Ecocities of Tomorrow: An Interview with Richard Register

by Jesse Fox, Tel Aviv, Israel on 02.14.08

Author, theorist and philosopher Richard Register is one of the pioneers of the ecocity movement, with 35 years of experience advocating for cities that facilitate humanity’s “creative and compassionate evolution” while contributing to the health of the planet. Richard is the author of several books, including Ecocities: Rebuilding Cities in Balance with Nature, and the founder of two nonprofits - Ecocity Builders and Urban Ecology.

This post is the first in a series of many examining current and future trends in ecological city building ahead of the 2008 Ecocity World Summit during Earth Day Week in San Francisco this April.
TreeHugger: Richard, you are a 35 year veteran in the still-evolving field of ecocity building. What led you to formulate your philosophy on the subject?

Richard Register: Growing up as a young artist (drawing and sculpture) with an architect father in beautiful country (near Santa Fe, New Mexico) with the end of the world perched on the mountain across the Rio Grande Valley, namely Los Alamos - where they designed the atomic bomb. Probably the other biggest influence was running into Paolo Soleri at 21 years of age and seeing his enormous positive energy, commitment to building and clear conceptualization of the problem: two-dimensions bad, three-dimensions good in complex systems such as higher organisms and the city.

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Green’ construction guidelines go residential

“My contractor was reasonably receptive,” she recalls, “but things didn’t turn out as successfully as I wanted them to. We knew we wanted a more environmentally friendly home, but we didn’t really know enough to make that happen.”

West Coast Green: Fireplace Looks Neat, but Can You Toast Marshmallows?

By Adrienne So September 23, 2007 | 1:25:59 AMCategories: Appliances, Design, Environment

West Coast Green, the largest green building conference of its kind, EVER, took place over the past three days in San Francisco’s own Bill Graham Civic Center. And boy, was it nuts. In between dodging lumber companies and poking at recycled tiling, WIRED found the time to look at this nifty fireplace, designed by EcoSmart.

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