Canal plus The quest to make urban waterways swimmable
The Guardian Weekly|August 30, 2024
Around the world, architects and campaigners are turning previously polluted rivers and harbours into bathing spots
- Oliver Wainwright
Canal plus The quest to make urban waterways swimmable

On a summer morning in the Swiss city of Basel, groups of commuters bob merrily down the Rhine. They're not on boats but in their trunks, clutching fish-shaped waterproof bags that double as floats as they drift to work alongside cargo ships.

At lunchtime in Copenhagen, the harbour walls are packed with bronzed bodies tanning on tiered decks, and launching themselves into the water from daring wooden platforms. After work in Vienna, the grassy banks of the Danube throng with swimmers lounging in the dappled shade.

After a century of ignoring the very arteries that allowed them to grow in the first place, cities are learning to love their rivers again. Around the world, as global heating causes summer temperatures to soar, people are reclaiming urban waterways.

Last month, the urban swimming movement made its biggest splash yet, when 110 athletes dived into the River Seine for the Olympic triathlon. The televised spectacle of swimmers frontcrawling their way through Paris, flanked by beaux-arts bridges, offered a glimpse of what all our urban waterways could look like. Could taking a plunge in the Thames, Hudson or Tiber one day be as common as going for a stroll in the park?

"What's happening in Paris represents a generational baton change," said Matt Sykes, an Australian landscape architect and the convener of the Swimmable Cities Alliance, a global network of urban swimming campaigners. "The next generation are ready - kids will be watching the Olympic triathlon on TV and asking: 'Why can't we swim in our river?""

この蚘事は The Guardian Weekly の August 30, 2024 版に掲茉されおいたす。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トラむアルを開始しお、䜕千もの厳遞されたプレミアム ストヌリヌ、9,000 以䞊の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしおください。

この蚘事は The Guardian Weekly の August 30, 2024 版に掲茉されおいたす。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トラむアルを開始しお、䜕千もの厳遞されたプレミアム ストヌリヌ、9,000 以䞊の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしおください。

THE GUARDIAN WEEKLYのその他の蚘事すべお衚瀺
The Saudi football World Cup is an act of violence and disdain
The Guardian Weekly

The Saudi football World Cup is an act of violence and disdain

Well, that's that then. In the event there were only two notes of jeopardy around Fifa's extraordinary virtual congress last week to announce the winning mono-bids, the vote without a vote, for the right to host the 2030 and 2034 football World Cups.

time-read
3 分  |
December 20, 2024
AI has made the move into video and it's worryingly plausible
The Guardian Weekly

AI has made the move into video and it's worryingly plausible

I recently had the opportunity to see a demo of Sora, OpenAI's video generation tool, which was released in the US last Monday, and it was so impressive it made me worried for the future.

time-read
3 分  |
December 20, 2024
With tyrant Assad ousted, Syrians deserve support and hope
The Guardian Weekly

With tyrant Assad ousted, Syrians deserve support and hope

Last week, time collapsed. Bashar al-Assad's fall recalled scenes across the region from the start of the Arab spring almost 14 years ago. Suddenly history felt vivid, its memories sharpened. In fact it no longer felt like history.

time-read
4 分  |
December 20, 2024
TV
The Guardian Weekly

TV

The Guardian Weekly team reveals our small-screen picks of the year, from the underground vaults of post-apocalyptic Fallout to the mile-high escapism of Rivals

time-read
4 分  |
December 20, 2024
Albums
The Guardian Weekly

Albums

Murky love stories, nostalgic pop and an in-your-face masterpiece captured our critics' ears in 2024

time-read
10+ 分  |
December 20, 2024
Film
The Guardian Weekly

Film

Visual language, sound, light and rhythm are to the fore in the best movies of the year

time-read
10 分  |
December 20, 2024
Hidden delights Our 24 travel finds of 2024
The Guardian Weekly

Hidden delights Our 24 travel finds of 2024

Guardian travel writers share their discoveries of the year, from LÊsÞ to Lazio

time-read
10+ 分  |
December 20, 2024
'It's really a disaster' The fight to save lives as gang war consumes capital
The Guardian Weekly

'It's really a disaster' The fight to save lives as gang war consumes capital

Dr James Gana stepped out on to the balcony of his hospital overlooking a city under siege. \"There's a sensation of 'What's next?'. Desperation is definitely present,\" the Médecins Sans FrontiÚres (MSF) medic said, as he stared down at one of scores of camps for displaced Haitians in their country's violence-plagued capital.

time-read
2 分  |
December 20, 2024
Trailblazers The inspiring people we met around the world this year
The Guardian Weekly

Trailblazers The inspiring people we met around the world this year

From an exuberant mountaineer to a woman defiantly facing the guns of war, here are some of the brave individuals who gave us hope in a tumultuous 2024

time-read
10 分  |
December 20, 2024
Votes of confidence
The Guardian Weekly

Votes of confidence

From India to Venezuela and Senegal to the US, more people voted this year than ever before, with over 80 elections across the world. With rising authoritarianism and citizen-led resistance revealing its vulnerabilities and resilience in the face of unprecedented challenges, has democracy reached its breaking or turning point?

time-read
8 分  |
December 20, 2024