by Alexandra J Tohme and François Alexandre

With rapid growth happening in the urban cores of Jacksonville and Miami, local leaders highlight the need to bridge culture, arts, community knowledge and economic opportunities — for better outcomes for all, cultural celebration & thriving cities.

On Saturday, November 18, Future of Cities (FOC) in partnership with Stratosferica, held the first US edition of the city-making summit, Utopian Hours — hosted at our Climate + Innovation Hub. The “city-making festival” was dedicated to dynamic discussions and engaging debates on urban development, and strategies for cities and the built environment — gathering developers, placemakers, city officials, researchers and architects and more, from the United States, Italy and around the world.

Multiple panels were presented, ranging from the “feminist city” with urban anthropologist Katrina Johnston-Zimmerman, to placemaking and citizen making in Turin Italy, to “maximizing public space’s potential in New York City” with Ya-Ting Liu, to National Geographic Explorer Alize Carrere’s “introduction to climatopias.” 

FOC held the Regenerative Placemaking Panel, moderated by Alexandra J Tohme —which zoomed in on local approaches to community uplifting development, challenges from brain drain to displacement and economic exclusion, and presented strategies for equitable growth. The speakers bridged global perspectives from Haiti to the Arab World to South Florida. 

Panelists: François Alexandre, Founder & Director of Tapari1804; Emily Moody, Director of Community Engagement, Phoenix Jacksonville Arts + Innovation District (PHX-JAX); Tanya Watts Director of Neighborhood Affairs PHX-JAX moderated by Alexandra J Tohme Director of Regenerative Placemaking FOC.

Overall, the community leaders stressed the importance of preserving the dignity of communities undergoing change: “the most important ingredient, to all our efforts is: dignity” said Alexandra. Dignity for the development of the project and its lasting impact, and for all those involved and at stake. This involves uplifting community members with decent services and decent housing. Projects should not jeopardize urban living and livelihood for local residents, but rather should provide, in the words of François Alexandre: “A hand-up, not a hand-out.”

Alexandra spoke to her experiences listening to local communities facing extreme hardship when she worked in refugee camps, and the humility required in this approach — as some of the brightest ideas and most innovative strategies are found within the community members and youth themselves. This extends to the local experiences of our Florida based panelists — with the community leadership of François Alexandre, representing Little Haiti, Miami and Tanya Watts and Emily Moody representing Jacksonville’s neighborhoods of North Springfield and the Eastside.

Emily Moody, third generation Jacksonville resident and Director of Community Engagement with PHX-JAX, has been a cultural pioneer and supporting the arts movement to gain traction and momentum by working with local artists, including through activations such as mural festivals and creating outdoor art galleries. Emily also highlighted the need for rent control of art studios to prevent the displacement of artists as property values rise — a point to which Alexandra emphasized that the attraction of new residents and visitors to Jacksonville should be coupled with supporting the existing arts scenes to flourish during this growth.

Among other initiatives by the PHX-JAX District, Tanya Watts discussed how property trainings and tax assistance help residents remain in their neighborhoods amid development.

Tanya Watts, Director of Neighborhood Affairs for PHX-JAX, echoed a sentiment raised by François Alexandre on the importance of the culture and the community of the neighborhood, “to make sure they are bridged together and not overlooked — partnering with existing community leaders doing important work, such as Suzanne Pickett of the Historic Eastside CDC — one of oldest historic black neighborhoods in Jacksonville, FL.” 

Tanya highlighted many important points including the need to be cognizant of which communities are affected by projects, and how to make sure growth is happening “not to the community, but with the community,’ a point emphasized by François in describing the needed shift in perspective to uplifting communities instead of imposing changes upon them.

We look forward to ensuring that our programming can then take off to build our arts & culture, youth job creation & food security and community initiatives. 

“Friends of Phoenix is a new non-profit we have launched,” announced Emily, and one of the pillars to support the mission is “to keep artists in the neighborhood, keep them working and hopefully provide a livable wage to support the flourishment of the neighborhood, and wider city of Jacksonville.”

FOC’s new nonprofit endeavors in Little Haiti and Jacksonville are currently raising funds to support the programming that these community leaders have developed thoughtfully and after deep engagements, consultations, and shared activations in the neighborhoods with local residents, artists, entrepreneurs, and youth.

François Alexandre drew attention to the 50th anniversary of the boat people’s migration from Haiti, and that the community takes pride in commemorating its resilience in its historical journey. François expressed his commitment to fostering positive change, understanding the needs of the community, and bridging gaps between various sectors.

Born in Haiti and raised in South Florida, he shared insights into the transformation witnessed in Little Haiti, Miami. The time has never been more crucial than now for co-creation of projects with and by people and groups within the neighborhood. He envisions a collective effort to create a future that caters to the well-being of everyone involved.

François gave a shout out to another speaker and legendary place-maker, systems thinker and practitioner, Scott Francisco, who spoke later that day on his own panel (check out our interview piece with him here about tropical timber harvesting.) What Scott is doing, François emphasized, is a tangible example of the efforts needed: 

“He is putting value into communities, indigenous and local family livelihoods, and then that values goes back into the market.

If we could do that in every area, in every neighborhood, then its not just putting value into a coin and turning it into a dollar, but putting value into people, into local businesses, and transforming that into equitable and sustainable lasting economic growth, growth that has resiliency built in and can better withstand shocks, because it puts people, residents and communities at the core.”

Events such as Utopian Hours are important, as François emphasized that gatherings such as this summit bring together “thinkers that envision and work towards what the future looks like for all of us, not just the haves or have-nots, but for all people to move forward. What does it look like collectively, to regenerate a society that we are all part of and cares for all of us?”

~

Become a Regenerative Placemaker and join us in co-creating the future of cities with us as we work together towards a more regenerative future.

Subscribe to our newsletter at focities.com to get involved, email me at: ajtohme@focities.com and follow us on Instagram.

Future Of Cities Medium Blog. Learn more about the Tapari + Future of Cities Collaboration Project on youth empowerment, storytelling and Haitian culture.

To see the photo album from the Utopian Hours City-Making event, see the VACO Studio album here!

by Alexandra J Tohme

At New York City Climate Week & United Nations 78th General Assembly — project leaders from Future of Cities, Far Away Projects, Tapari and Alive-in gathered our friends and network together to announce an exciting new project in our pipeline for the FOC Climate + Innovation Hub in Little Haiti.

To set the scene, I opened the evening by challenging the common narrative on Haiti, which describes the country as “the rose that grows from the concrete,” — why not make a garden!

Ti Ayiti News & Awareness — TANA — is a storytelling program designed to serve two objectives: to amplify young Haitian and other black voices to debunk stereotypes and demonstrate the resiliency and vibrancy of indigenous cultures, and: to create jobs for youth living in economically disadvantaged areas through multimedia and journalism skills training.

Through a robust training program, youth from underserved neighborhoods in Miami will go through cohorts of videography, photography, cinematography, editing, podcasting, journalism ethics, writing and more — at the Future of Cities Climate + Innovation Hub in the heart of Little Haiti.

As Miami’s first and only aspiring net-zero office, our facilities are equipped with a state-of-the-art podcast room, solar powered energy, a biodiverse garden with native Florida flora, upscaled and recycled furniture, and more. The building itself is an adaptively repurposed warehouse space, perfect for hosting events and programming of this kind.

The video, photo, audio and written content created by the young trainees will be published and shared across FOC’s platforms: from YouTube to our newsletters, to photo exhibitions and social media. This provides a unique opportunity for the youth’s creativity and storytelling to reach a wide audience, and open the door to employment paths.

Further — some of our interested partners to collaborate can offer trainings on covering environmental news and climate reporting, which can translate into Haitian Kreyol and English news sources from the ground.

“We are not asking for a handout — we are asking for a hand up.”

~ Francois Alexandre: Local community leader, Entrepreneur, and Public Speaker, Inspiring those within his community and around the world in his active efforts and engagements

The words of Francois Alexandre exemplify what we are collectively fundraising for and looking for your support. Each donation will have a lasting impact, not a one-off contribution: Because this program will graduate groups of 120+ trainees a year to become published, embrace artistic expression, and receive career support to interview for jobs in Miami.

This is the kind of social equity impact projects we lead and are seeking support for, together in powerful partnerships.

Tapari, our local partner, believes in the power of science, art and culture to promote critical thinking and transform youth and scholars into the future trailblazers in their community.

“The ability to suffer trauma and turn it into positivity” is how Francois described dealing with his experiences, including police brutality,

“and ever since then that’s what I’ve been doing with my life — looking for a better community, and country — to uplift one another, economically, socially, and spiritually.”

Reginald Charles, community leader and Tapari project manager, spoke from his heart to a crowd full of entrepreneurs and innovators — many of whom also are parents. As a father of five, he expressed how important it is to engage this initiative for the future of the next generation:

“I have five kids. Growing up we didn’t have programs to improve our lifestyles, livelihoods or education — to be able to come back to our community and circulate the economy. That’s what I want to do differently and bring back to the neighborhood.”

#Partnershipsthegoals was evident on that Tuesday evening in September, and throughout the NYC Climate Week. Desiree Tavera, Founder of Far Away Projects, talked about how she started these initiatives by bringing together people with a vision, which became the core of Far Away’s work to connect organizations in partnerships to achieve common missions.

Zoe Red, the founder of “Creatives for Climate” opened the evening with remarks about how if we take a moment to look around us in the room, “the person next to you may be your next collaborator.”

While she mentioned the complexity behind some of our environmental and social challenges, she also expressed that the solutions are out there, and “some of those solutions are right here in the room tonight,” emphasizing that it is all about communication, “we need to know about it, we need to connect, we need to collaborate. How can we start the solution if we do not know what the regenerative future looks like?”

To conclude with an inspiring action-orientated quote from the evening by Francois:

“In order to regenerate the Earth, restore our waters, and revitalize our communities — we must do it together. That’s the opportunity today — to support not just this initiative, but other initiatives by environmentalists & community leaders, by people protecting the Earth and restoring our dignity.”

At Future of Cities we extend a special thank you to our sponsors at Far Away Projects and Sean Lee Davis with Awethentic Journeys — and to all those who attended the magical evening as we continue our mission to empower, regenerate and co-create our common futures on this planet.

We are currently seeking donations, if this project resonates with you, consider making a contribution here.

To increase your impact, you can check with your company to see if they match employee donations! Help us spread the word by sharing this post with your community ❤

With love, Future of Cities

A Conversation with Scott Francisco on a new NY State Bill & tropical deforestation

Regenerative Placemaking Demonstration Series

by: Alexandra J Tohme

As the world faces complex environmental challenges so interlinked to production and consumption, the conversation around deforestation has gained significant momentum. Future of Cities sat down with Scott Francisco, the founder and director of Pilot Projects Collaborative and co-founder of Cities4Forests, to discuss the New York State Tropical Deforestation Free Procurement Act, the main causes of deforestation, our consumer choices, and how cities can actively engage with forests and forest communities for a regenerative future.

Our conversations began in Switzerland, at a small conference called the Klosters Forum that brought together built environment practitioners, designers, architects and academics in a collaborative setting high up in the mountains outside of Zurich.

As Future of Cities connected with new strategic partners, I decided to follow up on a post that caught my attention on Scott’s LinkedIn, about the New York Bill S 4859.

Interviewing Scott gave me insight into a fascinating market and unique global network connecting indigenous and local family-run forest harvesting communities — to major cities. From Guatemala to Gabon, Mexico and the US — there are regenerative practices being implemented to offer timber as a low-carbon substitute for construction and architecture, while supporting the biodiversity and forest restoration of tropical landscapes. 

The discussion in this article seeks to bring light to the cross-sector cutting issue of tropical forests — of prominent importance to demonstrate innovative solutions that hit many positive outcomes for people and the planet. 

Long-term relationships are being built across borders and continents — connecting rainforest communities with scientists, architects and city-planners. We hope the new New York State Bill takes this into account.

Scott Francisco’s 30+ year career and passion for Wood and Forests

Scott Francisco introduced himself as an architect with a deep passion for wood as a construction material. He remembers how his undergraduate thesis involved creating an all- plywood house, a concept seeming bizarre at the time in the 1990s but foreshadowing the current excitement for mass timber buildings.

His love for wood led him to consider the larger role of forests in urban development: Can we use wood as a low carbon substitute for concrete and steel, and at the same time protect larger areas of forest from deforestation? Think of a park bench or office building made of wood, instead of concrete, and the forest supplying the timber given a secure future as a result. This opens many possibilities for other architecture & construction using wood to become investors in the future of forests and cities. 

He co-founded Cities4Forests, a global network of cities working towards integrating forests into their climate action plans. 

The New York State Tropical Deforestation Free Procurement Act: Explained

Francisco dove into the New York State Tropical Deforestation Free Procurement Act, a bill aimed at curbing deforestation’s negative impacts. The bill prohibits government procurement contracts from including any products associated with deforestation. However, there was a crucial issue — the bill treated all tropical timber equally, regardless of its source or regenerative practices. Poor timber management practices, including illegal and high intensity logging and some monoculture industrial timber plantations, do drive deforestation in many tropical forests. But it’s not the whole story.

“The main drivers of deforestation are the industrial-scale production of beef, soy and palm oil,” said Francisco, primarily in tropical regions, highlighting the growing global commodity and demand for palm oil over the past 15 years, which has resulted in large areas deforested in Indonesia. Beef and soy are similarly destructive in the Amazon. 

We at Future of Cities are big advocates and practitioners of biodiverse, small-scale family farming, social forestry, regenerative soil agriculture. The way in which we grow our products and crops deeply affects so many other areas of our lives, health and the planet.

Conservation Timber: A Sustainable Alternative by Local Communities

Scott explained the concept of “conservation timber,” wood harvested sustainably in low volumes from community-managed forests. This approach offers local communities an alternative to deforestation while ensuring biodiversity conservation. 

As we focus on regenerative placemaking solutions at FOC — it is so powerful to learn about these methods that allow the forest to regenerate, through active community engagement.

Recognizing and promoting conservation timber and other forest products by local communities is critical for healthy ecologies and economies.

Thousands of families rely on a sustainable harvest of timber as their primary livelihood, to support their children and communities. It didn’t seem right or logical to draft a bill that blanket-prohibits all kinds of timber in government contracts regardless of whether or not they are good for the communities and the forest, or what the outcomes will be.

He suggested an amendment to the Bill that specifically states criteria based on management practices that maintain healthy biodiversity, and are economically productive so that those same communities have an alternative to having their forest completely cut down.

One example of such a definition for this criteria could be Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification, the broadest and most robust global certification program for timber. FSC certified timber could be a requirement that is added and adjusted in this Bill.

He emphasizes that we can look at timber harvest the same way you would for chocolate or coffee production — two wonderful commodities that also come from tropical forests. There are two ways to harvest: clearcut monoculture that destroys biodiversity and nature-based livelihoods, or regenerative models that rely on shade and rich biodiversity and therefore keep forest landscapes intact.

Imagine if the State of New York decided to purchase only shade-grown bird friendly coffee for government employees that comes from these biodiverse landscapes?

“Just like coffee can be terrible or wonderful for a forest landscape, so can timber be terrible or wonderful.” Francisco said, his passion clear throughout his thoughtful analyses.

Advocacy at NYC Climate Week + A Guidebook for Developers

“So what can we do?” I inquired, asking about the tools for advocacy and awareness to protect these indigenous-model systems of local and regenerative forestation for construction and urban development. While this bill is still sitting with the governor, he encourages people to engage in constructive discussion and connect to government representatives, notably with NYC Climate Week coming up next week. He encourages engagement with his LinkedIn post, welcoming comments, revisions and feedback to the points he outlined in a letter to the Governor.

Francisco has also co-created useful tools such as the Forest Footprint for Cities, which helps cities track their tropical forest (and climate) impact, and invites us all to check on our cities and use data tools like this in our work, education, and policy advocacy.

Pilot Projects has developed a Sustainable Wood for Cities — a detailed guide for city governments, and private sector group (architects, engineers, developers) to evaluate the sustainability of their wood options, the source and production process, “we call them pathways that can guide you towards higher level of sustainability in your wood choice.”

It’s free to use and anyone can access it at citywoodguide.com

Francisco and I ended the conversation recognizing the value of activating a positive relationship between the rural and urban landscapes to mutually support each other:

“We have to activate cities to be proactive with their rural counterparts.”

To conclude with an excerpt from Scott Francisco’s message:

“Time, science (and satellite photos!) have clearly shown that management by local community residents is the best way to ensure that these forests are intact and healthy decades and centuries later. The businesses that these communities create keep the brightest, most dedicated young people working in these forests, and allows for generational knowledge-transfer over the long term.”

Major conservation organizations like Wildlife Conservation Society, Rainforest Alliance, World Wildlife Fund, Conservation International, U.S. Forest Service, USAID, The Nature Conservancy, and hundreds more, support community-led conservation timber enterprises.

We hope that the great State of New York will too.

Join the regenerative placemaking movement: Subscribe to our newsletter at focities.com to get involved, email me at: ajtohme@focities.com and follow us on Instagram.

Get in touch with Scott Francisco: scott@pilot-projects.org to learn more about tropical forests and forest communities around the world and follow @partnerforestprogram and @cities4forests.

Future Of Cities

by Alexandra J Tohme

Why do we need a new approach to development? For many reasons, but a most apparent one is that taking a silo-approach dismisses the cross-sectoral nature of all policy domains — every effort aimed at one domain will affect another, intentionally or unintentionally. Secondly, because development needs to be done for, with — and by — the communities that they intend to serve, or even just operate in.

Regenerative placemaking is an innovative approach that takes into account policy interconnectedness, and focuses locally. Regenerative placemaking’s goal is to revitalize neighborhoods and natural ecosystems through active community engagement.

In Jacksonville, Florida, the local FOC team is working hard on our ambitious project, the Phoenix Arts + Innovation District (PHXJAX) initiative to bring regenerative placemaking to life. Through community involvement and collaboration, PHXJAX is transforming underutilized spaces into vibrant, inclusive, supportive and regenerative places — places intended for empowerment and co-creation to happen.

Local community outreach, conversations and engagement are the first steps in regenerative placemaking. From initial conversations to understand challenges and dreams, regenerative placemaking projects must include speaking with residents, local businesses, families, artists, educators, organizations and more; and where relevant, involve them in the planning, design, and implementation of projects.

To take it one level further, it is ideal that those managers and project leaders are from the community itself — and for us, that’s the case. Our team leaders at PHXJAX are long-time residents and their family generations before them as well. No one understands the community better than those born and raised there. And especially those actively dedicated to see it thrive.

All projects — from energy and water to transport, housing, education or real estate — must engage the community before, during and after implementation.

There is only everything to gain by doing so. Local communities bear the greatest wealth of knowledge, resources, networks and assets that are needed in order to implement with success, and understand the risks that could upset any effort. No outside (or internal) developer or planner can achieve goals without this consultation and participation of local leaders and families, entrepreneurs and youth. In fact, the project risks failure if those views, needs, understandings and perspectives, are not taken into account.

Activating Public Space

PHXJAX, a notable example of regenerative placemaking, has transformed vacant lots and neglected areas in Jacksonville into vibrant community spaces. Through a series of collaborative efforts involving residents, artists, urban planners, and local government, PHXJAX is working to revitalize neighborhoods by creating gathering places — ones that enable conversations around the needs and desires of the community. From enhancing the physical environment to strengthening relationships, this approach direct everyone’s focus and attention together, to improve overall quality of life in the city’s districts. The interconnected nature of development and policies becomes apparent, and so do the solutions.

Re-using existing buildings for community spaces (or other positive urban efforts) is the example we are setting in Jacksonville and at our FOC headquarters Hub in Miami. Rather than building something new, which would involve digging in soil or rivers and disrupting the natural ecosystems once again — why not refurbish and renovate an old warehouse?

By integrating environmentally friendly practices into the design and operations of these community spaces, PHXJAX has become a model for regenerative development. Our teams involve neighbors and families in child-friendly events that encourage education on important issues for environmental and public health. For example, our PHX plant swap brings gardening expertise and families together to share in community experiences.

Monthly artist meetups and networking events held at the PHXJAX are free to the community and bring together artists, creators and art enthusiasts in a supportive dynamic environment. It offers a platform for collaboration, business growth and forges meaningful connections for artists and entrepreneurs. This thriving network of talent is constantly evolving and growing and we look forward to watching it reach new heights and promote economic growth for the artist community in Jacksonville.

Stay tuned to hear about the latest updates in the regenerative design of PHXJAX, and ongoing exciting events and regenerative placemaking activations happening in this up-and-coming city.

by Alexandra J Tohme

The water movement of our bodies — as we express it in the dance — is reflective of the water on the journey from homeland to refuge — represents the trauma experienced in that journey — and also, leads us to healing, as water is life.

This is one of the essences of Haitian Folkloric Dance, rooted in the West African traditions from the ancient empires of Dahomey, Oyó, and Kingdom of Kongo (modern day Bénin, Nigeria, Congo and Angola.)

On a Wednesday evening, colleagues at the Future of Cities Climate + Innovation HUB, with Haitian neighbors, women and non-Haitian Miami folks, came together to share this dance form and were encouraged to fully release ourselves in the dramatic movements: from feeding-the-earth hands and sweep-floor arm gestures, to warrior leaps and jumps, to throws of celebration and prayer to the moons. Reverberations boomed through the room with six live conga drummers igniting our movement.

Culture is at the heart of regenerative placemaking — to deeply engage in “place” and co-create experiences and projects that uplift and empower communities, attract impact investment, and regenerate the natural environment.

Dr. Weiselande “Yanui” Cesar, who completed her PhD in human services & public health, explains that Haitian Folkloric Dance first sets itself apart with live drumming, and begins with an understanding within yourself of the struggles that can be released and let go of — and joy takes over.

It is precisely this dance form that Yanui harnessed when deciding to work with children with disabilities, upon founding her non-profit Tradiyson Lakou Lakay, loosely translated into “hometown traditions.” “Sometimes in order to serve those in need” she told us, “ you must tap into your own skill and passion.” That is what she’s done with folkloric dance. To reach and engage these children, and give them expression and outlet from societal barriers, she catalyzed this unique art form that is as much spiritual health as it is mental and physical. This proved to be well received by the children facing the daily issues and stigmatizations from their community — it was the parents who were more resistant at first to accept it. She said that some members of the Haitian community were not too thrilled to see representations of their more traditional culture while trying to assimilate into a new society and modern country. Later, upon seeing their children perform with such joy, their mindset changed.

Unfortunately — these are not feelings unique to Haitian but rather many immigrant societies that feel a pressure to negate their homeland cultures, in order to survive and succeed. But is that true, or necessary?

We at Future of Cities believe in “community ● nature ● culture” as the keys to successful and equitable economic growth and as the vanguard of development. “Regenerative placemaking” involves looking at the vast and wonderful opportunities within local communities, natural ecosystems, and cultural vibrancy that unlock economic empowerment. Tradiyson Lakou Lakay is an excellent example of that — providing jobs to drummers and dancers and integrating into local schools to fill the educational gap for children with special needs. Beyond what is in front of a developer, regenerative placemaking encourages urban practitioners to look for the lesser known or “unseen” treasures; and offering a hand-up, not a hand-out, is exactly what is needed today. All stakeholders would be set to benefit, a win-win-win.

Oba, oba lémiye

Sa nou te pédi a se li nape chéche

Oba, oba lémiye

Back at our dance class event at the Climate + Innovation HUB, some twenty women of various backgrounds, American, Haitian, Latina, Arab, sit in a circle singing those poems and drinking fresh juices catered by the local family Haitian restaurant Cecibon, while a local videographer captures the scene. Circular economy can be achieved in every effort. Each time we put together an event or activity, we make sure to source from small local businesses. From the videographer, photographer, DJ, food caterers, and more, we focus on supporting local economic growth and jobs.

The twenty women sat and sipped juices and repeated those poetic songs together in celebration, laughing and sharing a tradition dating back four centuries.

While embracing heritage, we also recognize the importance of modernity. “Assimilation is critical, without losing our identity” emphasizes Dr. Cesar. It is empowering to learn new languages, technical skills, study in higher education — and connect with people of all backgrounds — that is the magic and beauty of diverse cities. Opportunities can be created for children and youth to thrive by mixing the old and the new. As Future of Cities continues our programs and efforts, it is resilient stories like Yanui’s — of overcoming struggle to celebration — that we will continue to share with the world as we co-create our common future on this planet.

by Alexandra J Tohme

A toolkit for realizing opportunity and managing risk

What is the approach?

At Future of Cities we believe Regenerative Placemaking is the transformative approach to development for our cities and the built environment to change course and maximize returns and impact.

For this reason, we are developing a unique Framework rooted in three pillars that catalyze the development process: To first understand the local community, nature and culture in the area in which you work. Then, work to engage, empower and uplift the talent, knowledge, skills, design, ecology and activations within these pillars, to co-create solutions.

This is the foundation for equitable and regenerative development.

If we start with humility, an opening arises to learn about bountiful opportunities from the local community, nature and culture. Our FOC methodology provides strategies and outreach guides to learn about your “place” of operation, and unlock the vast socio-economic benefits that can be reached.

When it comes to risk management, we have learned that projects have much less control than one realizes, and a simple mismanagement could threaten its success. Respecting and honoring this will actually empower you, as a project manager or investor — to realize the incredible power and capability that local communities, nature, and cultures have to elevate your investment and impact.

Our toolkit tackles policy challenges such as how to coordinate with civil society, and engage community leaders and groups in decision-making and project design. We also promote creating jobs in the locality, providing education on innovative nature-based solutions, and engaging youth, to name a few.

We showcase examples that demonstrate lessons learned, and how it can be implemented in different settings.

Rather than starting at the point of problems, Future of Cities is focusing on identifying opportunities within any area. As a global community we’ve been looking at and trying to solve “problems” for decades, and they just end up repeating themselves.

We believe in the great knowledge, solutions and growth found in local communities, ecosystems, and cultures. The possibilities reveal themselves when you unlock this secret sauce: Moreover, the risks are diminished, and resiliency against unforeseen shocks are built in.

~

Become a Regenerative Placemaker and join in co-creating the future of cities with us as we work together towards a more regenerative future.

Subscribe to our newsletter at focities.com to get involved, email me at: ajtohme@focities.com and follow us on Instagram.

Future Of Cities

Alexandra J Tohme — Research & Partnership Manager

by Alexandra J Tohme

Regenerative Placemaking involves re-igniting our relationships with the natural environment, with our neighbors and communities, and cultural heritage.

Future of Cities (FOC) is developing the “Regenerative Placemaking Framework” to guide urban developers, planners, architects, sustainability experts, mayors, real estate investors and more — for all those who have a role to play in the regenerative development of the built environment. This toolkit is meant to serve as a guide, scorecard and standards framework to ensure that the maximum potential of any project can be reached for environmental, social, economic and cultural benefits.

Our framework is centered upon three core pillars for development: community, nature and culture — which act as the foundation to development, and starting point to delve into 11 issue areas (and many more) for innovative policy solutions. On the one hand, we note that all issue areas have interconnection with other areas and policy domains. And on the other: the 11 is not an exhaustive list, but an example of critical issues facing the areas we (and our partners) work in.

Community 𑇐 Nature 𑇐 Culture

In fact, what we promote — is for policymakers and project managers to work with local communities, ecosystems and cultures in order to identify the priority issue areas that should be addressed in the first place. Each locality has its own set of needs and aspirations — our toolkit helps you find out what those priorities are.

“Regenerative Placemaking is a development approach that protects existing neighborhoods by co-creating sustainable, eco-friendly and inclusive projects, emphasizing participatory planning, cross-sector collaboration and financial prosperity for the community.”

• Tony Cho. Founder of Future of Cities, April 2021

Our Framework is promoting this methodology in order to reach the greatest investment returns and impact on social, economic, environmental and cultural levels.

To do this, each development project must start with deep listening and understanding of the local community, natural ecosystems, and cultural heritages & identities. By focusing on opportunities rather than problems, we catalyze and unlock the amazing potential of a place to boost equitable development and returns on your investments.

Regeneration means contributing to the value-generating processes of the living systems of which we are part. It is both a science and philosophy, to regenerate life, and adopt a new thinking and approach. According to Merriam Webster, “the act or process of regenerating,” is both the renewal or restoration of a bodily part or biological system, and it is also spiritual renewal or revival. In this sense, we can think about our three pillars — community, nature and culture — as the living systems that need renewal and revival: so that our cities can flourish, our economies prosper and our planet can regenerate.

With this framework we provide a dynamic playbook that offers best practices and case studies from around the world, strategies, ESG incentives, economic returns, and more that can be adopted across industries and sectors.

~

Become a Regenerative Placemaker and join in co-creating the future of cities with us as we work together towards a more regenerative future.

Subscribe to our newsletter at focities.com to get involved, email me at: ajtohme@focities.com and follow us on Instagram.

Future Of Cities

by Alexandra J Tohme

What is Regenerative Placemaking?

While “sustainability” focuses on reducing humans’ harmful impact on the natural environment to mitigate damage and toxicity, regeneration goes beyond restoration and focuses on revitalization to allow nature to fulfill its full potential.

Regeneration actively reinvigorates, giving life and value to biodiverse ecosystems, changing our approach and appreciation for clean air & water, fertile lands, and efficient resource management.

Civilization has everything to gain by reconnecting and supporting nature to thrive. Through the integration of design practices such as permaculture & biomimicry we create more space for nature to re-emerge and reach it’s fullest capacity and benefit to human life — such as more beautiful and harmonious architecture, and enhanced mental, physical and spiritual well-being. Nature organically embeds circularity, self-sustenance and climate resilience throughout our continued human developments.

Regeneration applies to our neighborhoods, too. If we revitalize value into disadvantaged communities, cultural assets, and people, we end-up with self-sufficiency, empowerment, stability and joy.

We need to shift our mindset and gear it towards innovative and proactive efforts for regeneration — that would promote our collective health and prosperity.

“Sustainability just sustains the status quo. Regenerative Placemaking doesn’t exclude or kick out people or displace people. It’s a framework we’re developing based on my 20-plus years of experience in underserved communities — what went right but mostly what went wrong.”

Tony Cho | Future of Cities Founder

“Placemaking” refers to the process of making urban centers and neighborhoods livable by ensuring economic opportunity, food accessibility, and climate-sustainable infrastructure, as well as social equity, public health, wellbeing and cultural vibrancy. By investing in making these “places” — we grow and strengthen existing communities that, for socioeconomic, political, or environmental reasons, have not benefited from urban developments to the same degree as other neighborhoods or cities.

As we place-make regeneratively — we celebrate the value and worth that local communities, nature and culture inherently offer — we improve quality of life for people of diverse backgrounds to coexist, co-create and collectively thrive.

Developing the local circular economy should be a goal of every developer and investor. Michal Shuman, author says:

“ If done correctly, economic development might bring a community more jobs, more wealth, a larger tax base, and greater prosperity. Consumers might enjoy more and better goods and services. More businesses might get started and become more profitable. Residents might enjoy better schools and better funded public services.”

Become a Regenerative Placemaker and join in co-creating the future of cities with us as we work together towards a more regenerative future.

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Future Of Cities

Alexandra J Tohme — Research & Partnership Manager