To Nurture Nature

The effects of urbanization can be seen and measured in many different ways. During the 19th century, with the work of Charles Darwin and the advent of evolutionary thinking in mainstream biology, people were better able to describe the changes they witnessed in the flora and fauna around them. With the idea of speciation in mind- the process by which organisms undergo evolutionary changes which leads to new morphologies, sub-species, and altogether different species- we can look to the plants and animals around us to get a sense of how human settlement and urbanization affects the natural order of things. Read more here.

The Space of Global Warming, or an Island of Heat

Human activities are becoming increasingly more energy intensive, this includes simply being in an urban space. Experts have long discussed the idea of the Urban Heat Island- the term used to describe the relatively higher air, soil, and surface temperatures of urban areas to their proximal, less dense, areas. As Urbanization is predicted to increase rapidly, so will energy demands for living, working and industry. While this issue is poised to become more urgent and pressing, there are great minds working on ways to reduce the ubiquitous Urban Heat. Such as, increasing vegetation, painting things white or light colors to increase albedo- a measure of reflectivity, and energy/heat recapture for electrical appliances and utilities such as the all important air conditioning. Read more about Urban Heat Islands and the temperature of our global future here.