Green Towns and Cities - Theme Cities: Solutions for Urban Problems - page 145

Fig. 4.2 Basic principles of biophilic cities

not lead to a more consolidated movement. Nevertheless, it is apparent is that the
Eco-cities and Biophilic approaches are both helping to move this literally 'green'
agenda to new heights, although most cities still have a long way to conform to the
ideal of a truly green city.

4﻽10 Conclusions

The last two decades has seen an explosion of interest in making cities greener and
cleaner, part of a more general movement to sustainability and a return to more
natural conditions. Yet it is often forgotten that many of the ideas being promoted
today can be traced back to the pioneering ideas of nineteenth century reformers, es-
pecially those responsible for the growth of parks in cities, and later the Garden City
and Regional Planning ideas of individuals such as Howard and Geddes. Among
the variety of alternative green policies that have been implemented in urban places
over the past few decades, four key principles can be discerned. One is that develop-
ment should try to work within the framework of the natural ecology , not destroy
it, in order to recreate and rehabilitate areas and return them to more natural condi-
tions. This would then improve the recreational and health opportunities of the area,
as well as improve local knowledge and stewardship of the land, as promoted by
the biophilia movement. Some green advocates, such as those in the Ecocity move-
ment, which held its ninth global meeting in Montreal in 2011, are more radical,
wishing to see urban places as the minority areas within a large natural landscape,
rather than the opposite, which is the pattern in most urban regions today. Their
principles go beyond the literally green practices discussed here. Although progress