Car-free cities and flying boats: futuristic or present-day solutions?
Reducing emissions was a hot topic at COP27, and a lot of the emissions burden is going to fall on cities and local governments. So what kind of world-changing ideas are we seeing in this space? Volksentscheid Autofrei is posing the philosophical question of how to optimize our urban spaces and taking it to the streets, literally. The movement wants to significantly reduce Berlin’s car traffic by opening up the inner city to pedestrians. The main goal was to start a forum for a democratic process, so they proposed a law the people of Berlin could vote on. Candela is aiming to overhaul the maritime industry by creating a flying boat . . . or something close to it. Its carbon fiber and proprietary software are part of a design to create an electric boat that’s both noiseless and emissions-free. The next step? Building an electric water taxi that will connect waterfront cities. Check out our Instagram and TikTok at Fast Company for more creative world changing ideas!