Karl Dickinson

As a City Council Member for the Green Party, Peter Kraus makes waves in the Austrian capital Vienna with his persistent campaigning for climate-friendly, people-focussed policy. At just 34, he is already a non-executive city councillor and a member of the Viennese state government. As an Urban Future 2020...

The decarbonising effects of retrofitting older buildings will do a lot to slow or even prevent the global heating process. But where do we start? How do we know what measures individual properties require, what really works, or when each step should be taken? Never fear, CityChangers is here!...

Cities emit seemingly endless cascades of greenhouse gasses. Carbon dioxide is the number one offender. Rectifying this is pivotal to halting global warming and preventing irreversible climate damage. But decarbonising cities at a mass scale is an unprecedented task with an unforgiving deadline. So, how can it be achieved?...

Telling the average person on the street to upgrade their draughty, crumbling home to save energy and, ergo, the planet might be too abstract to inspire action, met with responses like: “What difference can I really make? Why should I when countries and corporations continue to pollute so heavily?”...

Populations are rising. We cannot build fast enough to accommodate everyone. We need to utilise older buildings for our living, working, and leisure needs. Retrofitting makes them future-proof, efficient, and climate-friendly, shaping the urban landscape for decades to come. Our tally of retrofitting facts and figures is a sobering...

There is no one-size-fits-all solution to decarbonising older properties. Each building has its own character, history, and flaws that need to be considered when choosing appropriate measures to make them energy efficient. These can be done in one go or piecemeal. That’s the fundamental, but not only, difference between...

What would your dream home look like? Some people will be lucky enough to build fanciful follies from scratch. The rest of us get to pick the choice cuts from pre-existing stock; but older constructions may need a little bit of sprucing up. Beyond a lick of paint to...

In case the world of sustainable buildings, planning, retrofitting, and construction is new to you, the CityChangers team has put together a quick-reference glossary to help you navigate some of the most common and technical terms used in our articles. A B C D E F G H I J...

Ever-greener attitudes and regulations ensure new builds, that accommodate growing populations, are efficient and climate-ready. But what about the plethora of existing ones? We can’t just bulldoze them all and start again. So, how can we equip pre-standing stock for the future, to serve our needs and be less...

America and Europe are awash with cities putting multi-modal transport at the forefront of cities’ policy and design. The voice of Africa doesn’t feel so prominent, but that’s misleading: Addis Ababa’s progressive transport plans are proof that the continent is far from lagging. We spoke with Iman Abubaker from...

Cities are still failing to cater for pedestrians and we’re struggling to get communities walking as a result. When it comes to implementing change, stakeholder backing greases the wheels and a coordinated bunch of folks can be an unstoppable force. But how can we harness this potential? In this...

All of us are pedestrians. We’re born with all we need – legs – to participate and use them throughout our lives without even thinking. Walking makes our lives more convenient, enjoyable, affluent, and worry-free. With so much to gain, the benefits of walkable cities are about more than...

Sedentary behaviour has become part of our everyday lives. It’s dangerous for our health, wellbeing, the environment, and the economy. Walking provides an antidote. But what do you really know about the wonders of walking? And just how can it benefit your city? From fun facts to serious stats,...