Event about city development in Zürich

The other day, I participated at this event initiated by nextzürich. Watching the movie the human scale at the start of the event, I learned, for example, that to rebuild the city of Christchurch, New Zealand, more than 100,000 ideas were developed by citizens. Watching the film, I also learned that, in New York, USA, ideas on city development were continuously tried out / tested. By testing / trying out ideas, one could, for example, find out how life in the city changes. Among other advantages of continuously testing / trying out ideas that people have developed for certain parts of the city, I come to think, for example, of the positive influence it has on the motivation of citizens: People experience - first hand - that their voices are being heard, that their ideas are taken seriously. They see the result of their creative work. Innovation is happening.

The moderated discussion after the film was interesting, I found. Reflecting on what was said, I recall, for example, that Frank Argast talked about that city development is not just about development of the inner part of a city / the centre of a city. It is not least about developing the outskirts of a city. During the discussion, I noted, also, an interesting question by another participant. She asked, as I understood it, about the degree of diversity, for example regarding the design of buildings. As I heard it, she was trying to make the point that there could be more diversity. I found the question relevant and came to think, for example, to what extent more buildings could have a form that is different from the squared / rectangular form. 

Looking for ideas to develop a city, I came across these outdoor work and living environment initiatives.