About

 

Memorable Stories About Positive Transformation

Creating Better Communities

Although an uphill battle at times, the City of Hamilton is actively trying to promote the creation of an extensive, protected bike lane network. Credit: Mark Wessel
A lesser known Paris – in Ontario is visionary enough to close their main street to vehicular traffic during the summer months to draw people to the downtown core: Credit: Mark Wessel

And the Good News Is…

At a time when most news seems to be bad news… news that dispirits rather than inspires… Mark’s focus as an urban journalist is to share some of the more uplifting stories about people, places and initiatives where the intent is on creating healthier, more livable communities.

Newsworthy

In addition to the ‘Green Living’ column he writes for Postmedia, Canada’s largest newspaper chain, Mark’s articles and blog posts have appeared in several urban media sources in North America and Europe, including The City Fix, CityTalkNext CityChild in the CityMunicipal World, Impakter, Shareable and Cities Today. Stories tied to transformative initiatives that taking place on every major continent.
Events such as the COP-25 conference in Madrid, have afforded Mark the opportunity to write not just about the challenges associated with climate change, but also, the growing number of positive, community led initiatives springing up around the world in response to these challenges.

World View

Research tied to many of his articles has involved participating in learning tours in such major cities as Paris, Copenhagen, Vienna, Frankfurt, Rotterdam, Toronto, Montreal, Beijing and Shanghai; but equally important, such up and coming places as Buffalo, Hamilton and Essen (the latter three, all post-industrial cities).

Mark has also covered a range of positive-change-oriented events, including the Urban Future Global ConferenceWalk 21Child in the CityCOP-25, Daring Cities, the Park People Conference, WRLCTY and Urban Transitions.

Leveraging his skills as an urban journalist and communicator, Mark has also spoken on topics ranging from “How to Communicate Sustainability” (Urban Future – Vienna) to “Leveraging Local Assets to Create Vibrant Walking Networks” (Urban Transitions – Sitges, Spain).

Connect with Mark.