I hope everyone had a fabulous Canada Day long weekend, and a wonderful Independence Day (to our neighbours in the U.S. of A)!
Every Canada Day, I find that I get a little sentimental and misty-eyed when it comes to reflecting on this fine nation of ours. So much so that I, annually, find myself pondering on how lucky I am to live in this beautiful country, and in Waterloo Region on a more community-focused level. That’s why I thought that returning to our Steel Rails discussion post-long weekend would give us all the warm fuzzies (I’m a thoughtful gal, am I not?).
This little video clip was captured at Steel Rail sessions. It features Lia, an Urban Planner, who shares with us her personal formula for dynamic city growth. It includes these 3 elements:
1. Density: A critical mass of caring people to make great things happen.
2. Gentrification: In other words, money, or folks with the means to invest in this city.
3. Multiculturalism: Enough different opinions—and multi-cultures are a terrific way to start a dialogue.
Many thanks to Lia for contributing her beautiful artistic talents and thoughts to our “Draw It Up” activity. So now is the time to tell us what you think … what do you believe Waterloo Region needs more of to make it a thriving, dynamic community?
A very well-formed contribution, Lia!
Comment by Craig — July 5, 2011 @ 3:28 pm
What a great formula Lia! A very realistic message to a region that I think already has a lot of this foundation in place. Personally, I think we also need a city council in place that really listens to its citizens, then and understands and goes to bat for what the majority wants.
Comment by Jules — July 6, 2011 @ 10:57 am
[…] as promised, we’ve already started—albeit slowly—revealing visual squares illustrated by our train car riders. You can’t blame a girl for wanting to create a little anticipation, can you? Well today, […]
Pingback by Making KW (even more) Awesome at Steel Rails 2011 « MFX : Passionate Creative People — July 8, 2011 @ 10:51 am
As usual, Leah has her priorities straight. Community, economic, technical and social imperatives will usually lead politicians to the right planning decisions, eventually. Of course, projects like this video series can help to speed up the process.
Comment by Jerry — July 28, 2011 @ 9:14 pm