Walking geographies

Walking geographies

“I have lived here 20 years, but never realised that this lovely garden was so close to where I live.”

“Re-colonising the public realm” is a jargon term that describes how people today are taking over public space for the purposes it was originally earmarked.

Some people are getting out and about on foot in their local neighbourhoods and discovering places on their doorsteps, or within a few hundred metres of where they live but not as many as we would like. Research has shown that children driven to school in cars have a limited knowledge of the neighbourhood around their homes and their schools and almost total ignorance of what lies between.

There is now plenty of research that shows the health benefit of greening our built environment and what we can gain sociably from getting out and about, so what can we do to get more people taking advantage of their local neighbourhoods?

If we are going to see a significant change in our car-dominated society, and really get lots more people out and about on foot or bicycle, we need to find effective ways of encouraging neighbourly encounters and provide information about what is within walking distance of where they happen to be, and give residents the confidence to walk or cycle there.

If you are involved in neighbourhood improvements, public health interventions, active travel or in working out how to share and disseminate similar information then Walking Geographies are walkabout events to which you should come.  Walking Geographies will provide you with an opportunity of showcasing the work you are doing, learn from others working in a similar field, and possibly be the catalyst to take your project further.

In 2011, Rethinking Cities will be bringing Walking Geographies to a neighbourhood near you -  bringing people like you together to share and develop your thoughts, ideas and projects.  We envisage the format will include a walkabout with fellow professionals, not just a show and tell but a shared discovery with the opportunity to develop ideas.

Come and meet professionals and community leaders in the fields of:

• Spatial planning
• Neighbourhood planning
• Geographical information systems
• Open space strategy
• Public space management
• Community development and safety
• Housing
• Traffic management
• Locational mapping
• Locative media
• Journey and route planners
• Social Marketing and Behaviour change
• Outdoor media
• Hand-held and Mobile GPS technologies
• Human movement / Human Centred Mobility
• Pedestrian movement / Mobility management
• Mapping media

Go to the Talkshops form to register for this event

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