TED Conversations

Jamia Wilson

TED Prize Storyteller, TED Prize

TED StaffTED Attendee

This conversation is closed. Start a new conversation
or join one »

What inspires you about your favorite city?

In the next 30 years, two-thirds of our planet’s population will live in cities. Have you ever tried to envision the cities of the future? Cities are enlivened by people, and people enable change. So today, we are launched our redesigned website TheCity2.org, a gathering place for all urban denizens to share stories, videos, ideas and innovations related to urban transformation. We want to hear your city-related stories.

Related Talks:
Topics: Future Cities Urban Development cities food public health safety transportation urban
+1
Share:
progress indicator
  • thumb

    Keddy Moise

    • +1
    Feb 5 2013: I like Chalon sur Saone, in Southern France. The city is calm and very friendly with many terrace restaurants, a beautiful cathedral and a very nice river. The people here are welcoming and they're always willing to say something about their place (if you ask them) . And in the streets, you can see signs which tell you something about the history of the city. It's also a modern place with great stores and almost everything you can find in an american metropolitan city.

  • reine des violettes

    • +1
    Feb 5 2013: Beautiful C18th architecture which is cohesive across the city...which is in fact the size of a large town...human sized, and set within green hills and a river,never too far away from any part of the city.
    The people who live here usually live here because they love it..they are in love with their own city.It makes a difference.

  • specs 2

    • +1
    Feb 5 2013: I'm from Toronto but London is the place I'd move to if I had a the choice. It just works so well. I don't need a car. I don't even think I'd need a TV. It's multicultural. It's historical. It's scenic and I find the people there tolerant of one another, open and friendly. It just all works incredibly well.
  • thumb

    Kieran Preissler

    • +2
    Feb 1 2013: I am continually intrigued by how diverse large cities are: how multicultural the societies are and how vibrantly they are represented throughout the city.

  • carolyn mcauley 20+

    • +2
    Jan 30 2013: There is a city in the United States that has made all their napkins,paper products and take out restaurant utensils into eco friendly Im not a good speller..so it is SanFrancisco...hmm anyway because of this commitment to the ecosystem if I were to be in the States..I would plant my roots there,such is my passion for precaution for the children and nature
  • thumb

    Morton Bast 200+

    • +1
    TED StaffHostTED AttendeeTED Translator
    Jan 30 2013: I love accidentally running into people in New York City. I once told a friend that I found "Seinfeld" to be the most spot-on television depiction of living in NYC, and he was skeptical -- surely, I wasn't always running into exactly the person who would best advance the plotline?

    In fact, that's been my experience. Whether I run into them because they are destined to advance the plot, or that's the way the plot turns because of whom I ran into, the catalyzing quality of many people on a tiny island never fails to be entertaining.
    • thumb

      Jamia Wilson

      • 0
      TED StaffTED Attendee
      Jan 31 2013: I have had the same experience here.:) All the beauty and all of the contradictions and literal and figurative collisions make NYC amazing.

  • greg dahlen 20+

    • +1
    Jan 30 2013: Well, I love Hollywood, the beach, the weather (I live right on the edge of L.A.)
  • thumb

    Jamia Wilson

    • 0
    TED StaffTED Attendee
    Jan 30 2013: Thank you so much for sharing your stories! You can add images, videos, and more stories about the cities that inspire you on www.thecity2.org.

  • Mary M. 100+

    • +2
    Jan 30 2013: My favorite city is one with open spaces. It also would have lots of walking spaces where you can meander through the neighborhoods, and still be within easy access to parks and restaurants.

    The city must have lots of trees that will provide shady sidewalks and it must be populated by people of diverse cultures.

    It must be family friendly and also provide great public transportation that caters to those who want to get around without driving.

    Also important are theater and museums and cultural events........and of course a super stocked library.

    One final thing is......it should be near to places where city people can get away for the day......beaches, or mountains, or lakes......or some kind of wild life refuge or national park.
  • thumb

    Salim Solaiman 50+

    • +1
    Jan 30 2013: People & history behind
    • thumb

      Keddy Moise

      • 0
      Feb 5 2013: This is Paris. :)
      • thumb

        Salim Solaiman 50+

        • 0
        Feb 5 2013: How do you know :)
        Yes that is one of those....as I have more ...
        • thumb

          Keddy Moise

          • 0
          Feb 5 2013: Every small thing in Paris has a great history behind it.
          Paris is not the only city like that. But it is the one that impressed me the most.
  • thumb

    Kate Blake 50+

    • +2
    Jan 30 2013: Am not a city person at all, it's many many years since I lived in one. But my favourite is Istanbul - where the east and the west meet. I love the old part of the city with those amazing mosques and small windy streets. The river through town which is a feature in itself and then the rest of this very busy cosmopolitan city, magic!

    Have to agree with Fritzies comments beow but also good urban transport is essential - should keep cars out of cities wherever possible. And lots of green belts; put power lines underground and have trees in the streets.
  • thumb

    Feyisayo Anjorin 50+

    • +1
    Jan 30 2013: Toronto, Canada; the peaceful streets; (it is one of the safest major cities in North America; and it is cosmopolitan, an indicator that we can live in peace and harmony if we really want to. The parks, the greenery, the skyline, the shoreline, and the lakes.
    The CN Towers, beautiful view from a distance, even more beautiful from the heights. The city hall at night; and not forgetting the Nathan Philips square.

    It is called T Dot by residents, but it is hard for visitors not to love this city.
  • thumb

    Linda Taylor 50+

    • +1
    Jan 30 2013: Sorry, can't live in a city. But they are nice to visit once in a while. I always remember the analogy of 'rats in a box.' Where the more rats you put in a box, the more aggressive they become to the point of killing other rats.

    So perhaps personal space would be key for me.
    • thumb

      Morton Bast 200+

      • +1
      TED StaffHostTED AttendeeTED Translator
      Jan 30 2013: Do you have a favorite to visit?
      • thumb

        Linda Taylor 50+

        • +1
        Jan 31 2013: Good question. I have a couple. Chicago and San Francisco are at the top. Mostly because they have such an eclectic cultural vibe. Where the cultures are distinct yet a part of the bigger whole. They seem to have a 'heart beat' that is similar to mine.

        But I always want to go back to small/town rural because I like to breath air that someone else has not just exhaled.

        Claustrophobia at it's best.
  • thumb

    Fritzie Reisner 100+

    • +1
    Host
    Jan 30 2013: One of the most important attributes to me of a welcoming city is easily accessible toll-free anchor points for people to come together informally without having to buy anything. Parks, plazas, public markets and festivals, bookshops, and friendly streets can serve this purpose. Towns/cities with colleges often offer great opportunities for communities to converge for learning, skill-sharing, and play, at zero or nominal cost to participants.

    Walkability and greenery are key for me as well.
Showing all 23 comments