When governments and corporations are able to connect with residents' passions and potential for action, Tokyo can become an urban forest with a thriving ecosystem where the health of soil, plants, animals and people are deeply intertwined. In the leap from last century's industrial economy to a sustainable future, Japan is poised for an outsized role on the world stage. By focusing on habitats and culture, Tokyo can become a model for a new balance between people and nature in 21st century urban life.

When governments and corporations are able to connect with residents' passions and potential for action, Tokyo can become an urban forest with a thriving ecosystem where the health of soil, plants, animals and people are deeply intertwined. In the leap from last century's industrial economy to a sustainable future, Japan is poised for an outsized role on the world stage. By focusing on habitats and culture, Tokyo can become a model for a new balance between people and nature in 21st century urban life.

The design of contemporary cities are not only about the functional planning of streets and blocks and the arrangement of buildings, rather it is about the organization and coordination of the people living in and events occurring inside these cities and spaces, as well as the elaborate distribution of their interests. Urban designers and architects have long been focusing on the building of physical space, and are seldom attentive to the social structures, community interests and political realities behind these cities and buildings.

We aim to mobilize urban designers and architects to reconsider their social identities and professional roles, moreover, we also want to mobilize artists, authors, musicians, filmmakers, thinkers, social activists, politicians and citizens to offer their intellectual support.

What your citizens imagine now matters more than ever because they can act on their own imaginations farther, faster, deeper and cheaper than ever before — as individuals. In such a world, societies that can nurture people with the ability to imagine and spin off new ideas will thrive.

Stockholm agency Farfar collaborated with artist Erik Krikortz to design a system in which the emotional state of Stockholm residents is lit up on sky scrapers of Hötorget in the very center of Stockholm. Participants log in to update their mood, join groups, keep a mood diary or just check out the current mood of cities around the world. The campaign was launched in Seoul, South Korea, in February 2008, presented on LED screens at the SK T-Tower, in collaboration with Cyworld, a community of approximately 20 million members.

Forfar developed code to allow registrants to display their emotional state on their own computers or on their Facebook profile. Devolopers were given freedom to create their own applications by making an open API for Emotional Cities.

Emotional Cities featured in an exhibition at the Stockholm Modern Museum, providing information to the public and an opportunity to participate.

The next exhibition at the Graham Foundation challenges visitors to think differently about how to walk, play, recycle, and garden in order to reshape the city.

Actions: What You Can Do With the City features seemingly common activities such as walking, playing, recycling, and gardening that are pushed beyond their usual definition by the international architects, artists, and collectives featured in the exhibition.

Their experimental interactions with the urban environment show the potential influence personal involvement can have in shaping the city and challenge fellow residents to participate.

On view October 16, 2009 through March 13, 2010.

If you love zines, you’ll love this – this zinephile is slowly scanning and uploading their collection of Aussie punk zines.

Small changes are appealing for many reasons. They’re cheap, for one thing. Also, what works can be easily expanded, and what doesn’t work can be as easily terminated or altered. One successful food concession can become two; an unsuccessful stall selling local crafts can be replaced; a planter made from a material that discolors or chips can be replaced with a better one. Contrast that with grand schemes, which can attract broad opposition and be subject to complex political, logistical, and financial obstacles. Once an elaborate design has been committed to, backing away from it—or even altering it—becomes both politically and mechanically complicated. Further, planners have a limited capacity to predict how people will respond to their designs. The larger the project, the more likely unintended consequences become, and the more difficult it is to change course.