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Can we save the cities?
Year Published: 1992Resource Type: Book Cx Number: CX4486 Abstract: Exploring Urban Frontiers is the title of issue #17 of Raising the Stakes, The Planet Drum Review. Unfortunately, the contents do little to increase one's optimism. After an introductory lament for the failure of bioregionalists to confront urban problems, as manifested by the failure of the fourth North American Bioregional Conference to agree on resolutions or on an effective platform to recognize urban areas within bioregions and make them more sustainable, the issue offers a variety of ecologists' viewpoints. Most of the writers have lots of ideas of how great the city could be with rooftop gardens, local governing councils etc, and a few ideas how we are going to get from here to there (sound familiar?) There are some constructive suggestions for immediate action, such as acquiring a piece of urban land for a restoration project installing native flora and fauna, and another to create more housing units, closer to jobs and public transit. But there is nothing that seems likely to be effective in time, considering the Worldwatch Institute's prediction that the Earth can only endure another forty years of overpollution, ozone depletion, rain forest destruction and global warming before we pass the threshold of irreversible environmental destruction. The magazine leaves one feeling that anyone who hopes to survive what Pogo called the Short Age should abandon the city and seek rural self-sufficiency. Subject Headings |