“There needs to be a way forward that looks a lot different than the one we have right now — the one coming out of Glasgow,” David Gershon, CEO of Empowerment Institute and creator of the Cool City Challenge, told Shareable.
It took a rigorous, months-long application process for the winners to come out on top of a pool of over 40 California cities.
The 300 block leaders that Juliana recruited contribute to the plan in two ways: First, they’ll organize their neighbors to go through a four-and-half-month program of taking personal actions to reduce their emissions at home.
“We were actually a little nervous about being able to pull it off — it seemed like a heavy lift.
“What if our major thoroughfares became beautiful boulevards with forests and community gardens and skate ramps and bandstands and farmers markets and a myriad other fun, engaging and vibrant uses? What if bikes and pedestrians and electric golf carts ruled the street? How much more enjoyable would a trip across town be? It’s not that crazy.
“We’re giving people a new pathway to see how they can get from here to a much, much brighter future,” Gershon said.
Robert Raymond is the Co-Producer and Creative Director of the Upstream Podcast and Senior Producer, Designer, and Creative Director of The Response.