Where is the love for our urban spaces?
Many see environmental quality in big cities as a lost cause, but there is room for solutions that pave the way to a better, more humane existence in Greece’s big cities. The lack of greenery, the trash and ugly, energy-greedy buildings are the chief problems that need quick, clever solutions. The first two are almost entirely the responsibility of local authorities. In particular, recycling and composting, which are not done in cities even though proposals for a fully fledged system have been coming forward for some time, are clearly the responsibility of municipal authorities. Upgrading buildings requires work teams with a central administration to formulate effective incentives. This is the responsibility of local administration. But the biggest change will be for us to love our cities and stop complaining about the accursed fate that deposited us in our neighborhoods and about other people having caused our problems.
