We Built It That Way

Jordan Clark + AJ Fawver
  • 5.0 (9)
  • SOCIETY & CULTURE
  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY

A show about how we shape the places we live, and how they shape us—our behavior, relationships, opportunities, and imaginations. If you've ever looked around your neighborhood and thought, "I wonder why it's like that?" ... the answer is often: "we built it that way." Hosted by AJ Fawver and Jordan Clark. Edited by Jordan Clark.

  1. Density: Just a fancy term for overcrowding?

    09/23/2022

    Density: Just a fancy term for overcrowding?

    Is urban density good or bad??? This is the type of question we'd prefer not to answer. But if you're okay with a little nuance, hop on in while we take a stroll through what density means, what it does and doesn't do, and why the topic riles so many people up. We talk about: What density measuresArguments people make against densityArguments people make in favor of densityA theory on why density tends to be a fixation in North AmericaDifferent ways to reach the same densityHow cars factor in (and cars always factor in!)What is overcrowding? And how that relates to "density"How talking about urban intensity allows for greater specificityAnd a lot more! Links: Want to learn more on this episode’s topic? There has been no shortage of words written on the virus and our cities. Here's just a tiny sample: June 1972 article from Psychological Review, titled "On the distinction between density and crowding: Some implications for future research" by Daniel StokolsJune 22, 2021 article in Policy Options Politiques, "We need to focus on the problem of crowding, not density, in our cities" by Valerie Preston and Brian RayJune 1, 2020 TVO Today article, "Density is a planning problem. Crowding is a money problem" by John Michael McGrath January 2019 Governing, "Why ‘Density’ Is a Bad Word: It’s often used to describe how people live in urban spaces. But it shouldn't be." by Alex Marshall --- Check us out on Twitter and Instagram @webuiltitpod. Hosted by AJ Fawver and Jordan Clark. Edited by Jordan Clark. Music in this episode includes: Sounds of the Supermarket, Blue Dot Sessions, bummies. (on YouTube), a 1986 recording from The Weather Channel, lukrembo (on YouTube), C. Scott, Isaac Horwedel, and Dead Moon ("Too Many People")

    57 min
  2. Extra Credit: When Cars Kill

    08/20/2022 · BONUS

    Extra Credit: When Cars Kill

    In this Extra Credit episode, we have a chat about a frankly glum topic: when cars kill people. We discuss a fantastic piece in the New Yorker about a growing movement to end pedestrian and cycling fatalities in NYC and beyond. Lots to cover in this show, and we talk about: ingrained attitudes about transportation (and whose experience counts the most)policy choices that inevitably lead to avoidable deathindividuals and families bearing the burden of collective failureslearning from other countries: whether safe streets are a "cultural" thing or a policy resultVision Zero as a response to traffic deathsneighborhood politicsthe concept of "windshield bias"a few simple design approaches that make streets safer for all people... and more Let's dive in! --- Check us out on Twitter and Instagram @webuiltitpod. Hosted by AJ Fawver and Jordan Clark. Edited by Jordan Clark. Music in this episode: Sounds of the Supermarket, a 1985 Weather Channel broadcast, Isaac Horwedel, and Cullah ("GroOvy" and "Western Firefight 2").

    38 min
  3. Cover your ears: Why are cities so loud?

    07/29/2022

    Cover your ears: Why are cities so loud?

    In this episode, we talk about noise pollution—a much bigger problem than you might realize! Some of the things we discuss include: the most common (and annoying) sources of outdoor noiseadverse mental, physical, and social health effects from too much noise exposurewhat safe noise levels even areways to reduce noise in cities (hint: it has a lot to do with cars, like basically everything we talk about)and a whole lot more Links: Want to learn more on this episode’s topic? There has been no shortage of words written on the virus and our cities. Here's just a tiny sample: Book: ‘Curbing Traffic’ by Melissa & Chris BruntlettWhy City Noise Is a Serious Health HazardEnvironmental Noise Pollution in the United States: Developing an Effective Public Health ResponseHow Animals Perceive the World The sounds of our lives suck! How to make cities better by ending the blight of noiseCities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (Video)Why sounds and smells are as vital to cities as the sightsParis caps speed limit to 30km/h in further boost to 'soft' transportThe Sensory Assault of 18th Century CitiesRoad Traffic Noise Pollution Is Linked With a Heightened Risk of Central ObesityThe Science of Quieter CitiesTraffic Noise Might GiveYou a Heart AttackThe Science of Quieter CitiesHow Silence Became the Ultimate Luxury Good The (Basically) Complete Health Case for Urban Parks, Trees, and NatureNOISY CITIES...

    56 min
  4. Extra credit: Who is to blame for climate gentrification?

    07/18/2022 · BONUS

    Extra credit: Who is to blame for climate gentrification?

    Time for another installment in our 'Extra Credit' series, where we take a reading and discuss our takeaways, for your listening pleasure. In this episode, we discuss a piece in Shelterforce titled 'Are Urban Planners Staying Silent on Climate Gentrification?' – written by Colleen O'Connor-Grant. The built environment is the embodiment of countless decisions, each of which is a vote for what matters to us (or, to be honest, what matters to those with power and influence). In the case of climate gentrification, zoning rules, economic development practices, affordable housing policies, and other "boring" things create an unequal, ecologically degraded world. Which shapes each of us who live in it. Let's dive in! --- Check us out on Twitter and Instagram @webuiltitpod. Hosted by AJ Fawver and Jordan Clark. Edited by Jordan Clark. Music in this episode: Sounds of the Supermarket, a 1985 Weather Channel broadcast, Isaac Horwedel, Scott Joplin ("Reflection Rag"), and Lead Belly ("Bourgeois Blues").

    38 min
  5. Pandemics change cities. They also spotlight their problems.

    07/02/2022

    Pandemics change cities. They also spotlight their problems.

    In this episode we look back on just a few ways this current pandemic had an impact on how we see and use our built environment. (ARE CITIES DEAD?!?!?!) Links: Want to learn more on this episode’s topic? There has been no shortage of words written on the virus and our cities. Here's just a tiny sample: What the Pandemic's 'Open Streets' Really RevealedCoronavirus is not fuel for urbanist fantasiesHow the Coronavirus Will Reshape ArchitectureDriving Went Down. Fatalities Went Up. Here's Why.Oakland's Open Streets Programs Are Still a Work in Progress. That's a Good Thing.Past pandemics changed the design of cities. Six ways COVID-19 could do the same --- Check us out on Twitter and Instagram @webuiltitpod. Hosted by AJ Fawver and Jordan Clark. Edited by Jordan Clark. Music in this episode: Sounds of the Supermarket, ERLAX (YouTube), Stockwave (YouTube), and Scott Joplin ("Reflection Rag").

    39 min
  6. 📕 Extra Credit: Should we tear down highways?

    05/27/2022 · BONUS

    📕 Extra Credit: Should we tear down highways?

    We're trying something new! This is the first in our 'Extra Credit' series, where we take a reading and discuss our takeaways, for your listening pleasure. In this episode, we discuss an article that ran in Texas Observer in 2021: What If the State Department of Transportation Tore Down Texas Highways? by Megan Kimble. We talk about: what impact urban highways have on cities (and how they are different from rural highways)the "interesting" ways Texas's Department of Transportation publicly talks about transportationwhy people want to tear down some highways (are they just maniacs??)pros and cons of urban highwaysand a lot more! We also mention an article in The Guardian that came out the week we recorded: ‘It’s just more and more lanes’: the Texan revolt against giant new highways --- Check us out on Twitter and Instagram @webuiltitpod. Hosted by AJ Fawver and Jordan Clark. Edited by Jordan Clark. Music in this episode: Sounds of the Supermarket, Isaac Horwedel, a 1985 Weather Channel broadcast, and Wire ("Lowdown")

    39 min
  7. Signs and/or wonders: How much is too much?

    05/13/2022

    Signs and/or wonders: How much is too much?

    We're back, and we're talking about signs. Urban advertisements. Billboards, pole signs, and much more. We sure do put up with a lot of signs telling us what to do. Why are we so permissive with our eyeballs? Well, in recent decades, there have been movements across the globe to rid cities of public advertising. We discuss this trend and much more. Plus, what implicit values and priorities are built in to the way advertisement is allowed in cities? Links: Want to learn more on this episode’s topic? Here’s just a short list of interesting resources: The Stealthy Politics of Urban AdvertisingCan cities kick ads? Inside the global movement to ban urban billboardsAdvertising: Why billboards and outdoor ads are booming in a smartphone ageThe Ad Screens on Ride-Hail Cars Collect Data, TooCities Lose Supreme Court Case on Sign RegulationHere Are the Tools to Hack into Your City's Public AdvertisingShedding Light on Digital Signs (PDF) --- Check us out on Twitter and Instagram @webuiltitpod. Hosted by AJ Fawver and Jordan Clark. Edited by Jordan Clark. Music in this episode: Sounds of the Supermarket, Blue Dot Sessions ("Sandy Shuffle"), Homer & Jethro ("The Billboard Song"), Isaac Horwedel, and Gary Nintendo ("Riding a giant eagle over the mountains")

    55 min

  8. 04/08/2022

    Induced traffic: Why doesn’t adding lanes help?

    It’s Part II of our two-part series on traffic congestion! This time: why adding more lanes doesn’t make congestion go away. Framing traffic congestion as primarily a “street capacity” problem has led practitioners to seek solutions by adding more lanes and miles of streets and roads. This has the unintended (but predictable) consequence of generating more traffic. This phenomenon is exceedingly well known but continually ignored among the professionals who can do anything about it. Let’s talk about it. Links: Want to learn more on this episode’s topic? Here’s just a short list of interesting resources: Traffic Jam? Blame 'Induced Demand.' - BloombergTransportation For America More highways, more driving, more emissions: Explaining "induced demand" - Transportation For AmericaThe Fundamental, Global Law of Road Congestion (from City Observatory)Reducing Traffic or Inducing It?What's Up With That: Building Bigger Roads Actually Makes Traffic Worse | WIREDInduced Demand: An Axiom of Biology — Human TransitQuestioning Congestion Costs | City ObservatoryInduced demand - WikipediaReducing congestion: Katy didn't | City ObservatoryReduced demand is just as important as induced demand | CNUThe Problem with HOV LanesOpinion: Filth, Automobiles, and Our Misguided Obsession With TrafficCalculating induced demand at the Rose Quarter | City ObservatoryGenerated Traffic and Induced Travel – VPTI (PDF)Your Navigation App Is Making Traffic Unmanageable | Institute of Transportation StudiesSHIFT CalculatorBook: Walkable City by Jeff Speck (public library) --- Check us out on Twitter and a...

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About

A show about how we shape the places we live, and how they shape us—our behavior, relationships, opportunities, and imaginations. If you've ever looked around your neighborhood and thought, "I wonder why it's like that?" ... the answer is often: "we built it that way." Hosted by AJ Fawver and Jordan Clark. Edited by Jordan Clark.

Information

  • Creator
    Jordan Clark + AJ Fawver
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2022
  • Episodes
    13
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2023 Jordan Clark + AJ Fawver
  • Show Website
    We Built It That Way