Wake me when its over
How’s your social distancing going? One of the things our pandemic seems to be doing is increasing the number of people who want to social distance themselves right out of town. That’s right, we can work remotely, home-school our kids and decamp to some remote spot. Imagine the idyllic cabin – or tiny home – that you could build yourself. Set all on its own in a pastoral setting, it could be the ultimate expression of architectural individualism.
It all sounds amazing, doesn’t it, but we need to make sure that this doesn’t result in more habitat loss for wildlife. I can’t remember who it was, but someone has said a great place to build a cabin in the wilderness is a great place not to build one. Sorry, what a killjoy. But we can always bring more nature into our cities, right? In “How to Do Nothing” (the first e-book I downloaded in lockdown) Jenny Odell points out that it never really works to try and run away from society anyway. Many have tried and failed, she says, and in fact you have a duty to participate. And consider this - if you are going to be taking a broadband connection with you when you head for the hills, your life might not actually change that much. You’re going to cut back on binge-watching TV series after the lockdown you say? The good news – from this writers standpoint, at least – is that the pandemic is going to cause us to run out of content soon. Other positive outcomes that we can look forward to after the pandemic - and I’ve written hopefully about this in previous newsletters - is cities designed for people rather than cars. And of course a more equitable society. That’s something worth signing up for.
Speaking of signing up, GREENinc’s Johannesburg office has found itself a new physical space. It’s on the famous Seventh Avenue in Melville, number ten, on the ground floor. Pop in and say hi when all this is over…
‘til next time.
Stuart
The images below showcase some of our work (in collaboration with Boogertman + Partners) at The Houghton Hotel in Johannesburg.
