Podcast.
The Good City
Welcome to The Good City podcast series, where we bring together experts from across the world to explore how design can help cities tackle their biggest challenges and create better places for people and the planet.
In our first episode, Rotterdam: Climate Adaptation, we spotlight a city that has turned its greatest climate risks into a platform for innovation. With around 85% of Rotterdam sitting below sea level, water is an everyday reality. By embracing rather than resisting it, the city is transforming into a forward‑looking metropolis where nature, design, and resilience work hand in hand. Joined by the people behind The Good City - Rotterdam paper, we explore how community driven adaptation, experimental field labs, and climate adaptive public places are turning climate stress into opportunity - showing how liveable, nature positive spaces can be designed and scaled - offering practical lessons to cities worldwide. Host: Michelle Xuereb (Host), Innovation Director, BDP Quadrangle Panellists: Johan Verlinde, Program Manager, Rotterdam Climate Adaptation Plan Lindsey Schwidder, Programme Manager, The Green Village at Delft University of Technology Yasmin Stip, Citizens Initiative Leader, Iedereenaanboord Björn Bleumink, Architect Director, Head of Rotterdam Studio, BDP
Read the accompanying Good City paper.In our second episode, Toronto - Growing Pains, we turn to one of North America’s most dynamic and pressured cities. Every year, around 120,000 people arrive in the Toronto region, testing the limits of its housing, infrastructure, and public services. But behind the headlines of rising costs and crowded streets lies a bigger question: can rapid growth become a force for good? Joined by the authors of The Good City - Toronto paper, we unpack how community-centred TOD, gentle density, and inclusive design can shape a fairer, more resilient and future-ready Toronto. Host: Michelle Xuereb, Innovation Director, BDP Quadrangle. Panellists: Sean Hertel, Principal, Hertel Planning, Lecturer at Toronto Metropolitan University, University of Waterloo, and York University Canada, and Harim Labuschagne, Senior Architect & Director of Design, BDP Quadrangle.
Read the accompanying Good City paper.