Equality and the City: Urban Innovations for All Citizens (The City in the Twenty-First Century)

Equality and the City: Urban Innovations for All Citizens (The City in the Twenty-First Century)

In Equality and the City, Enrique Peñalosa Londoño draws on his experience as mayor of Bogotá, Colombia, as well as his many years of international work as a lecturer and consultant, to share his perspective on the issues facing developing cities, especially sustainable transportation and equal access to public space. As mayor of Bogotá, Peñalosa Londoño initiated development of the TransMilenio Rapid Bus Transit system, among the largest and most comprehensive public transit systems in the Global South, which carries 2.5 million passengers a day along dedicated bus lanes, bike paths, and a rapid metro line. The system emphasizes accessibility for the entire population. Peñalosa Londoño’s efforts to create public space were similarly ambitious: over the course of his two terms, more than a thousand public parks were created or improved. Underlying these policies was a conviction of how cities should be―a compelling humanistic philosophy of sustainable urbanism. For Peñalosa Londoño, city design is not just engineering; it defines human happiness, dignity, and equality. “An advanced city is not one where the poor own a car,” Peñalosa writes, “but one where the rich use public transport.” Equality and the City provides practical criteria for conceiving and constructing different and better cities, describes the obstacles that are confronted when doing so, and identifies ways to overcome them. "For Peñalosa, remaking cities is a dream within reach―achievable not decades from now, but in our lifetimes. He outlines the hurdles, and how to clear them, in the recent book Equality and the City... It is a call to action, essential reading for planners and urbanists around the world, as his strategies have been tested and applied at scale." ― Untapped "Enrique Peñalosa Londoño has been a powerful advocate for making better cities; cities that embrace the human experience and equality for all citizens. As Mayor of Bogotá, Peñalosa Londoño made that city inviting and accessible to people of all incomes through transformative achievements in public transport, green infrastructure, and neighborhood civic institutions. In this brilliant book, Peñalosa Londoño demonstrates how a vibrant pedestrian realm is at the heart of a healthier, more livable and truly equitable city." ― Amanda M. Burden, former New York City Planning Commissioner "For the last twenty years, Enrique Peñalosa Londoño has tirelessly campaigned for equitable cities. His message has been transformational at many levels, not just in his native Bogotá, but in cities worldwide. This book offers a charismatic mayor’s insights into how a city’s DNA can be shaped to promote greater social inclusion, environmental equity, and human well-being at a time when cities are at the frontline of planetary change." ― Ricky Burdett, London School of Economics "There is no one with a more complete and realistic vision of how our cities should develop to achieve a better country than Enrique Peñalosa Londoño. Few have such clear ideas for improving our society. In Bogotá, he demonstrated the tremendous importance of public space as the only place where we all are equal. After his first term as mayor of our capital, most mayors in Colombia understood the importance of quality pedestrian spaces and public buildings of dignity and meaning. In this book, Peñalosa Londoño presents himself as he is: an idealist who keeps dreaming of a better city and a more just and egalitarian society." ― Daniel Bermúdez, Colombian Biennial National Architecture Prize–winning architect "It is a saying that every city planning problem has been solved somewhere. The key is to find out where and combine all the good solutions. Bogotá and the work of Enrique Peñalosa Londoño have been offering inspiring solutions for decades, and in this excellent book, it seems that all the good solutions have finally come together. Based on Peñalosa Londoño’s unique experiences during his terms as mayor of Bogotá, as well as his first-hand studies in cities all over the world, Equality and the City is a fabulous handbook for twenty-first-century cities everywhere." ― Jan Gehl, author of Cities for People Enrique Peñalosa Londoño is a former two-term mayor of Bogota, Colombia and an internationally respected urban thinker.