“Urbanism in the Age of Climate Change”
Peter Calthorpe
Abstract
In this selection from Urbanism in the Age of Climate Change (2011), architect and urban designer Peter Calthorpe addresses what many consider see as the greatest challenge humanity has ever faced – global climate change. Calthorpe takes it as a given that climate change is an imminent threat and potential catastrophe but recognizes that on a per capita basis, dense cities like New York produce less carbon and damage the environment less than suburbs and rural areas making planning carbon-neutral cities for the future the major urban planning challenge everywhere in the world. For the US, what Calthorpe calls “the twelve percent solution” – cutting per capita greenhouse gas emissions to just 12 percent of their current level by 2050 – will require deep changes, not only in our energy sources, technology, and conservation means, but also in urban design, culture and lifestyles. His unique contribution to the debate about what to do about climate change is the role that urbanism can play in reducing climate change. Developing solar, wind, wave, geothermal, biomass, perhaps even nuclear power in place of oil and coal will be critical. So will conservation and restoration of habitat that can absorb carbon. So will alternative energy vehicles and better stewardship of the environment and natural resources. But for Calthorpe, a major contribution to reducing global climate change is better planning of cities and metropolitan regions – particularly more compact cities with better linkage between land use and transportation. Calthorpe’s designs are at the forefront of planning compact, livable, mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly cities.