Shiv Malik, autor, investor a b\u00fdval\u00fd novin\u00e1\u0159 Guardianu, p\u0159i\u0161el<\/a> s t\u00edmto sm\u011ble odv\u00e1\u017en\u00fdm pl\u00e1nem. Posledn\u00ed roky str\u00e1vil psan\u00edm o tom, jakou nev\u00fdhodnou pozici maj\u00ed mileni\u00e1lov\u00e9, pokud jde o bydlen\u00ed a dluhy, a jak nesm\u00edrn\u011b obt\u00ed\u017en\u00e9 je vybudovat si \u017eivot tak, jak to dok\u00e1zaly p\u0159edchoz\u00ed generace. Nyn\u00ed se sna\u017e\u00ed sv\u00e9 my\u0161lenky prom\u011bnit ve skute\u010dnost.<\/p>\n It sounds too good to be true, but a cross-party coalition of activists is trying to push through a forest city<\/a> for one million people, with construction set to begin before the end of this decade. It would be the first project of its kind in England since the 1960s, when the new town of Milton Keynes<\/a> was built.<\/p>\n The boldly ambitious plan was conceived<\/a> by Shiv Malik, an author, investor and former Guardian journalist. In recent years, he has spent his time writing about the disadvantaged position millennials face when it comes to housing and debt, and about how extraordinarily difficult it has become to build a life comparable to that of previous generations. Now he is trying to turn those ideas into reality.<\/p>\n \u201cNobody has ever done this before\u2014building in a way that would deliver a huge net benefit for nature. We are trying to create natural infrastructure,\u201d he said. He is in talks with the UK Ministry of Housing, and shortly after the forest city proposal was unveiled, the government announced its ambition to build a network of \u201cforest cities\u201d<\/a> in the same area.<\/p>\n The Labour government is often criticised for pitting nature against housebuilding in its effort to deliver 1.5 million new homes nationwide and address the housing crisis. Its ministers are currently pushing through controversial legislation which environmental groups say threatens<\/a> 5,000 protected natural sites.<\/p>\n More than 900 supporters of Forest City 1 span the entire political spectrum, from Green Party activists to figures from right-wing think tanks. Malik has also brought on board Paul Powlesland, an environmental activist and lawyer, to join the board of the Albion City Development Corporation, which is responsible for the proposal.<\/p>\n The city would be built east of Cambridge, with new rail connections, schools and hospitals. It would be managed by a community land trust\u2014a community-led, non-profit organisation that serves residents rather than corporate profits. This would help keep homes affordable.<\/p>\n Visualisation of Forrest City 1<\/p><\/div>\n Homes would be built to high environmental standards, using modular timber construction, in communities that are \u201ctraffic-calmed for pedestrians, in a human-scaled environment where children can play freely because the world has been designed with them in mind; safe, walkable neighbourhoods.\u201d Instead of relying on cars, the planners hope to build a citywide tram network so people can use high-quality public transport. The project would include 12,000 acres of native woodland, largely new planting, linking together existing forest fragments.<\/p>\n If the developers are granted the powers of a development corporation\u2014similar to those used in the construction of Milton Keynes, Canary Wharf or the infrastructure for the Olympic Games\u2014it would help bring costs down by enabling large-scale building, while special legislation would reduce expenses associated with standard planning procedures.<\/p>\n There are many other challenges to overcome, most notably the fact that eastern England is one of the most water-stressed regions in the country. Malik says that alongside building the city, the developers would \u201crestore chalk streams\u201d and \u201cconstruct water infrastructure,\u201d such as much-needed reservoirs. \u201cThere is enough money in this project to fix water problems in eastern England\u2014for people living in the city and in the surrounding areas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The proposal envisages building primarily on intensively farmed land, which Malik argues is often sterile due to routine treatment with fertilisers and pesticides and is almost devoid of life.<\/p>\n These fields could be replaced with much-needed homes while also creating new habitats for wildlife, allowing people to live closer to nature. Numerous studies<\/a> have found that many urban residents live in \u201cnature deserts,\u201d where green spaces are inaccessible, even though the physical and mental health benefits of spending time in parks, forests or at the seaside are well documented.<\/p>\n Powlesland said: \u201cI think the question is whether we can build what people need for a healthy, happy society without damaging nature\u2014or ideally while restoring it. That is the question of the 21st century, and it seems that nobody is answering it.\u201d<\/p>\n The proposed site includes areas already designated for rare wildlife or habitats\u2014Sites of Special Scientific Interest\u2014but Malik\u2019s idea is to build around them and preserve existing ancient woodlands as internal \u2018corridors\u2019 within the city, while planting additional trees to link everything together. \u201cPeople think we want to cut all those trees down, but no\u2014it\u2019s a forest city,\u201d Malik said. \u201cInstead of parks, we\u2019re simply saying we\u2019d rather have forests. You can\u2019t call yourself a forest city just because it sounds nice.\u201d<\/p>\n The city should serve people, not cars<\/p><\/div>\n Powlesland also wants to explore whether it\u2019s possible to build differently, for example by respecting existing river flows and preserving current trees: \u201cIf this were just another ordinary housing estate\u2014a concrete city surrounded by a nature reserve\u2014I wouldn\u2019t support it. I think there\u2019s an opportunity to do things differently, using technology, imagination, and smart design to create a city where there\u2019s more nature and people at the same time. It could be amazing\u2026 imagine a city that is essentially a nature reserve, where people live within a nature reserve.\u201d<\/p>\n Some farmers would need to be persuaded to sell their land, but Malik stated that thanks to rising land values, everyone would be fairly compensated.<\/p>\n Some environmentalists wondered why an activist like Powlesland would join the project. He said it\u2019s important for someone in the project to represent nature: \u201cMy role is basically to speak for the interests of nature as best I can. It\u2019s extremely important that nature has a voice in the planning system. Because currently, it doesn\u2019t, and those who typically represent it are labeled as \u2018NIMBYs.\u2019 Sometimes they genuinely care about nature, and sometimes they use concerns about nature to block any change.\u201d<\/p>\n Malik adds: \u201cThis is not about \u2018building a city.\u2019 It\u2019s about solving very concrete problems in Britain\u2014housing, infrastructure, growth\u2014which we believe are best addressed through building a city.\u201d<\/p>\n He will now seek parliamentary approval for a development corporation called the Albion City Development Corporation (ACDC). These organizations are created by the government to oversee large projects and have authority over compulsory purchases and planning decisions.<\/p>\n Malik says that the \u201csilent majority\u201d of people around 45 years old and younger \u201cdesperately seeks viable solutions to their very real problems. It\u2019s not just about Palestine or trans rights. It\u2019s about paying rent and building a family. These people didn\u2019t have political representation. They certainly weren\u2019t being offered ambitious ideas. Once you do that, it\u2019s astonishing how much support emerges.\u201d<\/p>\n If you like what we do at AutoMat, support us and feed AutoMat<\/a> any amount. Thank you!<\/strong><\/p>\nSupport Across the Political Spectrum<\/h4>\n
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Safe, walkable neighbourhoods<\/h4>\n
Building without harm<\/h4>\n
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Solving specific problems<\/h4>\n
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