Tag Archives: npr

An Impressive GDP, Quality of Life, and Sustainability: Pick Two out of Three?

Posted on March 30, 2010 by

In the most simplistic statistical reading—higher GDP per capita means higher tax revenue means better funded schools means better education—there seems to be some legitimacy to the story’s thesis. I don’t think real life is so simple, however. Unqualified as I am to provide an in-depth critique of the significance of GDP or the relative educational histories of Caribbean nations, I won’t attempt to here. Besides, those things aren’t what interest me. Without questioning the intelligence, honesty, or diligence of the author, I was struck by what I perceived to be a fine example of stuck-in-system thinking.
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Posted in Climate Change, Culture, Josh Grigsby, Rants, Response Pieces, Sustainability, thinking, Uncategorized, urban design, urban planning, What if? | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Haiti’s Buildings Weren’t Fit to Withstand Quakes

Posted on January 18, 2010 by

Haiti’s magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck a country whose buildings were barely built to engineering standards and were hopelessly fragile in the grip of such a strong quake.

That’s the assessment of Pierre Fouche, an earthquake engineer from Haiti — in fact, the country’s only earthquake engineer, to his knowledge. Continue reading →

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