City Dweller

Christine So lives in Hong Kong, and she is an avid traveler. Christine loves to explore new places and to meet new people along the way. She has been an amputee since birth. While growing up, Christine used a prosthetic leg, but at the age of 21, she decided to become a full-time crutch user.

Joe Baur is an author and adventure travel writer and filmmaker based in Berlin. Once a week, he uploads a YouTube video comparing life in the United States versus Europe and beyond. One of Joe's reasons for moving to Germany was the ability to access nature without needing a car.

Elsa Mehanna is a young architect and artist with a deep love for art and design. She loves to explore Paris on foot, as well as other cities that she visits during her frequent travels.

Ted Maxwell lives in Bethnel Green, a neighborhood in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Only 29% of households in Tower Hamlets own a car, one of the lowest rates of car ownership in the United Kingdon. He is part of Save Our Safer Streets, a group of Bethnal Green residents and business owners who want to keep and improve the newly built pedestrian-friendly streets in the area that are being threatened with removal by Tower Hamlets Council.

Karl Gnadt, is the Managing Director of the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District (MTD), a bus system that serves Champaign-Urbana, a small metropolitan area of almost 250,000 people that's home to the University of Illinois. The MTD carries more riders annually than the public transit systems in Indianapolis or Nashville.

Nathan Knize is a librarian who lives car-free in Chicago. He is the co-host of Silent Generation, a cultural analysis podcast that surveys the cultural consequences of car-oriented development in the mid-20th century. It explores what was lost between the Silent Generation and Generation Z. The topics that they discuss include aesthetics, fashion, history, and urbanism.

Zach Welden is the founder of Lakeview Urbanists, a group that brings together neighbors in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood to advocate for safer streets, great transit, more housing, and more greenspace.

Christian Lenhart is a civil engineer and one of the people behind The Rio Grande Plan, a citizen-driven vision for removing railroad crossings, revitalizing a neighborhood, and reusing the historic Rio Grande Depot. He previously worked for the Utah Transit Authority and is a daily commuter on TRAX, Salt Lake City's light rail system.

Dan, who also goes by Arnie, ran a coffee truck in Arnos Park, in North London, for eight and a half years. During that time, he built a strong sense of community with people who frequented the park. The truck closed at the end of 2025.Warning: This episode includes a brief description of someone dying by suicide.

Dustin Manker cycles on a daily basis as his primary way of commuting and exploring Chicago. On weekends, he enjoys participating in recreational group rides. Dustin is also part of a bicycle racing team, Indigo Cycling Chicago. He chronicles his experiences of cycling around the city on his YouTube channel, Dustin the Wind.

John Bauters served as a city council member in Emeryville, California, a dense suburb in the San Francisco Bay Area, from 2016 to 2024, including serving as mayor for part of that time. His work to transform Emeryville into a community that prioritized active transportation, housing, and environmental justice earned him the nickname "America's Bike Mayor."

Christophe Najdovski served as a Deputy Mayor of Paris from 2008 to 2026, first under Mayor Bertrand Delanoë and then under Mayor Anne Hidalgo. He played an instrumental role in helping to make Paris a greener and more pedestrian and bicycle-focused city.

Quemuel Arroyo is the Chief Accessibility Officer for New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority. He was previously the Chief Accessibility Specialist at the New York City Department of Transportation. Quemuel has both a Master of Public Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Design and History of Architecture from New York University.

Andy Gagliardi works on the Transit Performance and Technology team at the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. He also has a YouTube channel about public transportation. Andy is interested in facilitating an increase in the amount of high-quality public transportation in the United States, in an effort to move away from automobile dependency.

Alex Montero is a Local Conversation lead at Strong Towns Chicago, a local chapter of Strong Towns, an organization that seeks to replace America’s postwar pattern of development, the Suburban Experiment, with a pattern of development that is financially strong and resilient. He is an urbanist nerd who loves walkable neighborhoods and public transit.

Courtney Cobbs is the Community Engagement Advisor and one of the founders of Better Streets Chicago, a grassroots transportation advocacy organization that believes better infrastructure and service is critical for Chicago to be a safer, more equitable, and more livable city. Courtney moved to Chicago for the opportunity to live car-free.

Eli Lipman is the Executive Director of Move LA, a Los Angeles-based organization that has built its success and reputation by addressing LA County’s need for a modern and efficient transit system. Their vision is to provide abundant, reliable and affordable multi-modal transportation options.

Ellen Harvey is a British-born, Brooklyn-based conceptual artist whose work ranges from guerilla street interventions to immersive institutional installations and large-scale public artworks. One of her exhibitions, The Disappointed Tourist, includes over 300 paintings of places nominated by members of the public in response to the question: “Is there some place that you would like to visit or revisit that no longer exists?”

Damian Kevitt is the Executive Director of Streets Are For Everyone, a Los Angeles-based organization that advocates for safer streets in Southern California. He worked as a professional counselor for 25 years, prior to almost losing his life as a result of traffic violence in 2013.

Micheál Podgers is an urban planner with expertise in urban transportation planning, housing, and land-use. He is the Midwest Policy Lead for Climate Cabinet, a national organization that uses data science to support local leaders running in under-the-radar races with outsized climate impact.

Robin Pam co-founded KidSafe SF in 2021. The organization was founded on the belief that when we design our streets to be safe for kids, they’re safe for everyone. In 2025, KidSafe SF merged with Streets for All, a Los Angeles-based organization that advocates for people-first streets and walkable communities through better street design, protected bike lanes, and citywide standards.

Cathy Dos Santos is the Executive Director of Transit Alliance Miami, a non-profit organization advocating for walkable streets, bikeable neighborhoods, and better public transit in Miami-Dade County. She lives car-free and is a regular Miami-Dade Transit rider.

Denis Agar is an urban planner and the Executive Director of Movement, a group of transit riders, professionals, and enthusiasts fighting to make transit better in Metro Vancouver. Prior to leaving in 2023 to found Movement, he worked for a decade for TransLink, Vancouver's regional transit agency.

Baker Rogers is a Sociologist and the owner of Queer Haven Books, South Carolina's only independent, queer bookstore. The mission of Queer Haven Books is to provide a place of safety and refuge for the queer community in the Southern United States.

Michael Schneider is the founder of Streets for All, a Los Angeles-based organization that advocates for complete streets that can be used comfortably and efficiently by everyone, regardless of their age, income, race, gender, geography, or abilities. He has lived car-free for the past decade.

Guillaume Le Roux operates Le Vrai Paris, the Real Paris. He gives guided tours that are focused on helping people to discover Paris through the eyes of a local while challenging their expectations about the city. Guillaume is also a food blogger.

Jonathan Wober runs London on the Ground, and he gives guided tours of Islington and the City of London. Jonathan is a qualified City of London Guide Lecturer, Clerkenwell and Islington Guide, and Green Badge Tourist Guide of the Institute of Tourist Guiding.

Molly Cook is a registered nurse and a grassroots organizer. As a grassroots organizer, she has advocated for the health and safety of her neighbors, including a focus on supporting walking, biking, and public transportation. Molly was elected to the Texas Senate in 2024.

Brian Peterman and his wife took advantage of a pilot program in Chicago that allows for the creation of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in designated zones within the city. After nearly two years of planning, working through regulatory hurdles, and construction, they completed a coach house in their backyard. In 2023, Brian's mother-in-law moved into the coach house, allowing her to spend time with her young granddaughter on a daily basis.

Popularly known as Gridlock Sam, thanks to his coining of the term, Sam founded Sam Schwartz Consulting in 1995. Previously, he was New York City's Traffic Commissioner and Chief Engineer of the Department of Transportation. Sam started his transportation career in the late 1960’s as a New York cabbie and joined the Traffic Department as a junior engineer in 1971.

Kathleen Rooney is an author and a self-described flaneuse who loves to explore Chicago and other cities on foot. She is a founding editor of Rose Metal Press, a nonprofit publisher, as well as a founding member of Poems While You Wait, a team of poets and their typewriters who compose commissioned poetry on demand. Kathleen teaches in the English Department at DePaul University, and her recent books include the national best-seller Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk and the novel Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey

Samantha Anderson graduated earlier this year from the University of Chicago with a Master of Public policy degree. She was part of the team that won the 2025 Harris Public Policy Innovation Challenge, Creating A Thriving Downtown Chicago. Their proposal, Activating the Cultural Mile: Prioritizing Culture and Connectivity to Revitalize Downtown Chicago, includes the idea of pedestrianizing part of Michigan Avenue.

Emily Jabbour has served since 2017 as a Councilperson at Large in Hoboken, New Jersey. In 2025, she is running for Mayor of Hoboken, a city that houses over 50,000 residents in just over one square mile of land.

Ollie lives in Manchester, England, and he makes videos about the history of Manchester and the North of England on his YouTube channel, Bee Here Now. Ollie's videos focus on seeing history from the perspective of those that actually made it, ordinary people, not those who reaped the benefits and the fame.

David William Rosales is a writer and an environmental advocate. His interests include traveling, urbanism, public transit, and city living. He lives car-free in New York City, and he spent two years living car-free while traveling full-time.

Daniel Herriges is the Policy Director at the Parking Reform Network, an organization that educates the public about the impact of parking policy on climate change, equity, housing, and traffic. He is a lifelong urbanist and advocate for people-centered places. Daniel lives in his hometown of St. Paul, Minnesota, with his wife and two young children.

The QueensLink is a group of grassroots activists seeking to improve public transit and open space in Central and South Queens through the creative reuse of a long-neglected, city-owned treasure, the Rockaway Beach Branch right-of-way. Their leaders are volunteers who live in New York City, a majority of them in Queens.

Yohann Milan has a interest in railways and public transportation, and he makes videos on his YouTube channel, Le Ferrovipathe, that focus on the railways and public transportation in the Paris region.

Michael Moritz is an organizer with Stop TxDOT I-45, an organization that is fighting to stop the expansion of Interstate 45 through the city of Houston, Texas. The expansion project is expected to displace over 1000 homes.

Stephanie Watt is an urban geographer and an advocate for children's rights and play. She served on Montreal's city council from 2017 to 2021, where she championed feminism, parks, play, and child-friendly cities. Stephanie is the cofounder and codirector of Metalude, a firm that partners with municipalities and organizations to develop child and youth engagement, playable public spaces, and child and youth-inclusive municipal policy.

Chris Denham has been a railway enthusiast since childhood. He is the Senior Media Relations Manager forNetwork Rail, the public body that owns and operates Great Britain's railway infrastructure.

Jaime Cano is one of the Directors of Escuelita del Alma, a Spanish immersion daycare and preschool in Austin, Texas. Escuelita del Alma was founded in 2000, and it's being displaced for the second time as a result of a project to widen Interstate 35 through Austin.

Paul Klein lives on City Island, an island that it part of the Bronx but has a small-town feel. He is the owner of Kaleidoscope Gallery and the President of the City Island Chamber of Commerce.

Nic Laporte lives in Vancouver and is the creator behind the YouTube channel @nicthedoor where he makes videos about micromobility and urbanism.

Joe Schwarten grew up in the Cleveland area and moved back to Cleveland after living in the Bay Area. He lives a car-free lifestyle and is the chair of Clevelanders for Public Transit, an organization that advocates for improvements to public transportation in the Cleveland area.

Graham Garfield has worked for the Chicago Transit Authority for almost 25 years. He is currently coordinating the construction of Phase 1 of the Red-Purple Modernization Project. Graham also runs Chicago-L.org, a website that provides extensive information about Chicago's rapid transit system.

Audrey Wennick leads the transportation policy efforts at the Metropolitan Planning Council, a Chicago-based organization that generates community-informed ideas about issues including housing, sustainability, and transportation. She is focused on improving the sustainability and equity of the transportation system, pursuing sustainable funding for transportation in Illinois, integration of performance-based planning methods into transportation practice, and advancing equitable transit-oriented development.

W. Robert Schultz III has been an activist in Chicago for the past several decades, championing causes including marriage equality, the abolition of the death penalty, and the protection of immigrant rights. Since 2018, he has worked as a campaign organizer for the Active Transportation Alliance, promoting access to walking, biking, and transit. Robert was inducted into Chicago's LGBT Hall of Fame in 2024.

Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth is the alderwoman of Chicago's 48th ward, which includes parts of Andersonville, Edgewater, and Uptown. She was elected in May 2023. Prior to taking office, Leni was a longtime local small-business owner and community organizer in the ward, where she has lived for over 20 years.

Erik Bootsma has a Master of Architecture degree from the University of Notre Dame School of Architecture. He is a registered architect in the state of Virginia and has been in private practice since 2014, focusing on ecclesiastical architecture. Erik is interested in the role that architecture and urban design play in urbanism.