November 17, 2017
by Building The World
0 comments
The Conference of the Parties (COP23) met in Bonn, Germany to put the walk in the talk. COP23’s purpose? Make actionable those agreements, formed in Paris at COP21, addressing climate change. Among developments in Bonn, the Ocean Pathway will include waters not … Continue reading
September 1, 2017
by Building The World
0 comments
Hurricane Harvey pelted Houston, Texas with twenty-seven trillion gallons of water. Homes, schools, hospitals, roads were damaged. But when a hurricane causes power outages, another kind of water problem occurs. Beaumont, Texas got 29 inches of rain from Harvey, knocking … Continue reading
July 21, 2017
by Building The World
0 comments
China’s plans for a “Forest City” may establish a vision for a better urban future. New cities have often marked turning points in history. In the year 145 (or A.D. 762), the new Caliph of the Abbasid dynasty decided to move … Continue reading
June 30, 2017
by Building The World
0 comments
Sydney, Australia, location of the legendary Opera House, has launched a series called Badu Gili or ‘Water Light’ in the language of the original Gadigal people. Video art, displayed on the Sydney Opera House every night at sunset, honors the … Continue reading
June 23, 2017
by Building The World
0 comments
Infrastructure has been termed the foundation of civilization. Rome built roads, and water systems; the aqueducts made possible the expansion of the city and the empire. China built the Grand Canal, stimulating commerce, culture, and communication: the written language was … Continue reading
June 16, 2017
by Building The World
0 comments
Coastal cities combating sea rise often respond by building barriers. But the Dutch, experts on inundation since the earliest days, have a different idea: letting the water in. Rotterdam, once the world’s largest port, is a city 90% below sea … Continue reading
June 2, 2017
by Building The World
0 comments
June 1, 2017: two announcements; the second, by a group of states, cities, businesses, and universities, pledging renewed commitment to the Paris Agreement, in which 195 countries joined a promise to the earth. The Eiffel Tower blazed the message. Michael … Continue reading
January 12, 2017
by Building The World
0 comments
Studies by Princeton’s Climate Central and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and Physics Institute of Potsdam University, reveal how sea level rise might affect coastal cities. Inundations will change the lives and livelihoods of people from Bangkok to Boston, … Continue reading
November 18, 2016
by Building The World
0 comments
Today is the birthday of time, it might be said. On 18 November, 1883, the General Railroad Time Convention agreed that a new time standard would take effect. It was just in time. Cities and towns used to set their … Continue reading
November 10, 2016
by Building The World
0 comments
7 November 2016: the United Nations convened COP22 in Marrakech, Morocco. Following the historic international consensus achieved at COP21, more than 100 countries have now ratified the Paris Agreement. “This is our moment to take the climate agreement as the … Continue reading