Mara Mintzer: How kids can help design cities
Mara Mintzer: Cómo los niños pueden contribuir a diseñar ciudades
Mara Mintzer thrives on engaging children, youth and underrepresented communities in participatory planning, an approach that aims to integrate the views of all community members into designing exemplary communities. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
sociedad toma decisiones
a quarter of the population.
a una cuarta parte de la población.
energy production and natural resources
producción de energía y recursos naturales
of the full community.
de la totalidad de la comunidad.
has more say over public policy
más peso en las políticas públicas
I'm talking about?
and not surprisingly,
y no es de sorprenderse
developers, politicians,
desarrolladores, políticos,
of a group of four-year-olds,
de un grupo de niños de cuatro años,
at city council chambers.
alcanzar el podium en el ayuntamiento.
to design our cities?
que diseñen nuestras ciudades?
to a small group of people
a un grupo de personas
city initiative in Boulder, Colorado.
amigable con los niños en Boulder, CO.
of civil rights advocates,
defensores de los derechos civiles,
children and families.
familias de escasos recursos.
city initiative before.
de una ciudad amigable con los niños.
to address some of the frustrations
sería solventar algunas frustraciones
of a young child.
madre de un niño pequeño.
for more changing tables in restaurants.
para cambiar pañales en restaurantes.
for those cold and rainy days.
al interior para días lluviosos y fríos.
more hospitable to children and families.
para los niños y las familias.
I committed to this project
better cities for children.
ciudades para los niños.
better cities for themselves,
mejores ciudades para ellos mismos,
about this idea.
the voting age is 18.
se vota hasta los 18 años.
understand complex ideas
entender ideas complejas
a transportation master plan?
de sistema de transporte?
wouldn't they be childish?
ideas, ¿no serían infantiles?
made out of candy?
un parque hecho de dulces?
unsuspecting kayakers below?
desprevenidos abajo?
parecen legítimas,
children in city planning
la planificación de la ciudad
end users in the design process?
a los usuarios finales en el proceso?
to be largely used by kids,
lo usen los niños principalmente,
in the park's design.
dar su opinión sobre el diseño.
called "Growing Up Boulder,"
"Haciendo que Boulder crezca",
ages zero through 18
city-design solutions.
en el diseño de la ciudad.
to redesign a large downtown park,
rediseñar un parque grande en el centro,
by a farmers' market on one end,
mercado agrícola en un lado,
de Boulder en el otro,
which runs through the middle.
que pasa en medio.
inevitable flash floods,
las inevitables inundaciones repentinas,
seguridad en el área
del mercado agrícola.
young people in the process,
200 jóvenes en el proceso,
through high school students.
hasta estudiantes de bachillerato.
in their classrooms
estudiantes en sus salones
ideas eran importantes
with their recommendations.
we asked children to record their ideas,
les pedimos que grabaran sus ideas,
on a field trip with us,
acompañaran en un viaje de estudio,
and didn't like about the space,
les gustaba y lo que no del lugar,
what they liked about the space,
lo que les gustaba del lugar,
tubing down the creek.
nadando en el arroyo.
and used the red side
they didn't like, such as trash.
gustaban, como la basura.
studied the Civic Area
estudiaron el Área Cívica
with similar challenges
que tenían retos similares
to combine their original ideas
sus ideas originales
to improve the space.
de mejora del espacio.
city council and community members
miembros del municipio y la comunidad,
their recommendations.
sugerencias al salón de clase.
stepped over blocks and stuffed animals
entre bloques de juguete y peluches,
classroom recreation of the Civic Area.
del Área Cívica que hicieron los niños.
at the students' ideas
de las ideas de los estudiantes,
constructed out of a jelly bracelet.
hecho de una pulsera de plástico,
de patinaje sobre hielo.
from animal-shaped plastic beads.
cuentas en forma de animales.
that architects create.
creadas por arquitectos.
and I am pleased to report
are being implemented in the Civic Area.
se están implementando en el Área Cívica.
access to Boulder Creek,
al arroyo de Boulder
seguros en el agua.
en pasos a desnivel
safely after school at night.
lleguen seguros a casa por la noche.
bicicletas y peatones,
as they stroll by the creek.
a los jóvenes que caminan por el arroyo.
child-requested ice-skating rink,
nueva pista de hielo que solicitaron
implemented at the Civic Area?
de los niños en el Área Cívica?
and well-informed adult
razonable y bien informado
all of her ideas to be utilized,
sus ideas fueran implementadas,
this process for eight years,
some incredible benefits
encontrado beneficios increíbles
differently from adults.
piensan distinto que los adultos.
and how dangerous will it be.
"Are we going to get sued?"
constraints aren't real,
no sean reales,
from the beginning,
desde el principio,
and dampens the design process.
y entorpecemos el proceso de diseño.
think about possibilities.
piensan en posibilidades.
to design teen-friendly parks,
de secundaria para diseñar parques,
of skydiving, hang gliding,
y de vuelo con ala delta,
into giant foam pits.
hoyos gigantes de hule espuma.
revealed an important story.
actividades revelaron algo importante.
thrill-seeking opportunities.
oportunidades de aventura,
given their developmental stage in life.
dada su etapa de desarrollo.
between inspiration and reality,
entre inspiración y realidad,
activities and equipment
y equipamiento
installed in a park.
instalarse en un parque.
in Australia have done,
ha hecho en parques de Australia,
and their 30-foot-tall climbing towers.
y sus muros de 9.1 m para escalar.
and movement in their designs.
juego y movimiento en sus diseños.
play and movement
que la diversión y el movimiento
to stay healthy, too.
necesitan para mantenerse sanos.
containing a little lending library
casa de árbol con una pequeña biblioteca
beanbag chairs for reading?
each time you walk up the steps?
cada vez que suben las escaleras?
children value beauty in their designs.
los niños valoran la estética.
dense affordable housing,
casas asequibles,
beige condominiums
idénticos de condominios beige
on everything,
llamativos en todo,
between biking and walking paths,
de ciclistas y peatones,
to connect with nature,
biológica de rodearse de naturaleza,
right in their backyards,
that incorporate water,
que incorporan agua,
into their common spaces on site.
en el espacio en común.
are rarely allowed to walk four blocks
de hoy, rara vez se les deja ir solos
environment benefits everyone,
inmediato favorece a todos,
to have restorative effects for all ages.
efectos restauradores, sin distinción.
the desires or our littlest citizens,
de nuestros más pequeños ciudadanos,
that the joy of walking
que la alegría de caminar
along the way.
descubre en el camino.
of Boulder's 19th Street corridor,
era la calle 19 de Boulder,
exploring leaves in a ditch
explorando las hojas en una zanja
is as important as the destination.
sea tan importante como el destino.
in their designs.
animales en sus diseños.
into children's pictures.
en los dibujos de los niños.
they're closer to the ground
better than we can,
nosotros a los saltamontes,
sense of empathy for other beings,
de empatía hacia otros seres,
non-human species in their ideal worlds.
especies no humanas en sus diseños.
in their city planning.
son inclusivos en sus diseños urbanos.
from their grandmother in a wheelchair
su abuela en silla de ruedas
they see sleeping in the park.
que ven dormida en el parque.
compelling discovery we made
descubrimiento que hicimos
is a city friendly to all.
es una ciudad amigable para todos.
de Bogotá, Colombia,
are a kind of indicator species.
de indicador de la especie.
city for children,
que le guste a los niños,
city for all people.
que le guste a toda la gente.
and drive to the store.
a un auto y conducir hasta la tienda.
an expensive lunch at the nearby cafe.
un almuerzo costoso en una cafetería.
that take into the consideration
que toman en cuenta
forms of transportation
de transporte alternativo
of many other populations, too.
de otra parte de la población.
and more affordable bus service,
es el servicio de autobús,
who wish to live independently,
que desea vivir de forma independiente,
de conducir un auto.
protected walking and skateboarding paths
lisos para patinaje y peatones,
who wishes to go smoothly down the path,
de ruedas para desplazarse suavemente,
has revealed something important.
in our planning,
en nuestra planeación,
to people of color, immigrants,
gente de color, inmigrantes,
or with reduced incomes?
y de escasos recurso?
are we overlooking,
estamos pasando por alto,
of the full community?
de la totalidad de la comunidad?
the needs and wants of other people
las necesidades y deseos de los demás
of our children as future citizens
niños como futuros ciudadanos,
for the citizens they are today.
que son hoy en día,
that will make us happier and healthier.
que nos harán más felices y sanos;
social connection and beauty.
movimiento, conexión social y belleza.
we all want to live in.
en donde a todos nos gustaría vivir.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Mara Mintzer - Community engagement specialistMara Mintzer thrives on engaging children, youth and underrepresented communities in participatory planning, an approach that aims to integrate the views of all community members into designing exemplary communities.
Why you should listen
By using creative, participatory methods in classrooms and community events, Mara Mintzer brings children, city planners and elected officials together to address the city’s most pressing issues. She writes and presents internationally on the topic of engaging children and youth in planning.
Mintzer is based at the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado, where she co-founded and now directs Growing Up Boulder (GUB). Growing Up Boulder is a child- and youth-friendly city initiative that is a partnership between the University of Colorado, the City of Boulder, and Boulder Valley School District. Since its inception in 2009, Growing Up Boulder has worked with more than 4,000 young people, ages 0-18, and 1,000 university students to give children and youth a voice in designing the very communities in which they live. Her students routinely provide input to urban planners and testify before city council on issues that matter to them. Growing up Boulder is part of the University of Colorado Boulder’s Community Engagement Design and Research (CEDaR) Center.
Prior to her current work, Mintzer created and managed programs for underresourced children and families in California and New York. These programs ranged from Early Head Start, preschool education and universal pre-kindergarten classes to parenting classes and coordinated family support services on a public school campus. In addition, she facilitated community building through participatory budgeting and neighborhood visioning processes for the California community in which she worked.
Mintzer received her BA in psychology from Brown University and her MA in organizational psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University. She takes an interdisciplinary approach to her work that values the intersection of urban planning, education, civic engagement and social justice. A spirit of collaboration underlies all of Mintzer's work. She loves to travel and practice her French and Spanish language skills fearlessly.
Mara Mintzer | Speaker | TED.com