It’s the economy…stupid so watch this space!

Spain experienced 5 years of double-digit recession before recovery was confirmed in the first quarter of 2014. However the jobless rate overall in 2014 was 25%, and unemployment is likely to remain at 20% for several years. Spanish workers have experienced falling salaries though the low rate of inflation has helped to maintain household purchasing power.

An election in 2015 will no doubt be fought on the state of the Spanish economy and the austerity measures that the EU has required of Spain. Despite its sizeable majority, the Spanish Government remains brittle due to alleged corruption and the re-emergence of demands for independence within the regions. The continuing talk of secession by Catalonia will no doubt shadow the Spanish Government for some time to come.

The Greek election being held this day, Sunday 25 January, will also no doubt influence the outcome of the Spanish election and impact on the future of the EU as it will on other elections across Europe over the coming year(s).

Out for lunch

In Spain, the hours that shops open (9 to 2pm and 4pm to 8pm) is regulated by the Government. Yes the long lunch is regulated and is synonymous with Spanish culture. Both ensure its adherence!  In towns and villages the shutter and roller door are a constant reminder that when in Spain…..

Wonderful ...but windy!

The medieval villages and towns of the Catalonian region with their walls and narrow laneways provide both protection from the next invader and from the heat and the Tramontana (wind) that blows across the Pyrenees in winter and is both fierce and biting. Descriptions abound on its impact on both buildings and lives.  From the walls and lines of beech trees that have been designed as windbreaks to its effect on people including the ‘making of children giddy on the first day and causing depression when it blows for a week’.

 

A good read!

Thought for the Day - 22/01/2015 - Rt Rev Graham James

Good morning. I’ve been unable to get an old Beatles’ song out of my mind this week. Friends sang “When I’m 64” for my birthday on Monday. I’d rather expected it. Now I discover that Paul McCartney originally wrote the words when he was just 16. The chorus “Will you still need me, will you still feed me” questions whether affection survives ageing. But it was probably adolescent insecurities about lovability which inspired it. We often project present anxieties well into the future.

At the time the song was written there were plenty of wider insecurities in the world. Nuclear weapons, the Soviet threat and the escalation of the Vietnam War: they were then the background for the personal dramas of our lives. I feel almost nostalgic for such times. The choices we faced seemed clearer. For those so inclined, CND marches or anti-Vietnam demonstrations gave a vehicle for protest. It was the policy of Western Governments which many people then wanted to change. 

Now, as in France last week, leaders of those governments march with the people. Governments protest too. And sometimes seem almost as bewildered as those they govern. None of us would have predicted that jihadist terror would be such a threat nor that we would feel so helpless personally to do anything about it.

 Such helplessness may be why there seems such weariness in our public and political discourse. Routine policy quarrels about the mansion tax, the NHS or the deficit seem to miss these broader insecurities. Perhaps this is why those who have a longer perspective on political and social questions are heard with more respect. Elder statesmen such as Jimmy Carter and Mikhail Gorbachov are honoured more now than when in office. In South Africa, despite his reported retirement from public life, Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s voice is still heard with reverence, though not so much by those in power. Elder statesmen are most respected when they do not claim too much. We respond positively to informed humility.

There’s a gospel story about two very old and humble people, Simeon and Anna. They both saw the child Jesus in the temple at Jerusalem and discerned in him the promise of a new age. It wasn’t just the passing of the years which gave them insight and wisdom. Their humility kept them open to the unexpected. TS Eliot dismissed the idea that age alone makes us wise and then went on to write:

“The only wisdom we can hope to acquire
Is the wisdom of humility: humility is endless.”

Humility isn’t a sign of insecurity. Nor is it weakness. But it causes other virtues to flourish. It’s often accompanied by hope for a better future – possible even when you’re 64.

Independence? Many not sure this time around!

The citizen participation process on the political future of Catalonia,  a non-binding vote, was held by the Catalonian Government in November 2014. The ballot consisted of two questions: "Do you want Catalonia to become a State?" and "Do you want this State to be independent?" The second question could only be answered by those who had answered Yes to the first one.

 

There were 2,305,290 votes cast overall and it was estimated that the turnout estimates, published by media outlets, was between 37.0%  and 41.6%. Whilst  80.8% of the cast votes supported the Yes-Yes option, 10.1% the Yes-No, 4.5% the No option. The relatively low turnout suggests that the momentum for independence is yet to be realised. Many Catalan flags adorn the balconies in Barcelona and in towns and villages across Catalonia. They have not as yet translated into votes in the ballot box.

The recently announced Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (Republican Left of Catalonia, ERC) candidate for Mayor of Barcelona, Alfred Bosch, is a strong advocate for an independent Catalonia. He sees the City of Barcelona as taking its place on the international stage as a Capital City of a Nation State. Bosch may be the catalyst for this momentum if elected in the City elections in May this year.

http://bit.ly/1xjOPQT

Whose best placed to be liveable and sustainable?

Both Barcelona and Melbourne seek to be liveable and sustainable but come from a different spatial and land use base. Barcelona is one of the world’s most low rise and high density cities with population of 1.6 million covering an area of 102 km2 and a density of 15,991 km2. Metropolitan Barcelona has a population of 5.3m in an area of 4,268 km2 and a density of 1,250 km2.

 

Melbourne’s suburban sprawl is well known and established. The City of Melbourne forms a fraction of the metropolitan area also known as Melbourne. The confusion is obvious to overseas observers and astounds even the most ‘locally’ committed politician. The level of astonishment increases when it is revealed that it takes 31 municipalities to govern a population of 4.5 million in an area of 9,900 km2 with a density of 430 km2.

The City of Melbourne has 5 of the 6 tallest buildings in Australia and recently approved developments no doubt aim to maintain this status. Such new developments have become common place on brownfield sites but recent skyscraper developments have taken over strategic sites in the city centre threatening the pedestrian life of the City. 

Barcelona City’s public transport system ranks among the world’s best and most utilized with 80% of journeys within Barcelona being by public transport, on foot or by bicycle. Its increasing focus on walking and cycling city is evident from the infrastructure improvements currently underway, reducing road space and creating separate bicycle lanes and marinating pedestrian activity and safety. 

Melbourne’s public transport system is under pressure from increased usage as car travel becomes less and less convenient and affordable (time and money). The failure to invest in public transport over the last decade has led to inequity for those who live between the radial link cracks. No wonder Melbourne’s land use and transport nexus challenges governments and academics alike.   

Whilst Melbourne has been ranked as the world’s most liveable city by the Economist Intelligence Unit for the fourth consecutive year it also ranks as the fourth most expensive.

Liveability based on consumption will be found out sooner or later.

http://theconversation.com/no-sustainable-population-without-sustainable-consumption-1774