The Urbanist
Monocle’s guide to better cities. Explore urban innovation, cutting-edge infrastructure, and compact living with insights from planners, architects, and city leaders.
Latest Episodes
Green New Deal
We unpack what this bold proposal is all about and find out how it wants to tackle both inequality and climate change at the same time.
Catching up
We speak to Lisa Helps, the mayor of Victoria, about her ambitious transport agenda and Clarkston’s mayor Ted Terry about refugees. Plus: can The Tide, a project by the studio behind New York’s High Line, change London?
Wellbeing and cities
We discuss wellbeing in our urban environments. Reporting from the inaugural Wellbeing Cities Forum in Montréal, we examine how to live well in a city and dissect the social, economic and cultural aspects of urban life.
Lessons from the Quality of Life Conference
Now that Monocle’s fifth annual Quality of Life conference has wrapped up in Madrid, we look back at some of the wisdom we took home with us and ponder how we can use these lessons to effect change in our own urban environments.
Spotlight: Madrid
As we gear up to host our fifth annual Quality of Life Conference in Madrid, we look at the Spanish capital’s urban plans, promises and problems. Our man in the city, Liam Aldous, brings us this week’s special episode.
Checking in
We hear about a clever digital tool changing our urban environments, look at Toronto’s plans to loosen the reins on high-rises and visit a new museum in Sarajevo.
Cities through the artist’s eye
We stroll through the halls of The Urbanist art gallery to look at how the artist’s perspective can help us paint a new picture of the cities we live in.
Urban rulebook
What does it take to be a good citizen? Authorities can set the tone but in the end it’s residents who define the places they live. We look at what’s required to make our cities thrive – and yes, it means following a couple of rules here and there.
Private and public development, part two
We continue our conversation with architect Monica von Schmalensee, developer Jared Della Vale and urban-planner Alfredo Caraballo on the role that private developers play in cities. Plus: we take a closer look at the new World Trade Center.
Private and public development, part one
What role do private developers play in changing public spaces in our cities? This week we join the Van Alen Institute in London as it visits, learns about and passes judgement on the city’s headline-grabbing projects.
