage redundancy, possibly through scenario building.

Author: Anoop Jha

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

#smartcity #urbanmanagement #urbandevelopment #governance #egovernance #publicpolicy #ml #machinelearning #iot #Rotterdam #Amsterdam #DenHaag #Delft #Alkmaar #DenBosch #Eindhoven #Utretch #Hague #Netherlands

Mar 30, 2023

What could be the barometer to know if a city is doing well?

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

You may be able to figure out if a city or even country is doing somewhat well for community and visitors alike, by observing or experiencing some of following traits.

If you are feeling safe at all time of the day and night in a city. That may mean, your anxiousness doesn't increases (as a function of safety perception) as the night approaches. That is possible when you know there is next bus, tram, metro or train to make sure you reach your eventual destination, and if you could remain assured, that you can be rescued from an unsafe or unwarranted situation.

If you are still able to make sense of place any hour of day and night. That may mean, you are able to orient yourself in space and time throughout the day and night, at any location within city. That is possible when space is easily legible and well illuminated, for you to spatially position yourself in any part of city.

Making city work well is a constant quest for city administrations, urban planners, researchers and many. Targeting above may be a good starting point for any city, as there is always scope of making things good to better and more.

Author: Anoop Jha

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

************************************************

#urbanplanning #urbandevelopment #urbanmanagement #urbandesign #smartcity #Amsterdam #Utretch #Hague #Delft #Eindhoven #Rotterdam

Preconditions and trade-offs of making a great city!

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

Making great city has preconditions like right aspirations, thorough planning, right partnerships, timely resources, among others. Though process seems straightforward but its as organic and uncertain as gamble. That is because there are trade-offs at each level of preconditions mentioned above and many more. For instance there is wide range of choices available at each precondition level. Then there is wide range of possibilities about when these choices were made (early, midway, late, missed), and who made those choices (public, public representatives, internal or external institutions providing aid, or driven by commercial forces). These organic event timeline, and choices made along the way, shapes the outcome called "City". What is interesting to note here is that events (action) are sometimes spontaneous and choices are sometimes based on intuitions.

Following are some of the "trade-offs" witnessed when it comes to making choices, that has potentials to result in great cities if right degree and mix of choices are made at right time.

PRECONDITIONS

(Right choice/ decision is to be found somewhere in between; while process of making choices many a times are more complex than presented below)

"Right aspirations"

a) Top down (by administration) OR bottom up (by community)

b) Vision A, B, OR C

c) Work on weaknesses and threats OR build on Strengths and opportunities

"Thorough planning"

a) Redevelop (brownfield) OR build new (greenfield)

b) Alternative A, B OR C

c) External Expertise OR Local knowledge

d) Plan for now OR plan for future OR wait for particular technology/ concept to mature

"Right Partnership"

a) Proven partnership OR Potential new partnership

b) Relying on established industry players OR betting on promising newcomers/ startups

c) Comfort of traditional role OR reward and risk of new emergent roles

"Timely Resources"

a) Immediate Borrowing OR Strengthening old/ new sources of revenue

b) Invite talent or build competencies

..and more.

It seems that making a great city is more of an art than science; more learning than demonstration. Right choices at right moment makes a great city, and its never too late.

Additionally amidst range of choices and trade-offs, focus must be on core aspects including liveability, climate, equity, economy, circularity and context, we should be closer to making a city great!

Author: Anoop Jha

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Page Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

My LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anoopjha/

************************************************

#urbanplanning #urbandevelopment #urbanmanagement #urbandesign #circulareconomy #smartcity #Amsterdam #Utretch #Hague #Delft #Eindhoven #Rotterdam #Netherlands

How different stakeholders of city having different perception and measurement scale for city, make them judge city performance differently.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

A saying that goes something like - Every peasant measures the sea with the pond in their village - Anonymous

And we also remember the story of elephant, how it was assessed differently, blindfolded.

That is, we have our own idea of scale or measurement unit or performance measurement; at individual level, at institution level and at fraternity level. And we see city as an object of analysis form these lenses.

How city is performing? Depends on the position which each actor takes while posing such question. For instance, real estate developer may see city from asset perspective, assessing city on a per square feet real estate basis, while assigning each zone and neighbourhood a price tag. Urban designers may visualise city as interplay of mass, in terms of built and open spaces, and assigning weightage to each zone based on form and order. Landscape architects, might visualise city as punctuation of green and open within built environment, and assessing liveability of different neighbourhoods based on percentage and access to green. Climate scientists may visualise city as a heat map of energy usage intensity and might like to assess city on per capita energy usage or carbon footprint. Social scientist might be judging city in terms of Human Development Index/ per capita income/ happiness index etc. Transport planners may like to assess city, in terms of road density and model split, spatially assessing city based on ease of access to public transport. Engineers may judge performance as per capita power and water availability etc. And so on. List is long. Though mostly it remains a composite assessment based on quantitative and qualitative parameters. But sure qualitative also still has benchmark, scale.

City as a physical dynamic entity may mean different things to different actors, stakeholders and fraternity, but it practically cannot fit 100% in the aspiration and assessment matrix of each actor. There may be mismatch in their aspirations and assessment satisfaction, because of different assessment tools they use, assessment scale with which they are comfortable with, intuitively. So usually consensus in city making process is reached when parties arrive at a win-win situation after rounds of discussions and deliberations, also a trait of network governance.

As cities are expected to change, at the same time measurement scales and industry wide fixation or affinity with particular assessment indices also need to change/ evolve over time, in a synergistic manner. We sometimes need to leave a particular stand or position to see things from each others perspective, to appreciate "City" for instance, in the grand scheme of things.

Author: Anoop Jha

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

My LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anoopjha/

************************************************

#urbanplanning #urbandevelopment #urbanmanagement #urbandesign #smartcity #Amsterdam #Utretch #Hague #Delft #Eindhoven #Rotterdam #Netherlands

What AI might have to do with anthropology, culture or linguistics?

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

Why its important? Because, in very short span of time we observe how our language changes, once common words disappear from our lingo, once commonplace household items disappear from our day to day life, once common cultural practices disappear from modern lifestyle.

Not necessarily one must continue to use certain elements, items, or practices from past; as relevance, context and validity of some of those may remain futile or sometimes questionable. But what may be of interest here is the immense knowledge and several practices from past which AI makes more accessible. Also, making world of knowledge a more equitable playfield.

For instance, drawing inspirations from past culture and tradition has became much more easier for those in creative fields - designers, multiple forms of media creators, artists etc.

Also, finding the root cause and mapping certain geographic and cultural behaviour and traits have become more accessible for those on cultural exploration and for business communities, where personalised experience, products and services have become key to success. Ease and timely access to such wealth of historic quantitative and qualitative information may also help city planners, urban designers and architects to provide more humane solutions and urban fabric, that corresponds to aspirations of local community.

Most importantly, making a rational decisions might have become easier considering Open AI and alike gives quick insight based on a large body of work (including text from deep in past, and referring to texts from left, right and centre perspective), hence providing us with a additional validated input, to base our decisions on. Acknowledging that personal opinion, undocumented knowledge (to which AI might not have access to) and intuitions, may still continue to play a key role in decision making in near future, at individual and Institutional level.

Author: Anoop Jha

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

My LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anoopjha/

************************************************

#technology #AI #Chatgpt #openAI #anthropology #urbanmanagement #Amsterdam #Utretch #Hague #Delft #Eindhoven #Rotterdam #Netherlands

Mar 19, 2023

What could be the barometer to know if a city is doing well?

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

You may be able to figure out if a city or even country is doing somewhat well for community and visitors alike, by observing or experiencing some of following traits.

Author: Anoop Jha

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

My LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anoopjha/

************************************************

#urbanplanning #urbandevelopment #urbanmanagement #urbandesign #smartcity #Amsterdam #Utretch #Hague #Delft #Eindhoven #Rotterdam

Mar 5, 2023

Meaning and benefits of public transport goes beyond what is usually understood or quantified.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

************************************************

Public transportation system is versatile and agile, not only as a mode of communication, but it also presents an opportunity-scape that resembles city itself. Public transport can also be seen as a public space in motion, having several traits like a public square or public plaza. Transport system or rolling stocks also serves complementary urban landuse functions. For instance sometimes like "office", as so many business calls are made and emails are send from within the fleet system of public transport, on a daily basis, across the world. "Institutional", like Library, considering all the book chapters completed by scores of commuters while travelling in metro, tram and buses. "Commercial" considering all the money spent on online shopping and e-commerce while completing journey in public transport. Also "dining" for example, scrolling through menu and placing food order online while travelling in metro and tram, timing order and tracking delivery perfectly, so that your hot meal also gets delivered by the time you reach home. Or “theatre” considering all the movies streamed during travel in public transport, not to mention in a rather very different ambient setting than typical original landuse.

Public transport sometimes also challenges the notion of "what should be" when it comes to design of architectural spaces, for instance "library” is always designed with an idea of maintaining 'pindrop silence' within the space, considered conducive for study, then what about millions of books being read by people on the go world over, while commuting in the public transport, reading digital or hard cover book, few para or a few pages a day to slowly complete the book, be it fiction or science, that too right within the bustling chaos and white-noise of public transport.

Public transport can be considered a microcosm and miniature reflection of city in which it is situated. Taking clues and inspiration from multi-functionality and multidimensionality of public transport system, it would be worth revisiting traditional design and planning role and values around public transportation system.

Author: Anoop Jha

************************************************

[Recent update

Starting 2024, launching urban management, interior design, home decor and commissioned artwork services in the Netherlands, serving local as well as international remote clients.

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/

Instagram interior design page @urbantenets

Instagram fine art and illustration page @urbanoregional

My LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anoopjha/

************************************************

#publictransport #urbanplanning #urbandevelopment #urbanmanagement #urbandesign #architecture #smartcity #Amsterdam #Utretch #Hague #Delft #Denbosch #Alkmaar #Leiden #Noordholland #Northholland #Tilburg #Eindhoven #Rotterdam #Netherlands

Feb 20, 2023

Smallest base unit of urban planning!

What has to be the smallest base unit of urban planning? Sector, cluster, zone, block, plot, dwelling unit or a hypothetical grid. Above are convenient measurement units but fundamental "human" element is missing there. Add "people" into the equation and each of these unit becomes dynamic pulsating living being having spillover effect, missed in current brownfield planning and development approach.

"People" for whom & from where urban planning should start and where all the benefits of planning should culminate.

Community, being a considerably large, heterogeneous and multicultural entity

is too big to be considered the smallest unit of urban planning; while Individual, having a limited set of attributes and prolific in numbers is rather too small & cumbersome an entity for base unit.

"Household" with its autonomous demographic, cultural & socioeconomic quality, gender mix, age range, embodiment of community ethos & manageable scale should be the most logical & obvious choice of smallest unit & assessment tool of urban planning. Household's data attributes should go beyond economic, demographic & census checklist & must factor in parameters of it's social and ecological footprint, commute profile, debt & liabilities, pursuits and aspirations etc.

Author: Anoop Jha

Nov 2, 2023

One of the most important and underrated aspects of material flow.

The dilemma of oversized urban houses.

What makes a great city? Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/************************************************

Revisiting the impact of mega infrastructure development.

Individual tax reform - empowering citizens to help build community they want to live in.

Apr 24, 2023

Apr 8, 2023

Apr 5, 2023

Mar 30, 2023

Mar 19, 2023

Mar 5, 2023

Feb 20, 2023

What makes a great city?

Please visit my web page "Urban Tenets" at https://urbantenets.nl/
************************************************