Land Matters Podcast
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As the world prepares to bid farewell to 2020, taking stock of an unprecedented year involves both understanding the devastation of the coronavirus pandemic and looking ahead to what the future may hold. In this episode of the Land Matters podcast, the conversation turns to how the relentless virus, and all the inequities it has exposed, might result in fundamental changes for cities.
Throughout history, disease and disaster have reshaped the physical environment; great fires triggered new construction methods and regulation, and cholera outbreaks led to water and sewer infrastructure. The pandemic of 1918 prompted greater attention to hygiene – unadorned walls that could be washed down, for example—and the integration of indoor and outdoor space.
How might the unyielding events of 2020 similarly help establish new approaches in the workplace, housing, and transportation in the 21st century city? Two thought leaders on urban policy—New York Times reporter Emily Badger and Diana Lind, author of Brave New Home: Our Future in Smarter, Simpler, Happier Housing–share their reflections on the year that was, and prospects for 2021 and beyond.
You can listen to the show and subscribe to Land Matters on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Anthony Flint is a senior fellow at the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy and a contributing editor of Land Lines.
Photograph: Left: Emily Badger, Right: Diana Lind. Credit: Anthony Flint.
Further reading:
COVID-19, Structural Racism, and Community Investment, Land Lines
How Scenario Planning Can Shape Our Recovery Efforts, Land Lines
The Destiny of Density: Affordability, Equity, and the Impacts of an Insidious Virus, Land Lines
The Rich Cut Their Spending. That Has Hurt All the Workers Who Count on It, The New York Times
It’s time to rethink the single-family home as the American dream, author says, The Philadelphia Inquirer