Posted by From Syracuse to Schenectady, I didn’t look out the window once. The speeding train was simply a vessel for the amazing conversation I was having with a young Syracuse University student sitting next to me. We talked about generational shifts, trends, and yes, urbanism, walkability and public transit. He was confidently informing me, someone 20 years his elder, about his passion for strong communities that aren’t reliant on a car. I was so happy to talk, and really just listen, to such an intelligent person.
I was at a bar in downtown Rochester conversing with a 22-year old young woman who ask me “are you The Urban Phoenix?” Sidebar, I’m usually humble about being a lightly-successful urban influencer, but when this happens about once a month, it’s pretty cool.
OK anyway, the woman immediately talked about her efforts to introduce people, especially suburban-leaning women, to city life. She talked about what we can do to design cities that are safer, more inclusive, and more woman-friendly.
I was with a good friend in downtown Utica over the weekend, and we found ourselves fielding questions about the difference between Utica and what was happening in our hometown of Rochester from four college-goers. I mentioned the words “walkability” and “public transit,” to which one of four said “well now you’re speaking our language.”
I was in a transportation stakeholder meeting for the University of Rochester, and watched as several students identified the stress points for pedestrians and cyclists on campus using a large map.
I get that these are a few anecdotal encounters, and I am not blanket-stating that young people are more “in the know” with regard to cities and urbanist topics today, but my goodness it certainly feels that way. It’s hard to find people my age who have even heard the fundamentals of New Urbanism, but the conversations I am having with 18-22 year -olds is leading me to hope that the generational switch is beginning to flip. Young people seem to understand that redlining led to some of the worst racial divides in our country. They understand that when we ripped neighborhoods apart for the sake of an urban expressway, we deeply wounded the fabric of our cities and our people. They seem to have a better grasp on the importance of density over sprawl, transit over cars, and the power of the 15-minute city.
The conversations I have had with young people recently have made me breathe a sigh of relief. Maybe, just maybe, all of this advocacy is working.
I have always said that real change is generational. The probability that someone like me, who used to drive 25,000 miles per year and now bikes twice as many miles as he drives, is very rare. Real change comes from when young people are exposed to ideas that transcend their parents’ simplistic, “from the porch” perspective on the world. It at least “feels” like that’s happening, which drives me to want to advocate for what I do all the more.
***I am an urbanist influencer and do not have a formal degree in urban planning. While I am deeply passionate about urban design, trends, issues and topics, I believe in this time of undisciplined media to be honest and transparent regarding my lack of any kind of formal journalism or urban planning education. I still believe in my ability to present my viewpoints on interesting topics, but I fully admit that I have not been trained in the higher-educational rigors of expertise on such perspectives. My goal is to challenge people to think differently, not to be the the cited source of unquestionable truth. This footer will now accompany every Urban Phoenix piece, and I am proud to offer this transparency in a time when opinion is often coveted over rigorously-tested fact.***