What does it mean for North American cities? by Andrew Klain and Avery Maloney The sharing economy is on the rise: in 2014, the global sharing economy was worth $14 billion USD, and it is estimated to grow in value by $335 billion USD by 2025. The growing presence of the sharing economy in traditional markets, markets…
Category: Urban
Bioharvesting: A Potential Solution for Improving the Toronto Harbour’s Water Quality
Ian T. D. Thomson The Toronto Harbour area is contaminated. Though frequently used for various recreational activities, such as boating, swimming and fishing, since 1986 the federal government has designated it an Area of Concern (AOC) due to issues with water quality and environmental health. The source of these issues? Storm water overflows mixing with…
The Environment and Natural Resources: from Silent Spring to Climate Change
Cindy Liu and Tom Piekarski The fifth panel of the Canada’s Policy Transformation conference focused on the environment and natural resources. The panel’s speakers were Professor Jennifer Winter from the University of Calgary, Deborah McGregor from York University, and Matti Siemiatycki from the University of Toronto. Professor Jennifer Winter opened the panel with insight on…
Understanding Smarter Cities: the iPhones of Municipal Governments
by Anna-Kay Russell What is a smart city? That was the first question that came to mind when I saw a promotion for an academic panel called “Understanding Smarter Cities: What Happens Next?”, recently hosted by the Innis College Urban Studies program. After trying to answer the question myself – thinking of smart cities like…
How to become a Toronto City Councillor
On Thursday, November 2nd, Toronto’s City Council held a special meeting to appoint a new council member to Ward 28. The successful candidate, Lucy Troisi, filled the ward seat that had been vacant since long-time Councillor Pam McConnell passed away in July. Appointments tend to happen if one of Council’s 45 seats (44 ward representatives…
Why is London banning Uber?
Caleb Holden On September 22nd, Greater London’s municipal transport authority, Transport for London (TfL), announced that it would not renew Uber’s five-year operating licence beyond its September 30th expiration date, highlighting the ride-sharing company’s “lack of corporate responsibility” as an important factor in their decision. Should the decision stand, it will have a major impact…
