"in contrast to the relational, embedded & dynamic understanding of vulnerability elaborated by qualitative social science schlrs, national research ethics documents remain heavily dominated by understandings of vulnerability originating from biomedical research" journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

NEW STARTER PACK! This time I’m hoping to encourage and support global urbanists from OUTSIDE North America here on Bluesky, so hopefully this will help! Who’ve I missed? Just joined? Let me know! I’ll keep updating, so please keep checking & sharing this pack! And let’s try using #GlobalUrbanists.

@brenttoderian.bsky.social @tomflood.bsky.social @reenamahajan.bsky.social

🚴‍♀️ Why is there so much hate for (and lies about) bike lanes in Toronto? I speak with @brenttoderian.bsky.social about how to design better cities. Here is a sneak peek from our chat. 🎙️ Listen to our full conversation on this week's The AmberMac Show podcast, just released today: bio.site/ambermac

WATCH THIS: The most amazing thing about this remarkable 2002 car commercial is that it didn’t seem to realize at the time, or perhaps didn’t care, how effectively it made the point that cars and car infrastructure are a HUGE waste of space in cities. Award-winning 2002 ad for Saturn car company.

@brenttoderian.bsky.social @tomflood.bsky.social

🚨New research🚨Rich countries can unlock $6.6 trillion for climate action by ending fossil fuels handouts, making polluters pay, defunding wars, taxing the super rich. There’s no shortage of $$ for action. It’s just in the wrong hands. #FixtheFinance ➡️ Read more: oilchange.org/we-can-pay-for-it/

The even more unbelievable crime fact (which I learned relatively recently) is that burglary has fallen by more than 90% since the 1990s. Did anyone notice? Nope. Does anyone believe it? Nope. But is is true? It is!

Smart cities know that, as hot as they already are, they’re just going to keep getting hotter. Greening the city not only cools it down, it cleans the air, quiets the noise, improves mental health & happiness, saves public money, & more. Strand Aldwych, London. 2021 vs. 2025. Via @modacitylife.com

ICYMI: Yesterday, I posted my conversation with Paris-based @reenamahajan.bsky.social, founder of Studio Divercity, about her efforts to create people-centered and nature-based cities worldwide. Available in both video and audio-only formats: www.activetowns.org/2025/02/20/c...

"From paper to (de)pavement" — Honoured to be interviewed for @polisnetwork.eu's Cities in Motion magazine. online.fliphtml5.com/arovr/ilzt/#... #StreetSmart #LiveStreetSmart

Make no mistake, the global turn toward authoritarianism is heavily oil-funded. drilled.media/news/casey-m...

The War on … Walking and Biking? - usa.streetsblog.org/2025/09/09/t... via @usa.streetsblog.org, @keawilson.bsky.social, and @healthtepi.bsky.social

uncertaintyprinciples.substack.com/p/ultra-proc... “Ultra-Processing Is the Bathwater. What About the Baby? Recent obsession with ultra-processed foods spotligTaubesworld of industry-related issues, while rendering sugar & refined grains almost benign in the process” Thanks @grantennis.bsky.social

This month's guest is one of the world's TOP urbanists, Canadian @brenttoderian.bsky.social! We talk suburbs, #sprawl, #BikeLanes, why smart #CityBuilding is the common sense climate solution & the awesome responsibility of the city councils we elect. #yyc #yyccc www.podcastics.com/episode/3796...

Traffic congestion in our downtowns was rarely bad for business or undermined the strength of downtown. What REALLY hurt downtowns were the traffic engineers’ “solutions” to congestion, designed to let cars get through them as fast as possible. Cartoon via artist Jean Wei & @t4america.bsky.social.

We all fall for a lobby that has hammered car-centric lifestyle into our hearts and minds as the ‘default mode’. We are making ourselves their vassals if we do not rebel against this and demand more freedom in our lifestyles and our mobility. @grantennis.bsky.social katja-diehl.de/grant-why-do...

Finally! 🤩 Our position piece: Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia: doi.org/10.5281/zeno... We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity. 1/n

I’m often asked if I’m worried my audience is only “the converted.” I reply that I hear constantly from people who already agree but say I’ve helped them strengthen their arguments or language, helping them be more persuasive. But I absolutely want to reach those who disagree, but are open minded.

🚨 New ASPA Radio episode! We speak with Dr. @healthtepi.bsky.social on his new paper about who are the enemies of #physicalactivity. Listen here 👉 open.spotify.com/episode/0bvc... #PublicHealth #UrbanPlanning

Anybody missing from this urbanism list? Let Brent know.

Exciting news about our upcoming international conference on sustainable proximity, in Paris, on 4 & 5 September. I will have the honor of welcoming my friend & master, Jan Gehl. We will deliver the opening keynote on September 4 << Welcome to the Happy Proximity worldwide meeting >>

STARTER PACK: I’ve got packs with different approaches, but ICYMI this one is specifically about those accounts that are good at changing the commmunication & conversation about better cities. Obvious people like @tomflood.bsky.social & less obvious like @dieworkwear.bsky.social. go.bsky.app/7iNmiCU

I support 66.6% of those as well, and I’m open-minded about the last 33.3%.

WEEKLY UPDATE: Hi Everyone! Here’s my update for the week of Aug 31st featuring a fabulous ride down memory lane with Paul Steely White, a look at some new active mobility infra in Providence, and a flashback to my episode with @grantennis.bsky.social, author of Dark PR. mailchi.mp/activetowns/...

Just spent a week in Paris. The most enjoyable big city experience I've EVER had. Cars are given as little room as possible. Parks EVERYWHERE and bikes are treated as equal users of the road. Never felt threatened by a car ONCE. The tree canopy is so impressive. I was blown away in every way.

On one hand, reducing car use reduces urban pollution. But on the other, everyone likes it and cities become more livable

"To make the road design code safer: 1. Reduce design speed 2. Reduce standard road widths 3. Replace accident with crash 4. Delete 85th percentile rule 5. Delete Level Of Service 6. Raised crosswalks at all schools" @brenttoderian.bsky.social @wesmars.bsky.social @tomflood.bsky.social

""I rate [Dark PR] a *_must_read_* and highly recommend it." - Nial Enright

"These damn bicycles are taking over the streets!" NEW MCGILL STUDY: Data from world cities shows cars get lion's share of street space. Cars now get 79.6% of the infrastructure area (roads) in #Montreal. Pedestrians (sidewalks): 18.3% Micromobility (lanes for bikes, scooters etc.): 1.57% 🧵

I will never understand how American elites managed to convince themselves that uncivil debate — not fascism, not impunity and not widespread indifference to facts — is the defining problem of our time. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/26/o...

This is one of the “Dark PR” misinformation tactics - a person’s suffering is their choice alone, not a function of the system they live in. Be wary of who tells us this message - ask what their role is in the system, and how they benefit from the status quo.

Yahooo!!! Thank you for speaking up. The solution is always more modal filters not less!!

I briefly toured the NW 20th and Everett area yesterday, & I am confused as to the justification for removing these diverters. If anything, the SUV I saw drive around the planter & use the bike lane as a car lane makes me think the whole road could be closed to cars, not just one direction. 1/2

As Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo put it: "A city where you can get let go of your child's hand"

❓Have you checked out the site we built with @lobbycontrol.bsky.social ? 🔍 LobbyFacts exposes lobbying in the EU. 📲 Search, sort and compare data from the Transparency Register from today back to 2012. Find out who's influencing EU decisions: lobbyfacts.eu #LobbyFacts #Transparency

"Dark PR is a thought-provoking book that shines a light on the tactics used by major industries to lock in an unhealthy, unsafe and unsustainable status quo. Ennis offers food for thought for safe streets advocates as we try to improve our world and fight back against these powerful interests."

Referring to crashes as “accidents” or claiming that “speed wasn’t a factor” in a crash, are not random language choices. They’re the result of PR campaigns. Listen to this really important interview with @grantennis.bsky.social by @brooklynspoke.bsky.social @thewaroncars.bsky.social on “Dark PR.”

I was watching a Hasan Piker talk the other day about how basically every common hobby for young men--gaming, sports, fitness, gambling, etc--is saturated with right-wing propaganda. yeah

Learned about all of this toxic system "concrete mafia" in an episode I did with @grantennis.bsky.social: Industries are focussing on profits, not killing people. But their highest turnover products ARE killing us, because our politicians are too weak to regulate them. katja-diehl.de/grant-why-do...

Yeah I feel like people are really confusing “peoples feelings are valid” with “everyone’s perception of reality is valid”

"but crime is a real issue, people are worried about crime and you have to take that seriously" No you don't! If people are getting more scared about crime while crime is happening less frequently, it's a made up issue and you should make a point of yelling that all the time

Our latest: undark.org/2025/08/15/o...

Rule 78: Put Street Trees Almost Everywhere Street trees do it all, they... Cut crashes by 45% Raise home values 9% Boost retail sales 12% Clean air, cool streets, absorb stormwater, improve health, and make places more inviting Walkable City Rules www.amazon.com/Walkable-Cit...

I think Starter Parks have been one of the best ways to grow the conversation on smarter, better cities here on @bsky.app. This was my 1st (I have several you should check out). Please consider following the accounts on them, and share with your followers who love cities & want them to be better!

Scientists in health psychology or behavioral medicine should read it , particularly the discussion doi.org/10.1016/j.so...