‘Make no mistake, the planet is going to hell in a hand basket.’ These were the opening words of Michael Sorkins key note speech at the congress The Next Step, building blocks for a sustainable city, which was held at the Rotterdam RDM Campus last week. ArchiTV was there and registered the lecture, which by the way ended much more optimistic than it began.
Michael Sorkin is an architect, critic, academic and author of among others Twenty Minutes in Manhattan' and All Over the Map: Writing on Buildings and Cities', in which 12 principles for Eutopia, or a better city are presented. The main thread of his works, both theoretical and in his practice as an architect and urban designer, is the discrepancy between private and public interests in the city. Basically his message is positive: climate change, poverty, the disappearance of ecosystems, and the belief in an unregulated market are all problems caused by mankind, and therefore can also be solved by mankind.
NB: Because of the Castroian length of the lecture, the middle part was left out of this registration..
The registration consists of:
– (0.00) A flaming introduction and an overview of the situation we put ourselves in.
– (after 19.00 min) New York City Steady State, an investigation into the possibilities of an autarkic New York
– (after ca 35.00 min) Discussions
(registration Stefan de Graaff, AntenneTV)