Graffiti Op-ed in FFWD

 
See my Graffiti opinion piece in the week's FFWD

Of course the issue of graffiti is complex and layered and cannot be fully articulated in a short article. Here is a link to a slightly more nuanced version of this article (although still incomplete).

Cities must get smarter about handling growth

First published in the Calgary Herald on Monday, October 24, 2005

Alberta municipalities need billions of dollars to pay for the costs of growth and development being spurred by the wild rush in the energy patch.  High and increasing world demand for oil and gas combined with the vast potential of the Alberta Tar Sands makes this once uneconomical resource a new frontier for development and profit.  

The opportunities are drawing big business and thousands of newcomers seeking employment and riches.  In Alberta, the boom is centered on Calgary, as the corporate home of the oil industry and Ft. McMurray, as the city closest to the actual tar sands.  And many other towns and cities in the province, particularly those located within the Calgary-Edmonton corridor are also dealing with the stresses resulting from growth. 

City photography

I have thousands of city photos to share.  Click here to be taken to my photo sharing site which has dozens of urban and travel photo albums

Hurricanes show Calgarians danger of short-term thinking

First published in the Calgary Herald on Sunday, September 25, 2005 page A14

The world is on sustainability overload.  It is everywhere.  In all realms of society it is a virtue that is constantly and endlessly proclaimed.  Because of its universal appeal as a desirable state of existence, politicians, activists, businesses and organizations of all types, operating at local, national, international, and global scales, all utter the word at every possible opportunity as if its mere mention endows credibility to a particular interest.  On one hand the widespread realization of the desirability of sustainable systems is a good thing.  However, on the other hand, its omnipresence dilutes the serious consequences of present-day development decisions.  

Welcome to Kid Calgary's City Blog

Kid Calgary is my poker avatar, but it sounded like a good name for my blog so I've adopted it.

In daily life I'm Geoff Ghitter, mild mannered instructor in the Urban Studies Program at the University of Calgary.  I received my PhD in Urban Geography last spring and in this blog I'm going to be writing about cities.

In my fantasy life I'm Geoff Ghitter urban photographer.  In my secret identity I travel to cities around the world documenting the urban fabric of foreign places through the medium of photography.  I'm a big believer in the idea that we are visual creatures and a visual image always enhances the understandings conveyed in text.  I illustrate and enliven all my posts with relevant photography from Calgary or other places I've visited.  Many of my photographs are linked to a GPS coordinate so viewers can see exactly where in the world they were taken. 

Now, the "city" is an immense topic that can be approached from many varied perspectives.  In this forum I want to address many different kinds of urban issues, but the overriding focus will be on urban sustainability as our global society moves forward into an uncertain, and perhaps unstable future.

The small ambition for this blog is to initiate a conversation about urban sustainability, including a rational way to understand that overused term.

So I will leave this short welcome at that and hope that, as you get to know me, and I you, that a fruitful dialogue will ensue.

I will begin by posting some editorials than ran in the Calgary Herald a number of years ago but are still relevant.  Every day or couple of days, I will post my thoughts about current urban issues in Calgary with a mind towards how other cities have coped with the same or similar problems.

Look for a series of articles on things Calgary can do to become a "great" city beginning on October 14 in  FFWD magazine.