CPULs

With a vision and a strategy the 21st century city will be green, ahealthy place for all and will generate zero net pollution. This bookoffers a vision and a strategy.

Thisbook is a 21st century breakthrough in defining an urbandesign/planning conceptual approach to reincorporating a productivelandscape, including agriculture, into the human settlement (CPULs).As reported in the chapter ‘Food in Time’ in the previous hundredyears there were several such models created including famously: LeCourbusier, Paul & Percival Goodman, Ian McHarg, Louis Mumford,and Frank Lloyd Wright. We have both history and great creative mindsto guide our hands to this gigantic task.

Theemerging 21st century city can be identified as ‘the EdgelessCity’. The concepts of city boundary, greenbelt, and suburb are allobsolete. The city that was focussed on the river, the seaport, therailyard, and the limited access highway intersection are allobsolete. Cities are becoming formless, edgeless and seeminglyendless. In Africa the city extends from Abidjan to Lagos, in Asiafrom Kobe-Osaka to Tokyo-Chiba, in North America from Portland Maineto Norfolk Virginia, and in Europe from Barcelona to Genoa.

Onceenlightened by the CPUL concept our eyes can see possibilitieseverywhere: the waste heat from supermarket refrigeration is a sourceof energy for food production, flood plains are productive ifproducing crops and costly if used for housing, fruit and vegetableproduction on rooftops saves heating and cooling costs, reduces airpollution and enables fresh cuisine, a security fence is a potentialfor productive and ornamental vines.

Greeningthe 21st century city will improve our health, stabilize our economyand bring us all closer together as we meet in the garden.