This is episode 2 of 6 in the podcast series on urban rewilding.

My guest is Sophie Thompson, a landscape architect and Director at LDA Design.

In this episode we discuss:

• How wild nature can be brought into city streets and public spaces
• The importance of working closely with local communities
• Examples of LDA’s transformations of highly urban spaces into places for people and nature.
• How to manage the complexities and constraints of working in cities.

More about LDA Design and the projects we discuss:
LDA Website
Greening London's West End
Alfred Place Gardens
Princes Circus

Connect with Sophie: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophie-thompson-51b4748/

Further listening:
Listen to Part 1 in the urban rewilding series: #102: (WILD) Rewilding Urban Parks with Lost Species - Sean McCormack, Ealing Beaver Project

Listen to my previous episode with LDA on their Strand Aldwych project: #81: Reimagining Roads as Public Space, with LDA

Cover image of Princes Circus, London by LDA Design. Photo by Maple Studio, used with permission from LDA Design.

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Free training: Urban Sustainability in 5 Case Studies

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My guest is Duygu Kutluay, a campaigner at Beyond Fossil Fuels.
We discuss:

• Why local community projects need to be part of Europe’s energy transition away from fossil fuels.
• Beyond Fossil Fuels' new interactive map of community-based energy projects that you can access on their website.
• Six case studies of local energy projects from across Europe.

More about Beyond Fossil Fuels: https://beyondfossilfuels.org/
Local Energy Solutions Map: https://beyondfossilfuels.org/local-energy-solutions-map/

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Free training: Urban Sustainability in 5 Case Studies

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Workshop on 19 Feb: Find your Unique Role in Climate Action (link)

In this episode I explore the different roles that built environment professionals can play in leveraging systems change for sustainability. This is based on interviewing 122 guests on this podcast and exploring systems change research.

The 5 types of change-makers are:

• Champion and Coordinator
• Researcher and Storyteller
• Topic Expert
• Innovator
• Systems Influencer

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Free training: Urban Sustainability in 5 Case Studies

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This episode is part of a 6-part series on Urban Rewilding.

My guest is Sean McCormack, Chair of Ealing Wildlife Group. Sean led the reintroduction of harvest mice and beavers into urban parks in London, UK. In this episode we discuss:

• What is 'Urban rewilding' and why we should do it.
• What made these projects successful.
• Getting support from the community.
• What needs to change to make rewilding in cities mainstream.

Previous episodes with Sean:
#72: Sean McCormack - Rewilding Urban London (Part 1)
#73: Sean McCormack - Rewilding Urban London (Part 2)

More about the Ealing Beaver Project here:
https://theealingbeaverproject.com

More about Sean and Ealing Wildlife Group:
https://ealingwildlifegroup.com/

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Free training: Urban Sustainability in 5 Case Studies

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This episode is a conversation with Jonathan Rosenbloom, Associate Dean at Albany Law School who has researched and written about sacrifice zones. He is also the Executive Director for the Sustainable Development Code.

We discuss:

• Whether neighbourhoods that have been destroyed by natural disasters should be rebuilt or designated as no-build 'Sacrifice Zones'.
• How US planning departments can use the Sustainable Development Code to ensure new development is low carbon and climate adapted.

Note: This episode was recorded before the LA wildfires in January 2025.

Links:
Contact Jonathan: jrose@albanylaw.edu
Sustainable Development Code: https://sustainablecitycode.org/
Article on Sacrifice Zones: https://nextcity.org/urbanist-news/the-case-for-returning-disaster-prone-areas-back-to-nature

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Free training: Urban Sustainability in 5 Case Studies

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This is a recording of a live streamed podcast episode to celebrate episode 100 of the podcast. I was joined by three guests, who you might recognise from past episodes:

• Laura Baron, Head of Sustainability, Purcel
• Scott McAulay, Regenerative Design and Infrastructures Specialist, Architype
• Conrad Richardson, Sustainable Mobility Expert

We discussed how we as built environment professionals can drive sustainable change through the work that we do. We also touch on some of the amazing work that all the guests are doing.

You can watch the episode on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUS9ukxvtmI&t=2142s

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Free training: Urban Sustainability in 5 Case Studies

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My guest on this episode is Valentina Petrone, a former architect, circular economy expert and Manager of Strategy, Innovation and Sustainability at the New South Wales State Government.

In this episode, Valentina gives career advice for those who want to transition from traditional built environment careers into sustainability. We also discuss three of her projects:

• New South Wales Circular Design Guidelines
• Bradfield City Centre Masterplan
• Circular Office Fitout

Connect with Valentina on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valentina-petrone/

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Free training: Urban Sustainability in 5 Case Studies

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This episode is a conversation with Morgan Lewis, Co-Founder and CEO at Material Index.

In the UK, 60% of all waste comes from the construction industry and only 2% of building components in the UK are reused. In this episode, Morgan explains how Material Index are trying to tackle this by working with building owners, contractors and project teams to make material reuse happen at scale.

Learn more about Material Index: https://www.material-index.co.uk/

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Free training: Urban Sustainability in 5 Case Studies

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