Karl Dickinson

As heatwaves become more frequent, we grow reliant on cities taking measures to provide relief. From fountains to pools to games, there are plenty of ways water offers comfort from rising temperatures. There is even an app to help us find the options in our city: EXTREMA Global. We...

While marketing it as a decent money saver, we rarely focus on the social benefits of retrofitting. Does that mean that they’re so minute as to be obsolete or do we just need a shift in perspective? One thing is for sure, we should be retrofitting at a greater speed....

We claim a lot of land from the natural world to build ourselves places to live. What if we could construct in a way that works for humans and habitats? That’s the question which led Dr Gemma Jerome to develop the Building with Nature Standard. Intrigued to learn how...

Retrofitting provides the tools to make older buildings airtight, temperate, pleasant places. It also decreases emissions and helps halt the damaging impact on the climate. There’s no disguising the fact that we need to step up the pace. But is it really all about the environment? What are we...

Renowned Danish architect Jan Gehl changed our understanding of what urban space should be. Shunning the traditional school of planning in favour of liveable cities, he pioneered the movement of designing places for people. He tells us where this Eureka moment came from and shares the secret to discovering...

Twentieth-century urban sprawl caused a shift in how we move around and between cities. Where walking was once the norm, private motors now claim the crown. But with recent focus on alternative transport, walking is surging once again – and combining walking with other modes of transport should be...

Plenty of professionals and residents in your city are hungry for change, just like you. It makes sense to combine forces. Together you can achieve more, faster. But it takes a specific skill set to coordinate a disparate team. In this article, we’ll walk you through exactly what you...

Tragedy can break us, or it can spark a fire of determination, resilience, and growth. This statement is as true for the Colombian city of Medellín as it is for the person who made it happen. Chief Resilience Officer Santiago Uribe Rocha tells us how meeting Nelson Mandela influenced...

As an urban developer, Mikaela Åberg improves lives in one of Helsingborg’s most socially deprived districts: Drottninghög. Just a month before she is due to speak at the UF22 conference, this CityChanger tells us what led her here, why neighbourhoods like this matter, and how we can improve deprived...

Architects become famous for their inventive structures and controversial designs. But for Rajae Haissouss, satisfaction comes from adding value to the community. Aspiring to use her talents for good, this Young Leader is raising the profile of sustainability and stakeholder engagement in architecture through her work with the African...

Sweden’s premier southwestern city Malmö is not only a crowning glory in Scandinavian architecture, nature, and quality of life, but also in sustainability. The city is gaining notoriety as a bastion in new construction practices. The municipality’s Sustainability Strategist Anna Bernstad tells us what makes Malmö a trailblazer in...

A toxic mix of bad habits and infrastructure that prevents change is holding sustainability back. This is as true for retrofitting as anything. Community sociologist Doctor Jeni Cross has dedicated 20 years to researching the relationship between human behaviour and the systems that surround us. She tells CityChangers.org what...

Digitisation of the construction sector is an important step. It will simplify and streamline material reuse and carbon emission reduction. But this takes brains, cooperation between computing and construction, and a personal determination to create a circular economy regardless of how hard the journey gets. That’s Dominik Campanella down...

What makes someone choose policymaking as a career path? In the case of polyglot Miquel Vidal-Bover, it comes from seeing a city’s pressing issues first-hand and knowing where his skills can be best applied. Young Leader Miquel Vidal-Bover has an impressive resume. He has already conducted research into segregation in...

Realistically, for a shot at halting climate change, we need to make buildings more efficient, big time, with widespread retrofit rollouts in the next few years! Regardless of good intentions, that’s not easy without disposable cash. So, how can we possibly improve older buildings if money is tight? We...

What makes a CityChanger? Young Leader Sharee Hochman proves that it’s not an academic background or a position in city administration, but personal qualities like compassion coupled with good ideas and a desire to make a difference is what it truly takes. Here Sharee shares with us an inspirational...

If the question is ‘how do we build enough to house our growing populations?’, some espouse modern methods of construction as the answer. Although MMC promises cleaner construction and improved comfort for residents, uptake is still relatively understated. We caught up with Trina Chakravarti to understand what’s holding back...

With so many interest groups all wanting representation in the decisions that form our living cities, it isn’t easy getting it right. There will be those who are unrepresented, those involved but who do not feel heard, and others still who always get their way and are suspicious of...