cities for a small planet
JACOB, JOHANNA IRENE M.
DAR4
ARCDES6
Cities for a Small Planet by Richard Rogers
Earth’s the only planet that is known to have life: living forms. It has a moderate climate and water in its three forms: solid, liquid and gas. Looking outside from space, earth’s beauty tells how alive and great it is still has its own fragile tendencies despite of being perfect in a sense. These tendencies regard the following: pollution (air and water), extreme floods, deforestation, resource depletion, global warming and urban sprawl, which risk the human possibility of survival. It is then our responsibility as stewards to safeguard our planet, to conserve our resources and to prevent it from being destroyed. We have to apply what has been called “the precautionary principle”. Where scientific doubt exists about the harm we are doing to the biosphere, the benefit of that doubt should be given to the planet and its people.
It is once stated in the book “Our cities is the major destroyer of the ecosystem and the greatest threat to humankind’s survival on the planet.” Cities have a variety of impacts, which it is considered to be a major destroyer. These could be the following points of destruction: conversion of agricultural or forest land for urban uses and infrastructure, reclaiming of wetlands, quarrying and excavation of sand, gravel and building materials in large quantities and, in some regions, deforestation to meet fuel demand. Other factor would be the inhabitants, itself, human beings. It also reflects that the inhabitants of the cities could be the main cause of destruction of our own cities. Possible increase of population in a community could be an issue since this will mean that the demand of goods must also increase to serve the number of people. This only means that in a way it is not sustainable since sustainability states, “we should aim to meet the present needs without compromising the future generations”. On the other hand, poverty, unemployment,
DAR4
ARCDES6
Cities for a Small Planet by Richard Rogers
Earth’s the only planet that is known to have life: living forms. It has a moderate climate and water in its three forms: solid, liquid and gas. Looking outside from space, earth’s beauty tells how alive and great it is still has its own fragile tendencies despite of being perfect in a sense. These tendencies regard the following: pollution (air and water), extreme floods, deforestation, resource depletion, global warming and urban sprawl, which risk the human possibility of survival. It is then our responsibility as stewards to safeguard our planet, to conserve our resources and to prevent it from being destroyed. We have to apply what has been called “the precautionary principle”. Where scientific doubt exists about the harm we are doing to the biosphere, the benefit of that doubt should be given to the planet and its people.
It is once stated in the book “Our cities is the major destroyer of the ecosystem and the greatest threat to humankind’s survival on the planet.” Cities have a variety of impacts, which it is considered to be a major destroyer. These could be the following points of destruction: conversion of agricultural or forest land for urban uses and infrastructure, reclaiming of wetlands, quarrying and excavation of sand, gravel and building materials in large quantities and, in some regions, deforestation to meet fuel demand. Other factor would be the inhabitants, itself, human beings. It also reflects that the inhabitants of the cities could be the main cause of destruction of our own cities. Possible increase of population in a community could be an issue since this will mean that the demand of goods must also increase to serve the number of people. This only means that in a way it is not sustainable since sustainability states, “we should aim to meet the present needs without compromising the future generations”. On the other hand, poverty, unemployment,