GC 2020
657 results found
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Happy planet index
Measure the city of Vancouver's green progess by the well being of its citizens and ecological footprint. www.happyplanetindex.com
5 votesThis plan is focused on the greenest city, but there is great local expertise in assessing happiness – Dr. John Helliwell at UBC.
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Make ride-sharing fast, easy and cheap
Let's push the taxi companies to follow closely and pair up with local entrepreneurs to learn about "social transit" as being piloted in New York City right now by the company Weeels (http://www.weeels.org/) for easier and simpler taxi sharing. The Vancouver fleet is already on hybrids, and this will further help taxis be more efficient in their use of roadspace as well!
3 votes -
printing
Green up the Citys Print Communications - we know the city needs to communicate, let's do it smarter. Ensure that any communication vendors have been pre-qualified with a number of Environmental and Social minimum standards. Ensure that any print is done with leading sustainable practices, Carbon Neutral, Recycled paper, Zero VOC inks, with companies that actively support the communities social and green needs. Print Less, Print smarter.
3 votesA corporate sustainability framework is currently being developed and implemented; this idea has been shared with that team, and zero waste is an aspect of their framework.
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power monitoring
Power Monitoring - Commercial Buildings
1 vote -
lets make recycling mandatory for supermarkets
I work in a supermarket that doesnt have a good enough paper recycling program. The city should make it mandatory for supermarkets especially to have a recycling program in place.
29 votes -
4 votes
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Encourage public-led programs in parks and plazas
Older cities around the globe are models for how to create dense, livable neighbourhoods. Creating smaller housing units in denser neighbourhoods is a great way to get people to live closer to the urban centre and preserve natural and agricultural areas in metropolitan area. Density alone will not create livable, dense cities. Parks and plazas become critical as they the space that was lost as the housing units and lot sizes get smaller. Many of the programs in public parks provide recreation opportunities, but there is also value in programs and events that enhance community. Some of these programs can…
3 votes -
Encourage smaller, denser housing
Many people around the world live in smaller housing units in denser neighbourhoods. In Toronto, many freehold lots are between 15-20 feet wide. The typical Vancouver lot is 33 feet wide. We could double the density in the City by encouraging the development of smaller, attached homes on freehold lots that are 15-16 feet wide. Density alone is not enough to create a livable city, but density will help to reduce emissions as well as helping to improve the affordability of housing in Vancouver.
39 votesThe Ecodensity planning process kicked off efforts in this area. Laneway housing is a good example smaller, denser housing we are starting to see across the city.
http://vancouver.ca/engsvcs/watersewers/sewers/permits/laneway.htm -
Provide more effective security on transit
Public transit is a very safe mode of transportation, but there is a stigma amongst non-users that you will be more comfortable in your vehicle than on a bus or skytrain. Many regular, paying transit users are also upset that some users are riding for free because the drivers cannot properly deal with riders that refuse to pay. Providing a quick, effective and courteous response to security incidents on public transit vehicles will increase the general confidence in the system. Translink must be able to track where and when the majority of incidents happen, so that security can be more…
3 votes -
Expand recycling program to include all Recyclable Materials
Pacific Mobile Depots operates an number of regular depots around the Lower Mainland to collect recyclable materials that are not collecting in the current municipal programs. Residents PAY to properly dispose of material that can be recycled. The City should partner with a private operator to expand the current program if the existing programs cannot be quickly expanded. http://www.pacificmobiledepots.com/services.php
118 votes -
Collect fares before bus arrives
Between 3-5 minutes are wasted at each bus stop as the driver collects fares from passengers. Other cities, including Curitiba, Brazil, have implemented a system so that fares are collected before the bus arrives at the stop. The goal is get travel times by transit to be equal or faster than by car. Reducing load time at each stop will reduce travel time by bus.
9 votes -
Require all coffee shops to install Japanese style toilets ( grey water) and save water
Install a small sink on top of the toilet. When the patron flushes the toilet the water first comes through the tap. see the sinkpositive site http://sinkpositive.com/site/home/ or this you tubevideo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kulnVSG0FY&feature=related
for an example. Installed in restaurants and coffee shops this would save space and save hundreds of litres of water a year.2 votesWhile this fixture is not specified in the Draft Greenest City Action Plan, ensuring people use the most efficient fixtures possible is. This type of fixture could be one of many options.
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Adopt an empty lot. Fill an empty bed
Too much space in Vancouver lies fallow, artificially inflating demand for new construction, threatening farmland and driving up the cost of living. Oblige occupancy of vacant property and utilization of vacant land for urban agriculture, art or public greenspace.
50 votes -
Utilize responsive upzoning
De-regulate neighbourhood zoning to allow an intelligent mix of services, work and residential opportunities. Permit networking and sharing of services to balance heat with cooling, production with consumption and waste with resource.
16 votesZoning and other bylaws, codes, and guidelines that determine the scale and form of new development, are often re-examined through community, central area, and city-wide planning initiatives (e.g. Cambie Corridor, Neighbourhood Centres) and typically with the intent to ‘upzone’ and be more responsive to changing community needs and preferences.
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Promote a micro-economy
Promote a micro-economy:
Not everyone fits into the monoculture of work and life options available in Vancouver. A healthy city is a diverse city that allows individuals access to the economy on a range on increments. De-regulate work in homes. Integrate services and restaurants into neighbourhood streets and lanes. Turn on-street parking stalls into rent-by-the-hour food and retail vendors.8 votesAgree in principle, but there is more research required. What about property tax implications? How can the city collect tax to support services? This needs to be addressed first.
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Allow an abundance of transportation alternatives
Where are all the taxis? Cab licences are artificially capped by the City and transit is a monopoly. In many cities around the globe, commuters are offered a range of options including share-taxis, jitneys, pedicabs, shuttles, and executive buses. Like telephone and airline services have shown, de-regulation improves service, increases use and reduces cost.
15 votes -
Put a boom box on every corner
Cuba - one of a handful of countries living within its ecological means - is also one of the world's top producers of arts, music and culture. Is there a relationship between creative production, sustainability and happiness? We think so. Imagine a Vancouver where one's daily experience was one of engagement, creation and production rather than consumption.
2 votesThe Greenest City also needs to be the most Creative City – this is a great example of that.
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improve solar access for food growing
Access to sufficient solar exposure is often the most challenging impediment to food production on an urban site. Trees and buildings can create shade in spots that would otherwise be ideal for growing food - the ones just outside the kitchen or front door.
As counter-intuitive as this may seem, the city's plan to plant massive amounts of trees for carbon sequestration will probably interfere with many existing food gardens, and many more trees that are nearing the end their life-span could be removed to create room for food production. An exemption favouring food gardens could be made within the…
9 votesSolar access is always a consideration when we search for local food growing opportunities, community garden space, etc.
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Cap on transit fare increase
Provide Translink with subsidies as long as they agree to place a cap on transit fare increases for the next five years. This way, taking public transportation remains to be an affordable option for the masses to help decrease carbon emissions.
53 votesTransit fares fall outside City jurisdiction, and there are multiple factors to consider. It is important that prices are affordable and equitable; at the same time, fares are an important revenue source for TransLink. The draft Greenest City plan will include directions to advocate for new sources of funding for improved transit (e.g. congestion pricing, vehicle levies).
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University of Vancouver
One thing Vancouver needs is a University downtown. This would keep the student population downtown, which could create a younger and more vibrant downtown. The University should be located just south of the olympic village. Its north border being 2nd Ave, east border Main st, south border Broadway, and west border Cambie. This University would be known as the greenest university in the world. It could be completely pedestrian/bike only. With the future broadway extension in the south, Canada Line on the west, and future streetcar to the north the students would have no problem getting around. Of course there…
302 votes
