Send us a Text Message. Dr Thami Croeser is an urban planner with a focus on bringing nature back into cities in practical ways, at large scale. He is a Research Fellow at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. In this episode we discuss practical ways of bringing more nature into cities and helping it thrive through urban planning and design. Le…

Send us a Text Message. Shaun Spiers is the Executive Director of the environmental think-tank, Green Alliance. In this episode we discuss how a stronger planning system in the UK can address the housing crisis and deliver more sustainable outcomes. Read their report, Build Up: https://green-alliance.org.uk/publication/build-up/ Thanks for listenin…

Send us a Text Message. Alexandra Steed is a passionate landscape architect with a deep commitment to art, sustainability, and the transformative power of landscapes. We talk about: Her new book: Portrait to Landscape How to restore landscapes on a large scale to build climate resilience and biodiversity How The UK's Environment Act and Biodiversit…

Send us a Text Message. Louisa Whitmore is an architecture enthusiast, TikToker and host of the Nature of Design documentary series. In this episode we discuss her experience making the documentary, the mental health benefits of biophilic environments and case studies of great biophilic projects. Learn more about the Nature of Design documentary: T…

Send us a Text Message. In conversation with Alisdair Ben Dixon (Collective Works), Anna Lisa McSweeney (White Arkitekter) and Isabel Allen (Architecture Today) about the new Regenerative Architecture Index (RAI). Launched by Architecture Today and UK Architects Declare, the Regenerative Architecture Index (RAI) sets out to benchmark practices prog…

Send us a Text Message. I sit down with Andrew Bullmore of VU.CITY to discuss how 3D models, digital twins and artificial intelligence tools can be used to do better, evidence-based planning and design and get more sustainable outcomes. VU.CITY website: https://www.vu.city/ SiteSolve generative AI: https://www.site-solve.co.uk/ This is a sponsored …

Send us a Text Message. Sam Luker is an Associate Sustainability Director at AESG and led on their new report titled 'Net Zero Neighbourhoods'. In this episode we discuss: Why the neighbourhood scale is optimal for decarbonisation and finding local solutions to sustainability Principles and case studies for Net Zero Neighbourhoods Retrofitting exis…

Send us a Text Message. Mohit and Sue Yen are architects and members of Decolonise Architecture, a solution-based group driven to tackle institutional racism and bias within architectural education and practice. In this episode we discuss: How architectural education and practice can be 'colonial' in its approach, and the problems with this. Expand…

Send us a Text Message. Jeffrey Rissman is Senior Director at Energy Innovation, where he leads the company’s work on technologies and policies to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from the industry sector. He is the author of Zero-Carbon Industry: Transformative Technologies and Policies to Achieve Sustainable Prosperity (2024) and coauthor of De…

Send us a Text Message. Welcome to part 4, the final episode in the landscape mini-series. In this episode I sit down with Cannon Ivers CMLI of LDA to discuss their inspiring project The Strand, Aldwych. The Strand was for centuries a busy traffic thoroughfare in central London that has been transformed into a totally pedestrianised and multi-funct…

Send us a Text Message. Welcome to part 3 in this mini-series on landscape and urban nature. In this episode I spoke with James Virgo CMLI of LUC. He tells me about LUC’s work on Shoreditch Park. This is a nice case study of taking an existing park and working with the local community to improve it for biodiversity while tackling anti-social behavi…

Send us a Text Message. Welcome to part 2 of this mini-series on landscape and urban nature. This episode features an interview with Michael Cowdy FLI of McGregor Coxall. We discuss two of their Landscape Award-nominated projects, a research project on BioUrbanism and the second a design code for green infrastructure for a new community Cherry Hint…

Send us a Text Message. Welcome to this 4-part series on the role of landscape and urban nature in creating resilient, sustainable and healthy places. Over the next 4 weeks I’ll be releasing short weekly episodes featuring interviews with landscape practitioners that highlight great case studies in landscape design and discuss the wider role of the…

Send us a Text Message. Antonietta Canta is a Principal Environmental and Sustainability Engineer at Arup. In this episode we discuss their recent research report: ‘Addressing overheating risk in existing UK homes’. As dry as that title sounds, the conversation was actually very illuminating and useful. It's also useful for listeners outside the UK…

Send us a Text Message. Jan Kattein is Director of Jan Kattein Architects, a studio that focuses on collaborative, sustainable and community-focused projects. Back in September of 2023 I joined Jan at their project in south London called the Paper Garden, which is a educational building and garden space for the charity Global Generation. Some of th…

Send us a Text Message. Kent Jackson is Design Partner at Skidmore Owings and Merrill (SOM) and leads the designs of a wide range of scales and typologies across the globe. Passionate about improving the future of planetary health, Kent is also a leader of SOM’s Climate Action Group, advancing the firm’s commitment for all active work to be net zer…

Send us a Text Message. Steve Sanham established Common Projects in 2021: a development company led by a purpose to put people and planet at the heart of its decision-making. Steve has an extensive and proven track record in the built environment, specialising in urban regeneration and in using development’s power to deliver better outcomes. Common…

Send us a Text Message. Sean McCormack is a consultant Vet, the Chairperson of Ealing Wildlife Group, and an incredibly knowledgeable nature conservationist and educator based in west London. This episode is part 2 of our conversation where we get into more detail on: The practicalities of reintroducing beavers to an urban park Management of urban …

Send us a Text Message. Sean McCormack is a consultant Vet, the Chairperson of Ealing Wildlife Group, and an incredibly knowledgeable nature conservationist and educator based in west London. In this episode we discuss his work to rewild urban London by reintroducing harvest mice, beavers and (eventually maybe) water voles while supporting native p…

Send us a Text Message. Nate Hagens is a systems thinker and educator focused on a concept he calls The Great Simplification. He has spent the last 20 years studying the systems we live in like energy, ecology and economics. He teaches at the University of Minnesota and speaks widely on these topics, including on his youtube channel called Nate Hag…

Send us a Text Message. Climate change is here and now cities and communities must adapt for safety, health and quality of life. In this episode I discuss a useful model for thinking about climate adaptation in three levels: resilience, transition and transformation. I also provide some examples and ideas for bringing adaptation thinking into the w…

Send us a Text Message. This episode is a conversation with Tara and Lanre of Gbolade Design Studio, sustainable architects and urban designers based in London. Reflecting on their 5 years in practice, we discuss a range of topics and projects including: City-shaping with masterplans and design codes Retrofitting existing buildings Zero carbon and …

Send us a Text Message. What is urban rewilding? Can it be done in cities? Is anyone doing it? In this episode, we explore: History of the rewilding concept Current best practice in rewilding How rewilding can be applied to cities Case studies of active and passive rewilding in urban areas around the world Companion Blog Post - See visuals of the s…

Send us a Text Message. This episode is a conversation with Jane, Lydia and Tom of architecture and urban design studio DSDHA. We discuss their research project 'Towards Spatial Justice: A guide for achieving meaningful participation in co-design processes'. We explore what co-design really means, why it’s important and how they have applied co-des…

Send us a Text Message. Xavier Smales is an Architect and Andy Tugby is Head of Sustainable Construction at Human Nature, a developer based in the south of England. They join me to discuss their approach to designing sustainable neighbourhoods and how they're putting this into action with a development called The Phoenix. We discuss urban design pr…

Send us a Text Message. Joe Morris is Founding Director of Morris+Company architects, based in London and Copenhagen. In this episode, he gives me a tour of their newly refurbished London office while we discuss their philosophy and approach to architecture, sustainability, circularity and connection between food and urbanism. I have collated image…

Send us a Text Message. Civic Square is a Public Square, a Neighbourhood Economics Lab and a Creative + Participatory Ecosystem. They have been doing amazing work around systems change at the neighbourhood level in Ladywood, Birmingham, where they are based. Their main projects to date include creating a Neighbourhood Doughnut based on Kate Raworth…

Send us a Text Message. Read the companion blog post to his episode on Substack. Israa Mahmoud is Assistant Professor of Urban and Regional Planning at Politecnico di Milano, Italy. Her research interests include nature-based solutions, co-design and urban governance. Her recent publications include The book Placemaking for Green Urban Regeneration…

Send us a Text Message. Read the companion blog post to this episode on Substack. Dr Helen Pineo MRTPI is an urban planner and Associate Professor in Healthy and Sustainable Cities in the Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment at University College London. Her research focuses on how property development, regeneration and urban policy can suppor…

Send us a Text Message. In this episode I fact check the article "There are a lot of dangerous myths" about sustainability says Norman Foster, which appeared on dezeen.com on 17th January 2023. The architect made some controversial statements about sustainability and defended Foster & Partner's decision to keep designing airports and leave Architec…

Send us a Text Message. See links and images on the companion blog post. Rob Hopkins is the co-founder of Transition Network and of Transition Town Totnes, and author of several books including ‘The Transition Handbook‘ and most recently, ‘From What Is to What If: unleashing the power of imagination to create the future we want’. He is an Ashoka Fe…

Send us a Text Message. Climate change is causing local weather patterns and ecosystems to shift and transform. In order to thrive in this new climate era, we will need to transform our cities and urban ecosystems. This is called 'Transformational Adaptation'. My co-host today is Giulia Mori and in this episode we discuss: What is Transformational …

Send us a Text Message. Companion blog post on Substack I speak to Will Poole (Partner) Jack Pritchard (Associate Urban Designer) and Sophia Ceneda (Architect and Sustainability Lead) at Glenn Howells Architects. Glenn Howells Architects are based in London and Birmingham. They’ve designed award winning housing, tall buildings and masterplans acros…

Send us a Text Message. Companion blog post on Substack Laura is Head of Sustainability at Purcell, a practice of architects, heritage consultants and masterplanners working on historic structures. In this episode, we discuss Purcell's work to improve the sustainability of iconic cathedrals and advice for improving the sustainability of historic bu…

Send us a Text Message. Joao is a Portuguese architect and researcher, and an Assistant Professor at Wageningen University, Netherlands. His research focuses on climate-responsive urban design and climate adaptation using a research-through-design approach. His motivation is to create and transfer design knowledge to practitioners and decision-make…

Send us a Text Message. Tim Stonor is an architect and urban planner who has devoted his career to the analysis and design of human behaviour patterns – the ways in which people move, interact and transact in buildings and urban places. He is Managing Director of Space Syntax and a visiting professor at several top universities like University Coll…

Send us a Text Message. Dr Dorina Pojani is a Senior Lecturer at University of Queensland, Australia. An urban planner and urban designer by training, she has experience in both practice and academics. We discuss her new book Trophy Cities, a feminist perspective on new capitals and explore how patriarchal ideology is expressed in urban design, and…

Send us a Text Message. Originally an academic at UCL, Ness has a PhD in Greek and Latin, and also worked in the British Museum, honing her interest in research in how societies flourish and how the visual environment informs our behaviours. Way before her academic career she had started selling her landscape and seascape photography, relishing the…

Send us a Text Message. My guest and tour guide today in Divya Hariramani Herrero. She is a sustainability consultant and Associate Director at Longevity Partners, a London National Park City Ranger and runs an instagram page called Fruity Walks, where she is chronicling the amazing and surprising fruit tree of London and beyond. She is fascinated …

Send us a Text Message. In today’s episode we’re talking about the contentious issue of tall buildings. Some people love them, some people hate them. My guests today have come up with a concept for high rise that could be much more sustainable and adaptable than conventional skyscrapers. My guests today are Tomas Stokke and Shonn Mills. Tomas is a …

Send us a Text Message. To celebrate the 50th episode and second birthday of the Green Urbanist Podcast, I sit down with Giulia Mori to discuss the question: What has to happen in this critical decade to ensure successful climate action? We talk about: The need for legislation to push the building industry towards sustainability Circular economy an…

Send us a Text Message. Reporting live from Footprint+ 2022, a new sustainability conference in Brighton, UK. Featuring interviews with: Joe Jack Williams, Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios Barny Evans, Turley Amin Taha, Groupwork Steve Webb, Webb Yates Engineers Tim Pyne, Footprint+ (Footprint Plus) U+I Q-Bot Raw Charging We discuss a range of topics …

Send us a Text Message. Gustavo and Younha are both Technical Directors at Atelier Ten, an environmental design consultancy. Combining expertise in architecture and engineering they shape buildings and masterplans to be sustainable and healthy. In this episode we discuss: What is environmental design and how it differs for buildings and masterplans…

Send us a Text Message. Biophilia is about how we as humans have an innate love and connection to other living things. It is no surprise then that spending time in natural environments such as forests, mountains and parks, is extremely beneficial to our mental and physical health. But how can we recreate our natural biophilic habitat in urban areas…

Send us a Text Message. This episode is a conversation with Samantha Suppiah, Christina Mirasol Sayson, Anna Denardin and Nolita Mvunelo of Possible Futures. We talk about colonialism and sustainability, the realities of life in the Global South and the need for communities to be able to define their own vision for a regenerative future. Note: This…

Send us a Text Message. In this episode, we talk about Farah's new book Net Zero City, the role of urban design in achieving a net zero city, and a clear process for cities to decarbonise in 10 years. Farah Naz, is an award winning Climate Change strategist with over 20 years’ experience in the construction sector gained in the USA, UK, Southeast A…

Send us a Text Message. Steve O'Reilly works in a policy & communications role at Ireland's national centre for the Circular Economy, The Rediscovery Centre. Steve spent over 7 years in the Netherlands, Europe's circular economy hotspot, working on many projects related to circularity and becoming inspired by the circular innovation he saw there. U…

Send us a Text Message. It turns out what's good for us is also good for the planet. How can we design housing for human beings that aligns with our evolution? In this episode I talk about how Co-Housing and Eco-Village concepts could be a proxy for hunter gatherer tribes by creating small, cooperative communities within urban settings. This way of…

Send us a Text Message. This episode is part 1 of a series about human evolution, our prehistory and Hunter Gatherer ways of life. Why should urbanists be interested in this? In this episode I make the argument that: We evolved over 2 million years as foragers and it is the only environmentally and socially sustainable way of life we know of. Livin…

Send us a Text Message. Michael Pawlyn established Exploration Architecture in 2007 and has built a reputation as a thought leader in regenerative design and the circular economy. He has lectured internationally and, in 2011, became one of only a small handful of architects to have a talk posted on TED.com which has since had over 1.8 million views…