Ever had one of those days where the hustle and bustle of city life just gets too much, and you crave a serene spot to unwind? Whether it's lounging on a park bench with a book or simply stretching out on grass, finding a place to relax is essential for our mental and physical well-being. And the way our public spaces are designed can make all the difference. It turns out our brains are wired to find relief in nature. In an article on Urbact, Tamas Kallay (2020) highlights t

Three weeks ago, my colleague Irene and I were running through our pre-Urban Future checklist. Irene had stains of blue in her hands from spraying, among other things, a blowdryer and a comb in our signature Humankind blue. I had more than ten windows open on my two screens, and was still sending emails to Elke at the Urban Future team (shoutout to the great Elke, and the whole UF team!), confirming drop-off information to make sure that our barber chair and mirror would arri

Let's face it, we all love catching up with friends—whether we're venting about a disastrous day or sharing some thrilling news. And guess what? There's solid science behind why these chit-chats make us feel so good! A bunch of clever researchers, Ascigil and colleagues (2023) , found that even the tiniest interactions, like saying "hello" or a quick "thanks," can give our health and well-being a nice little boost. So, next time you stop to chat, remember: it's not just small

Over the past few weeks we have been exploring the topic of public space, diving into the spectrum of publicness: that where on one end we find the “public” and on the other the “private”. We have been dwelling on terms such as “negotiability”, “ownership” and as a consequence, reflecting on our perception of space. Is there that much difference between a park and a station hall when it comes to the publicness of these spaces? The entire conversation about why some spaces are