In the news

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News articles

Loneliness isn’t just a holiday issue — it’s a year round epidemic – Bon Appétit

Multi-unit homes can be built to encourage social interaction, advocates say – Vancouver Sun

East Van cohousing project leads to 0% loneliness: report – CBC Early Edition

Urban backyards are disappearing. Can we be happy without them? – The Globe and Mail

Apartment buildings with only one stairwell: The answer to B.C. housing woes? – Vancouver Sun

How to build a friendly building – The Globe and Mail

City life is too lonely. Urban planning can help – Bloomberg CityLab

Urban golf courses are making housing more expensive and parks harder to access — and taxpayers are footing the bill – Business Insider

A roof of one’s own – Mental Health Commission of Canada

South Main co-housing project welcomes residents in search of community – CTV News

City moving ahead with arts and culture framework – Alaska Highway News

What to read to understand cities – The Economist

Could the humble neighbourhood business offer a solution to our complex set of problems? – Georgia Straight

‘Friends’ and ‘Seinfeld’ knew the cure for loneliness – Business Insider

The secret of the happy city: Why living in a neighbourhood with shops, green areas and diverse people seriously benefits health (El urbanista que ha encontrado la fórmula científica de la ciudad feliz: “El sueño americano de la casa unifamiliar es ridículo”) – El Mundo

The haiku that helped make a New York street livable (El haiku que ayudó a hacer habitable una calle de Nueva York) – El País

How to create a happy city – Cities4Children

Why public art is good for cities – YES! Magazine

Locking up public spaces hits lower-income, racialized people harder – CTV News

Patio dining can increase happiness in patrons study finds – Vancouver Is Awesome

New toolkit offers advice for Canada’s Main Streets – REMI Network, Design Quarterly

Rapid Placemaking to Bring Back Main Street – Buffalo Rising

Vibrant Metro Vancouver neighbourhoods face urban decay as businesses become COVID-19 casualties – News1130

I fact-checked rumors swirling around this East Van mystery lot – The Tyee

Cohousing converts wait for their keys – The Globe and Mail

‘Happy cities need to make spaces for people, not cars’ – The Hindu

CRDA Happy Nest consultants visit Cultural Centre of Vijayawada-Amaravati (CCVA) – The Hans India

Alleys, Laneways and Life Between Buildings – Spacing Magazine

‘There’s nothing else like it’: El Mirador building with unique design, at risk – Edmonton Journal

Cities, technology, and happiness: a look at the future – Baha’i World News Service 

Inspire Jericho’ talks launch with Charles Montgomery of Happy City – Vancouver Courier 

#20ReasonsToBike: Riding a bike to work may be the secret to happiness – The Georgia Straight

How to make cities happier, healthier and better equipped to fight climate change – CBC Windsor 

CivicCon Live: ‘Happy City’ with Charles Montgomery on Monday – Pensacola News Journal 

CivicCon: How city design affects people’s happiness, and how happy people affect a city’s success – Pensacola News Journal 

Charles Montgomery: Cities can ‘push us apart, or draw us together’ – Pensacola News Journal 

The psychological tricks designers use to make cities happier places – WIRED

Designing cities around happiness – Thousand Oaks Acorn

Commentary: Forget commuter rail; high-speed bus lanes better option for HRM – Chronicle Herald

Natura’s parkside homes designed with community in mind – Vancouver Sun 

What’s behind the Tomo name of a new cohousing project? – Georgia Straight

The death and life of a hedge fund mansion – Institutional Investor

Ten Vancouver families planning ‘urban village’ to foster connections – Globe and Mail

Cohousing project in Vancouver – Daily Hive

Cohousing Lite enters the Vancouver housing lexicon – The Courier

Can public art make you happier? One study says yes – KUNC Denver

Happy Streets ”Living Lab” results suggest public space affects wellbeing – Smart Cities Dive

‘People are nicer to each other when they move more slowly’: how to create happier cities – The Guardian 

‘It’s Prozac in city form’: Canadians on the issues facing their cities – The Guardian

Is Vancouver reeady to grow from laneways to living lanes? – Spacing Magazine

Walking towards a Happy City – Walk 21 Vienna

La ciudad justa, verde, eficiente y feliz son el mismo lugar – El Pais

Christchurch Convention Centre location a ‘mistake’ – The Press, Christchurch

The psychology of ‘no’: Vancouver transit vote is case study in why it’s so hard to do what makes us happy – National Post

Voices of new economies: An interview with Charles Montgomery – The McConnell Foundation

How to make cities that make people happy – The Globe and Mail

Ballet of the sidewalk – Metropolis Magazine

Urban walking is a legal high, so why are cities cruel to pedestrians? – The Globe and Mail

Building happier, healthier, and more sustainable cities – Urban Land

Podcasts & radio

Transforming the ‘burbs into happy cities with Tristan Cleveland – Active Towns Podcast

Walkable city design is critical for economic health – Strong Towns Podcast with Chuck Marohn

Vancouver Park Board votes to keep golf course land for golf – CBC Early Edition

A discussion on Happy Cities and urban design with Charles Montgomery – KCSB News

Happy Cities: How can urban design boost our wellbeing? With Tristan Cleveland – Urbcast

Designing collective wellbeing – the Happy City movement with Charles Montgomery – Design Influence Podcast

Wellbeing cities special: Destination downtown with Mayor Kennedy Stewart and Charles Montgomery – NewCities threesixtyCITY podcast

Creating happiness with Mitchell Reardon – Amazing Places with Dean Murdock

Designing happy cities with Mitchell Reardon – Shared Space Podcast with Erin Peavey

Investing in happiness with Charles Montgomery – Vancouver Real Estate Podcast

Could Psychologists Help Us Build Better Cities? – BBC World

Canadian ‘Happy City’ urbanist Charles Montgomery was asked how to make Perth a happier city and his response was very amusing – ABC Radio Perth

Cities are creating car-free zones to ease congestion and pollution – NPR 

Happiness and cities: dispatch from the Academy of Urbanism – Monocle Radio

Can we have happy sprawl – 720 AM, ABC Perth

Designing the Happy City – 94.9 FM, Seattle News & Information

What makes a city, happy? – The Arcade podcast

Television & video

Kansas City is the biggest U.S. city to offer free transit. Here’s how it works – NBC LX

Why sprawling, car dependent cities are making us miserable? – TV New Zealand

How can we make Vancouver happier? – CBC News

How cities make us sick – CBC News: The National

Book chapters

Green Visions: Greenspace Planning and Design in Nordic Cities