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How might we restore vibrancy in cities and regions facing economic decline? Read the challenge brief

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Plan for the universe - but start with one planet...

Many great ideas are surfacing and often they seek to re-purpose the abandoned real estate that is in great supply. One of Detroit's unique challenges is the size/expense of the city's footprint - it's too much to care for and needs to contract before it can expand. Let's designate a new "center of the universe" in Detroit and concentrate the initial efforts there where "progress" can be seen and appreciated "soon" and local synergies from new activity can be realized. At the same time, provide a compelling vision for "adding more planets" and "building out the solar system". While it may be politically unpopular to "give up" on one neighborhood or another - diluting the effort across too large an area risks accomplishing too little too late. Let's start with one planet so people feel comfortable coming to it, playing in it, investing in it...
By focusing on "one planet" we see tangible results sooner, and the concentration of multiple types of activity and experiences creates local synergies and provides a wider external draw. A localized success will generate positive press and confidence on the part of investors.     

What resources (money, time, people, technology, etc) will your concept need to be successful?

The hard resources are minimal to designate "one planet" and produce a vision - but the soft resources (planning process, public involvement, political will/leadership) are significant. The One Planet approach potentially implies the need to relocate some residents and preferentially invest in some areas at the expense of other areas.

How can your idea be scaled so that it's implemented in cities around the world?

The One Planet approach is inherently scalable to other locales but the costs could vary dramatically depending on the physical size and value of the area in decline.

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Keven Truesdell

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December 06, 2011, 09:27PM
I like what you are thinking. Rome wasn't built in a day. How do you eat an elephant? etc. It's important to create a model that can be replicated and grown. Additionally, the model needs to be flexible. Detroit is NOT a homogeneous city and it's important to have a model that can conform to the needs of specific neighborhoods.
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Nathan Akers's reply to Keven Truesdell's comment

Nathan Akers

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January 05, 2012, 05:47PM
I'd like to see this played out as, ideally, there'd be measurable and hopeful progress. It'd be neat to see how developing this one planet could expand upon itself, somehow either progressively eliminating the first planet's dependencies, or additionally, creating an environment that encouraged businesses and people to move outward from their own neighborhood toward blessing and rejuvenating their neighbors.
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Brad Gill

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January 05, 2012, 03:21AM
Would you say that this can be compared to dropping a pebble into a pool of water? With each initiative being started in a "hub," or ideal area, its effects would ripple outward in waves. Several pebbles could be dropped at various times and gradually, the growth would be seen across the city.
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ken thomas's reply to Keven Truesdell's comment

ken thomas

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January 05, 2012, 04:37AM
good analogy Brad - it's a big enough challenge that there's no one solution - but there is lots of opportunity for creative solutions that meet different needs and tackle the problem from different angles.
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Meena Kadri

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December 06, 2011, 09:13PM
Great provocation for us to consider how we might priorotise resources and efforts, Ken.
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Vincent Cheng's reply to Keven Truesdell's comment

Vincent Cheng

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December 09, 2011, 05:41PM
Aligned with the need to prioritize. And interesting planet analogy to explain why it's important.

From what I've read, Detroit's (the city government) trying to do this to some degree?
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birgit + michel

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December 06, 2011, 09:40PM
hello ken could you define "the one planet" to start with ?
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ken thomas's reply to Keven Truesdell's comment

ken thomas

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December 06, 2011, 11:06PM
I'm not an expert on Detroit - but I would think it would start with an inventory of Detroit assets and resources - select areas to study with desirable characteristics like (access to waterfront and transportation, availability of reclaimable buildings, existing pockets of economic success that could be expanded on). With a list of qualifying criteria potential redevelopment areas can be assessed and prioritized as candidates for the One Planet that becomes the focus of the first wave of revitalization effort.
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