15-Min Urban Design Competition

Before the lock-downs around the world, our lives were plagued by long commutes, leaving us with little time for ourselves, our families and our friends. Traffic polluted our air and smog blanketed our skylines. The pandemic hit the pause button on us. The switch to “working from home” made us question the futility of multi – hour commutes. What if we could reclaim our time, health, well-being and our communities for the better? This is the idea behind a 15-minute city – a way to make urban living less stressful and more sustainable. A 15-minute city has affordable, accessible and adaptable housing for households of all sizes and ages. It is easy to get goods and services, healthcare, fresh groceries, and all other amenities. People can work close to home or work remotely more often. Many major cities such as Paris, Melbourne, Detroit, Portland and Ottawa have been working on similar concepts. This competition encourages designers and planners to re-imagine our urban landscapes as cleaner, safer, healthier and more inclusive places to live!

Where everything is 15 minutes away – by foot, bicycle or public transit. The “15-minute city” is an approach to urban design that aims to improve quality of life by creating cities where everything a resident needs can be reached within 15 minutes by foot, bike or public transit. This concept puts an emphasis on careful planning at the neighborhood level, giving each district the features it needs to support a full life – including jobs, food, recreation, green space, housing, medical offices, small businesses and more. And importantly, it’s a full life that doesn’t require a car. Participants are required to design a module for a 15-minute city that can be replicated to create a larger city. You are can design a fictional city or re-design a small part of an existing city anywhere in the world. Remember, you don’t need to design an entire city – just a module that can be replicated to create a larger city.

Awards:-

Custom Designed Trophies, Certificates of Achievement, Exclusive Interview and Publications to honor the best entries. For more details, visit www.theCharette.org