12
12 Big pictures
If I lived in a romantic castle atop a mountain, periodically I would charge
around flinging open windows to let in light and air, and to gain inspiration
from the glorious views around. This book is the castle. It is time to open those
windows [ten of them today] and see our subject in broader challenging, delight-
fully diverse perspectives.
These big-picture frameworks for urban regions and natural systems are pre-
sented in three heterogeneous groups, though each of the ten broad perspectives
stands on its own.
(1) The first group of big pictures, Garden-to-gaia; Urban sustainability; Dis-
asters, highlights our major spatial arrangements with nature, plus the
periodic disruptions.
(2) The second group, Climate change; Species extinction; Water scarcity,
represents the gathering giant environmental challenges.
(3) The third group, Big-ideas--regulations--treaties--policy--governance;
Megacities; Sense of place, brings strong social and cultural connec-
tions to the forefront.The final section, Awakening to the urban tsunami, attempts to identify the
giants lying just over the horizon, and discover the best route ahead for us and
for theland.
Garden-to-gaia, urban sustainability, disasters
These three challenging perspectives highlight the roles of spatial scale
and critical linkages across the land in developing solutions for urban regions.