As I approach Santiago de Compostela and multiple routes converge, the number of pilgrims begin to swell. After walking for 315km / 13 days, culminating in an emotional arrival, it’s clear that (as expected) the gift of El Camino is the journey itself. ¡Buen Camino! Day 13: #CaminoDeSantiago

Many generations of trees have come and gone. Stone walls built and crumbled. For countless footsteps to carve a trench deep into the hillside. Myself, a leaf floating in a river. Mesmerized by a time that slows down and extends forever. Day 12: #CaminoDeSantiago

‘Hórreos’ are how people in Galicia store grains and vegetables. Since the XIII C. they have calibrated the design for an optimal ventilation, rodent-proofing and cultural expression, nuanced to the microclimate of each hillside and iconography of each family. Day 11: #CaminoDeSantiago, #Arzúa

My senses are healing in the continued absence of noise. Visually - there’s no advertising or branding in sight. Auditory - there’re no machines or stereos. Only roosters, birds, dogs, people talking, walking… and the ocasional donkey. Even in cities. Day 10: #CaminoDeSantiago

“Perderse también es Camino”. To be lost is also El Camino Day 9: #CaminoDeSantiago

Every kilometer that is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for pilgrims along El Camino is also part of ordinary life for many (including animals). The extraordinary and the ordinary often coincide. Day 8: #CaminoDeSantiago, #Galicia

People walk El Camino for different reasons: adventure, leisure, hope, a promise, a prayer, a turning point, thinking time, shared time... I walked by someone’s life moment, etched by a finger in the dust of the road, in two words: “LOVE AGAIN”. A wish made or fulfilled? Day 7: #CaminoDeSantiago

Benches are a universal invitation to pause. No matter culture, language, age… we all understand, appreciate, and can share a bench along the way. Day 6: #CaminoDeSantiago, #Triacastela, #Galicia

A recurring metaphor in songs and stories, El Camino is at times narrow, wide, flat, steep, quiet, vociferous, memorable, forgotten, historic, timeless, focused, distracted, convivial, introspective… through valleys, towns, forests, cities, fields, bridges, hillsides… Day 4: #ElCaminoDeSantiago

“El Camino provendrá” - The Path will provide - suggests people will help each other in times of need. Has proven true as forest fires cross El Camino. Communities evacuated. Pilgrims rerouted. And among the tragedies, old friends reunited reminese and dance in the street Day 3: #ElCaminodeSantiago

“Buen Camino” - may your journey be a good one - is the farewell shared by those who travel (or live) along El Camino. People are people (and nothing else) in the forgiving solidarity and good will that has kept pilgrims safe and inspired since the IX C. Day 2: #ElCamino Frances de Santiago

Dear Cities, Let’s make FIFA count… vía Planetizen www.planetizen.com/features/135... #cities #design #climateaction #urbanism #sustainabledesign #urbanplanning #urbandesign #citiesforpeople

For over a thousand years pilgrims have been leaving ‘mojoneras’, clues in the landscape for others to find their Way. I follow many footsteps. Day 1: #ElCamino de Santiago

When people think of Venice it is the canals that come to mind. Yet, it is the pedestrian experience (not needing to negotiate survival with cars) that is most refreshing.

Despite uncertain times there is optimism and a ‘can do’ solidarity in the air. “These are exciting times. The DNA of the city is changing… investments in transit… rezoning of 90% of properties… creativity, innovation and risk-taking in improving review process…” ~ Jason Thorne at ULI Toronto

It’s time to heal. www.weforum.org/stories/2025.... via @worldeconomicforum

With a hat tip to #InternationalHappinessDay today, a thought provocation: How we design cities can make people happier. Debate? www.weforum.org/stories/2018... via World Economic Forum

Inside temperature 850 Celsius. Above temperature 12 Celsius. Today we fire tested the timber panel (link to previous test below). Look for the pic of the firefighters checking the roasting popcorn and then going for wood fired pizza. lnkd.in/gk69Tf42

Urban Land Institute Canada Council relaunching post-pandemic with a warm-hearted gathering in a chilly #Calgary. Beyond the obvious designing for winter conversations, it is clear that there is a lot for us to learn from each other. Thanks Travis Oberg for walking us through #UniversityDistrict.

@ulialberta Emerging Trends 2025 kicks off, and it takes a full 60 seconds before the word ‘tariffs’ makes an appearance. alberta.uli.org/events/emerg...

You can have this. Good systems don’t just happen. They result from commitment and tenacity. It’s ours to choose. . . www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti... #transit #transportation #cities #mobility #sustainabletransport #climateemergency

Winter has its own designs.

Trees are majestic neighbours, companions, storytellers… and custodians of the city’s health and history. Mexico City neighbourhoods: Bucareli, Doctores, Centro, Zona Rosa, Del Valle… #urbanforest #cdmx #sustainability #wellbeing #trees mexicobusiness.news/infrastructu...

Can you place this Michelangelo’s David? Or the Beaux-Arts urbanism? TIP: city is 1000+ years, in North America. Today, you can hear on the sidewalk: Zapotec, Nahuatl, Spanish, English, Italian… Colonia Roma lnkd.in/gC4K452E Colonia Hipódromo Condesa lnkd.in/gC9ycBZK #MéxicoCity #CDMX #Mexico

When colour is (truly) part of life. #Tlacotlalpan #Veracruz

Before electricity, architects had to use natural light. Air conditioning and light bulbs have made us lazy designers. #sanjuandeulua #Veracruz

Day to day life, music, language, patters,… in Veracruz carry echoes of 5 centuries of colonial history overlayed on millennium of Indigenous culture. Today, new layers include Haitian and Venezuelan migrants, rising sea levels, and extreme weather events. What does 2025 hold? #Veracruz #Mexico

I visit these streets many times. The shadows are always different. They walk up walls with dexterity, and above all, with eloquence. #Valledebravo #mexico

When designing a single site or building, we must work with its context (people + planet). Together, we can make each other better. Improving Social Outcomes in Urban Development: A Playbook lnkd.in/gzTbY2Ps via World Economic Forum #urbanplanning #citybuilding #citiesforpeople

Dedicated sections in public transit for women, seniors, mobility-challenged, and children. Groups that are often dependent on transit and can most benefit from a safe, caring journey. #MexicoCity + more initiatives to curb gender-based violence. tglab.iadb.org/en/mexico-city #equityandinclusion

Conservation and sustainability, both begin by asking: what is the world that future generations will inherit? And, how do we steward what we have inherited to build the legacy that we will pass onwards? They’re not about the past. They’re about the future. dialogdesign.ca/news-events/...

Compact is beautiful. As we seek to address the compounding imperatives of #housing #affordability and #climate we can learn from thousand year old towns/cities, where an intricately entwined mix of uses provides a greater quality of life, with less cost/impact. www.weforum.org/stories/2024...

First post here. I’ll use it to pause with awe at the uncanny in the ordinary.