CARFREE TOKYO

- a collection of notes and reflections on urban living from the perspective of a family of five in Tokyo. My epiphany was many years ago, but being hit by a motorbike and seeing my life flash before my eyes caused a sudden change that slowly made me reflect on whether American style auto-centric urban transportation of the Roosevelt era really is a capital G "Good Idea" for civilized modern cities in the 21st Century. This blog explores the good and the bad in urban planning and design, here and elsewhere. The goal is simple - not "death to all cars," just more walkable communities, quiet tree-lined streets, good public transport, traffic calming, Velib style bicycle sharing and a bit of common sense. The bolg is mostly theraputic, so I don't go wanting to throttle every dangerous driver I come across, but partly also out of a real desire to see positive change. This blog explores how it can be done, the people who do it, and how, in many small ways, this very old idea may at last have found its zeitgeist. Comments and suggestions welcome.

Friday, March 02, 2007

State of the Union

Each year, the Department of Environment and Conservation in NSW Australia releases a report entitled "Who Cares About the Environment in 200X". The 2006 report, HERE, shows a huge increase in awareness and concern about environmental issues. For example, about 90% of people say they are concerned about the environment (makes you wonder about the other 10% though).

But how about this one - more than 75% of people could not even distinguish between the ozone hole problem and global warming. Frankly, I find it hard to believe that 75% of Australians have their heads so far up their #$%%s... or then again maybe... (just kidding!)

Even still, 85% of people think that government and industry are not doing enough to combat environmental issues. There's a mandate for change if ever there was one.
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