Uploaded on 2020-07-16 by Elisa Blanco

Cities like Vienna, Copenhagen, Edinburgh, Tokyo, Melbourne are named amongst the most liveable cities in official rankings. However, I haven't been to any of them and couldn't name any other from my own experience that would fit this criteria. I think that some basic characteristics that make a city livable are: Housing affordability, employment opportunities, a wide range of cultural and recreational options for everyone, efficient public transportation system, good quality of basic city services, walkability. Sadly, I consider that my city performs poorly on all of the aspects listed above. I think no government official, from the highest to the most local level, are actually working towards the improvement of the quality of life in our city. We are, at the moment, mostly on a survival mode, so it leaves little room for anything else, let alone becoming more sustainable. I’m including a photo I took last year in a public discussion about how we must rescue the night as a way to improve the quality of life in our city, a citizen initiative and a bold and rebellious move in one of the most dangerous cities in the world.