The mutual love affair between people and their place is one of the most powerful influences in our lives, yet rarely thought of in terms of a relationship. As cities begin thinking of themselves as engaged in a relationship with their citizens, and citizens begin to consider their emotional connections with their places, we open up new possibilities in community, social and economic development by including the most powerful of motivators-the human heart-in our toolkit of city-making.The book explores what makes cities lovable, what motivates ordinary citizens to do extraordinary things for their places and how some cities, such as New Orleans, Detroit, and Cleveland are using that energy to fill in the gaps that "official" city makers have left as resources have disappeared. Meet those amazing people who are truly "in love" with their cities and learn how they are key to the future development of our communities. Praise for the book: What Kageyama has done is to introduce the vital piece into the urban discussion-- the matter of love; the piece without which all city building must fail, for "love" the corner stone of civic citizenship. It takes some bravura and acumen to champion the subject of love in the urban forum that wants to quantify, when only love qualifies and justifies the discussion of cities. Mr. Kageyama goes one step further. He provides precious indicators. Many city thinkers will follow suit, but for the time being, this is the essential book. Pier Giorgio Di Cicco Poet Laureate Emeritus, Toronto, Ontario Author of Municipal Mind: Manifestos for The Creative City For the Love of Cities succeeds in putting an exclamation point on the exceptional value of deepening the relationship that city dwellers feel for their neighborhoods by adding amenities such as parks, outdoor cafes, art galleries, trees, flowers and even sidewalks to create a meaningful sense of place. It also explores the often hidden added value of creative entrepreneurs in creating a sense of place that attracts, nurtures and retains citizens. The book is a love note from Author Peter Kageyama to cities everywhere that will prompt you to more closely examine your own relationship with where you live, work and play. Diane Egner Publisher and Managing Editor, 83 Degrees Media Former Book Editor, The Tampa Tribune For the Love of Cities is a must read for city changemakers. Jeff Slobotski Silicon Prairie News & Founder, Big Omaha Peter has captured something very important... love. When we love a city, we are committed to it, we engage with it, we care for it, we give our best to it. A city that is loved also gives back. It makes those who live there feel enriched. And so you have a virtuous cycle. Charles Landry Author of The Creative City: A Toolkit for Urban Innovators and The Art of City Making

The Award-Winning Book Returns - Updated, Revised and Expanded! The mutual love affair between people and their place is one of the most powerful influences in our lives, yet rarely thought of in terms of a relationship. As cities come to think of themselves as engaged in a relationship with their residents, and residents begin to consider their emotional connections with their places, we open up new possibilities in community, social and economic development by including the most powerful of motivators - the human heart - in our toolkit of place-making. Here we will explore what makes cities lovable, what motivates ordinary people to do extraordinary things for their places and how some cities are using that energy to fill in the gaps that "official" city makers have left as resources disappeared. Meet the amazing people who are truly in love with their cities and learn how they are the key resource to the future development of our communities. "Peter's book takes the age old notion that love is a powerful, but intangible force and completely turns it on its head by uniquely illustrating the impact human emotion can have on our cities. I strongly recommend For the Love of Cities to all local leaders and anyone who is looking for creative solutions to the challenges facing America's cities." Buddy Dyer, Mayor of Orlando, Florida "When it comes to making places better, there are so many things we can do beyond those conventionally labeled as 'planning.' Most of them involve not the hardware of cities but the software - people. And the best of them are on display in this remarkable book." Jeff Speck, AICP, author of Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America One Step at a Time "In this book, Peter goes 'next level' and shows us HOW and WHY our placemaking process can help residents and visitors fall in love with your city all over again. This book is for activists, engineers, planners and community leaders committed to transforming their communities." Rebecca Ryan, APF - Futurists/Economist, NEXT Generation Consulting "The book is a love note from Author Peter Kageyama to cities everywhere that will prompt you to more closely examine your own relationship with where you live, work and play." Diane Egner Publisher and Managing Editor, 83 Degrees Media Former Book Editor, The Tampa Tribune "What Kageyama has done is to introduce the vital piece into the urban discussion- the matter of love; the piece without which all city building must fail, for "love" the corner stone of civic citizenship. It takes some bravura and acumen to champion the subject of love in the urban forum that wants to quantify, when only love qualifies and justifies the discussion of cities. Mr. Kageyama goes one step further. He provides precious indicators. Many city thinkers will follow suit, but for the time being, this is the essential book." Pier Giorgio Di Cicco Poet Laureate Emeritus, Toronto, Ontario Author of Municipal Mind: Manifestos for The Creative City

Love Our Cities operates from a simple idea: come alongside those who want to make a difference in their cities so they can come alongside individuals in their communities to make things better. Founding members of the nonprofit organization Love Our Cities, Jeff Pishney and Eric Jung have seen how a city-wide volunteer day can catalyze community improvement—by engaging individuals with the city they inhabit. Each chapter of Love Our Cities addresses their method behind the madness, why it works, and the practical next steps that anyone can use to kick off city-wide volunteer efforts. Jeff Pishney and Eric Jung understand that the best way to support a community is to meet the specific needs of that area. By using their past experiences investing in Modesto and other cities, they provide a clear, actionable approach to enact city-wide change. Their volunteer days have been uniquely successful in connecting ongoing initiatives, building networks, and growing community buy-in for programs and organizations already on the ground. Their message in Love Our Cities is broken into four parts: Part One depicts their journey from the initial Love Modesto efforts in 2009 to the 100-some cities participating in their Love Our Cities network in 2020 Part Two explains at the elements that are necessary to know prior to any community engagement, in order to create a solid foundation for long-term success Part Three examines the “nuts and bolts” of running a city-wide volunteer day Part Four takes it to the next level—describing how successful city-wide volunteer days have changed the game and outlining what a year-round city movement might look like By shining a spotlight on the cities they’ve partnered with over the years, Jeff Pishney and Eric Jung hope that their community-minded approach in Love Our Cities encourages readers to dream about their own city’s potential—and how they can make a difference.

Earth's environmental problems are far from being resolved. A large part of these are due to ever-growing cities. Despite more efforts made to improve cities, it has been difficult to change cities. One of the fundamental reasons is that people are not motivated to help change their cities. Apathy is now the number one obstacle to positive change. There is hope and Love is the antidote. What you love, you will sustain. Cities of Love aims to urge, persuade and provoke fellow residents of our earth to collectively shape the cities we live in. To achieve this, her residents must again uncover the reasons to love and therefore sustain her cities. To this end, Cities of Love tries to identify the ingredients that could possibly be the reasons for such active love. When a city is filled by the people who love their cities, then can a city have a greater chance of advancing towards a better tomorrow. Love is a mighty force to be reckoned with. Cities of Love comes alive with augmented reality! See, watch, and read beyond the contents of the book. Scan the pages for more photos and maybe selfie videos of the author in a new city exploring urban developments around the world. Immerse and discover more things to love about cities and inspire yourself to do the same with yours. An app will be available for download (from the App store and Google Play store). Watch this space for more exciting features of the book!

In often dreamlike peregrinations around his home towns of Liverpool, London and New York Andy Merrifield reflects on what cities mean to us and how they shape the way we think. As he wanders, Merrifield’s reveries circle questions: Can we talk about cities in the absolute, discovering their essence beneath the particulars? Is it possible truly to love or hate a city, to experience it carnally or viscerally? Might we find true love in the city? Merrifield does find love in the city: with his future wife, whom he takes on a date to see his hero Spalding Gray’s “It’s a Slippery Slope” at London’s South Bank and soon after moves in with, to a tiny place in Bloomsbury where they celebrate the brilliance of new romance by painting the walls turquoise and gold. And for the fellow urbanist Marshall Berman, another working class boy who went up to Oxford. Berman takes Merrifield under his wing and shows him the thrills available in Dostoevsky and Marx over cups of coffee in ordinary cafes on New York City’s Upper West Side. The mood music to these love affairs is provided by a rich repertoire of intellects, from Jane Jacobs to Mike Davis, from Louis Malle to Walter Benjamin. John Lennon, a pupil, like Merrifield, at Quarry Bank school in Liverpool, enters the story; so too the novelist and critic John Berger. And providing tonality throughout is the stripped down, razor honed talk about love in the stories of Raymond Carver. Andy Merrifield is the author of ten books including works on urbanism and social theory such as The New Urban Question and Magical Marxism, biographies of Henri Lefebvre, Guy Debord and John Berger, a popular travelogue, The Wisdom of Donkeys, and a manifesto for liberated living, The Amateur. His journalism has appeared in the Nation, Harper’s, Adbusters, New Left Review, Dissent, the Brooklyn Rail, and Radical Philosophy.