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Curitiba And The Creation Of Sustainable Cities

15 October 2007 - 7:00am

This podcast features excerpts from a speech by Jaime Lerner, former mayor of Curitiba, Brazil, home of one of the world's first and most successful bus rapid transit systems. In this speech Lerner presents the five commandments of the sustainable city, and introduces a planning concept he calls "urban acupuncture".

Lerner is a trained architect and planner, and also served as governor of the Brazilian state of Paraná from 1995 to 2002. During the 1960s, Lerner was involved with the writing of Curitiba's master plan, and he later instituted various social reforms and public works projects during his time in politics.

After three terms as mayor in Curitiba, two terms as governor of Paraná, and a distinguished career as a planner and architect, Lerner looks back on what makes a sustainable city. He offers advice on creating co-responsibility in the community, and stresses the importance of developing a clear concept of the city and a scenario for achieving it.

This speech was recorded on September 27, 2007 at Los Angeles City Hall.

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