Building Concrete Ecological Solutions That Go Beyond Concrete

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In the midst of yet another year of climate catastrophe, the U.S. Senate is negotiating a $3.5 trillion infrastructure package.  President Biden, among others, is calling for extensive investment to lower emissions and combat the effects of climate change. But what sort of investment? In this episode, Laura interviews environmental lawyer Colette Pichon Battle in Louisiana about the strategies organizers there have developed since Hurricane Katrina for equitable green development and climate justice. Then, she speaks in depth with MacArthur “Genius” award-winning landscape architect Kate Orff about her innovative work on oyster reefs, living breakwaters and regenerative infrastructure. Recently profiled in the New Yorker Magazine, Orff insists that ecology is the infrastructure of the future. Her work restores and harnesses—rather than resists—natural systems to ensure the livability of our rapidly changing world. Plus, Laura shares some thoughts about community vs. concrete.  Music in the Middle:  “Makin’ Waves” by Baba Brinkman featuring  Gaia’s Eye, from his album The Rap Guide to Climate Chaos.

Guests:

-Colette Pichon Battle, Founder and Executive Director of the Gulf Coast Center for Law & Policy, co-chairs the national Water Equity and Climate Resilient Caucus with PolicyLink and anchors the five-state, multi-issue initiative Gulf South for a Green New Deal.

-Kate Orff, Founding Principal of SCAPE; And Director & Professor, Urban Design Program, Columbia University.  SCAPE creates positive change in communities by combining regenerative living infrastructure and new forms of public space.  She is also the Director of the Urban Design Program, Co-Director of the Center for Resilient Cities and Landscapes (CRCL), and Professor at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP).

Laura Flanders and Friends Crew:  Laura Flanders, along with Sabrina Artel, Jeremiah Cothren, Veronica Delgado, Janet Hernandez, Jeannie Hopper, Gina Kim, Sarah Miller, Nat Needham, David Neuman, and Rory O’Conner. 

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