According to the urbanist Jane Jacobs, the engine of a city’s wealth in a bootstrap called import replacement. Essentially, a city become economically vibrant by finding ways to domestically produce the things it imports. Within a global environment where physical distance is becoming increasingly expensive (fuel and overhead) and virtual distance is increasing free (bandwidth and scale factor), the imports that are most vital to replace through local production will increasingly be food, energy, and manufactured products. The most valuable exports will increasingly become virtual. The best way to start this wealth engine, in a place like Detroit, is to foster the development of moderately urban, economically vibrant, resilient communities — that produce most of the food, energy, and products that they consume — in the blighted area that surrounds the shrinking urban core. Instead of producing wealth at the core, produce in the near periphery (at the RC level) and by default, turn the city core into the place for services that require a large population base to support (from entertainment to medicine).
Global Guerrillas (via azspot)
sometimes this whole hipster/craft/local movement seems a bit ridiculous. then there are ways it’s explained perfectly.
