The Green Urbanist
Do you want to take meaningful action on the climate and biodiversity crises? Dive into interviews with leading practitioners, researchers and authors to learn about the art and science of sustainability and regenerative design.
With almost 100 episodes, the podcast covers the challenges facing cities from all angles, including architecture, urban design, biodiversity, planning, policy, housing, transport, economics and systems thinking. Start listening to learn how to make cities more sustainable, healthy and happy, get inspired and learn actionable advice to inform your own work.
The Green Urbanist podcast is hosted by Ross O'Ceallaigh, an urban designer and educator.
Episodes
104 episodes
#99: Sustainability Career Advice + 3 Circular Economy Case Studies, with Valentina Petrone
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 advi...
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54:40
#98: Circular Economy: Making Material Reuse Happen at Scale, with Material Index
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 expl...
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50:26
Course launch: Sustainability Essentials for Built Environment Professionals
Learn more and enrol now: Sustainability Essentials for Built Environment ProfessionalsMy new course is now live and availa...
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11:36
Intro to Regenerative Design (Mini-Course part 3/3)
Watch this training as a video for the best experience: Link to Video Training ...
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22:47
Net Zero Carbon Made Simple (Mini-Course part 2/3)
Watch this training as a video for the best experience: Link to Video Training <...
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15:50
Kickstart your Sustainability-focused Career (Mini-Course part 1/3)
This is part 1 of a 3-part mini-course coming out this week about how to start bringing sustainability into your work as a built environment professional. In this episode, I give advice for how to approach learning about sustainability and what...
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10:05
#97: Climate Adaptation Strategies for Urban Trees and Woodlands
In this episode I share some learnings from my recent research project about how climate change is likely to affect an urban nature reserve in London and climate adaptation recommendations for the reserve's management. I discuss:
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52:23
#96: Mainstreaming Passive Building Design in the USA, with Phius
My guest on this episode is Katrin Klingenberg, the Executive Director of Phius. Phius is a non-profit organization committed to decarbonizing the built environment by making high-performance passive building the mainstream market standard. The...
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44:55
#95: EcoResponsive Environments: Designing with Natural Systems
This episode is a conversation with Prachi Rampuria and Soham De, co-founders of an urban design practice called EcoResponsive Environments and are co-authors of a book by the same name. They joined me on this episode to discuss the concept of ...
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1:02:13
#94: Stories of the Internet of Nature from 'The Nature of Our Cities' book, with Nadina Galle
Nadina Galle is an ecological engineer, National Geographic Explorer, science and nature writer, podcaster, and keynote speaker. She helps green professionals use emerging technologies to improve urban ecosystems for future generations.
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57:14
#93: An AI Tool to Streamline Biodiversity Net Gain, with Shashin Mishra (BNGAI)
This episode is all about technology to help us deliver Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG). My guest is Shashin Mishra, VP of EMEA for AiDash.We explore how a new digital tool called BNGAI has been created to help developers, ecologists and lo...
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44:43
#92: Chicago's Wild Mile and Other Urban Nature Innovations, with Doug Voigt (SOM)
Doug Voigt, a partner at SOM, discusses the Wild Mile project in Chicago and the importance of rewilding and restoring ecological systems in cities. The project aims to reclaim part of the Chicago River as an ecological and community asset. We ...
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46:17
#91: A West African Perspective on Sustainable Architecture, with James Inedu-George (HTL Africa)
James is founding partner of HTL Africa, a research-driven architectural firm dedicated to addressing the specific challenges of West African environments. He joined me to discuss what we can learn from traditional west African architecture and...
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52:03
#90: Nature-Sensitive Urban Design, with Dr Thami Croeser
Dr Thami Croeser is an urban planner with a focus on bringing nature back into cities in practical ways, at large scale. He is a Research Fellow at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia.In this episode we discuss practical ways of bri...
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53:58
#89: A Planning System to Address the Climate and Housing Crises, with Shaun Spiers
Shaun Spiers is the Executive Director of the environmental think-tank, Green Alliance. In this episode we discuss how a stronger planning system in the UK can address the housing crisis and deliver more sustainable outcomes. Read their...
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49:26
#88: Restoring Landscapes and Reconnecting to Nature, with Alexandra Steed
Alexandra Steed is a passionate landscape architect with a deep commitment to art, sustainability, and the transformative power of landscapes. We talk about:Her new book: Portrait to LandscapeHow to restore lan...
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57:34
#87: Biophilic Architecture and Design, with Louisa Whitmore (@louisatalksbuildings)
Louisa Whitmore is an architecture enthusiast, TikToker and host of the Nature of Design documentary series. In this episode we discuss her experience making the documentary, the mental health benefits of biophilic environments and case studies...
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23:40
#86: Regenerative Architecture Index - Accelerating towards a regenerative built environment
In conversation with Alisdair Ben Dixon (Collective Works), Anna Lisa McSweeney (White Arkitekter) and Isabel Allen (Architecture Today) about the new Regenerative Architecture Index (RAI). Launched by Architecture Today and UK Architects D...
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55:22
#85: Using 3D Modelling, Digital Twins and Generative Design for Sustainability, with VU.CITY
I sit down with Andrew Bullmore of VU.CITY to discuss how 3D models, digital twins and artificial intelligence tools can be used to do better, evidence-based planning and design and get more sustainable outcomes. VU.CITY website: ...
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41:04
#84: Net Zero Carbon Neighbourhoods, with Sam Luker (AESG)
Sam Luker is an Associate Sustainability Director at AESG and led on their new report titled 'Net Zero Neighbourhoods'. In this episode we discuss: Why the neighbourhood scale is optimal for decarbonisation and fin...
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49:28
#83: Decolonise Architecture, with Mohit Buch and Sue Yen Chong
Mohit and Sue Yen are architects and members of Decolonise Architecture, a solution-based group driven to tackle institutional racism and bias within architectural education and practice. In this episode we discuss: How a...
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46:13
#82: Decarbonising Concrete and Steel, with Jeff Rissman
Jeffrey Rissman is Senior Director at Energy Innovation, where he leads the company’s work on technologies and policies to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from the industry sector. He is the author of Zero-Carbon Industry: Transformative...
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51:08
#81: Reimagining Roads as Public Space, with LDA (Landscape Mini-Series Part 4)
Welcome to part 4, the final episode in the landscape mini-series. In this episode I sit down with Cannon Ivers CMLI of LDA to discuss their inspiring project The Strand, Aldwych. The Strand was for centuries a busy traffic thoroughfare i...
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15:14
#80: Transforming an Urban Park, with LUC (Landscape Mini-Series Part 3)
Welcome to part 3 in this mini-series on landscape and urban nature. In this episode I spoke with James Virgo CMLI of LUC. He tells me about LUC’s work on Shoreditch Park. This is a nice case study of taking an existing park and working w...
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12:50
#79: Biourbanism and Landscape Design Code, with McGregor Coxall (Landscape Mini-Series Part 2)
Welcome to part 2 of this mini-series on landscape and urban nature. This episode features an interview with Michael Cowdy FLI of McGregor Coxall. We discuss two of their Landscape Award-nominated projects, a research project on BioUrbani...
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15:38