Next time you find yourself wincing at the gas pump, don't pine for a price break, or even  a fuel-sipping hybrid or electric car. Instead, imagine a city where you  didn’t need to drive at all.. Skyrocketing fuel prices are compelling more and more Americans to change their lifestyles, from relatively simple steps like taking the bus, to more comprehensive
overhauls like staying at home from work or even moving to a new home. In Portland, this June, the Towards Carfee Cities conference made its North American debut. A group of city planners, developers, activists, transportation providers and others convened for a week to discuss the themes at the root of designing cities around the needs of people, not cars. The conference seemed to be equal parts innovation and inspiration, kicking off last Monday with "Depaving Day," when volunteers from the conference joined activists from Depave.org in the Fargo Garden project. They transformed a city parking lot into a public park featuring native plants, places to sit, and plenty of opportunity to enjoy the green space. This kickoff activity exemplified a new model of thinking: If we were to design cities without needing to devote extraordinary amounts of space to the needs of cars, what might we do with all the resources leftover? The possibilities go far beyond adding extra parks. The week's jam-packed schedule of presentations, tours, workshops and more challenged attendees to envision what a car-free city might look like, and understand both their personal role and the community's role in taking steps toward that more livable future. Topics ranged from understanding Portland's own transportation infrastructure, to new gear like pedicabs to software solutions from Google, to seeking examples of car-free design from around the world (NYC to Vancouver to Bogota).

Text and Photograph courtesy World Changing Seattle website and Julia Steinburger.