International airports are in fierce competition for passengers and regularly one-up each other with new wow-factor amenities, shops, and restaurants. But Singapore decided to raise its game by going another direction: a plant-filled haven, a gateway consistent with its moniker — “the city in a garden.” The result is an inventive model other airports should copy, if not in form, then certainly in spirit.

The new Jewel Changi terminal features a 6-acre indoor forest, walking trails, and the world’s tallest indoor waterfall. This restorative mecca filled with 2,500 trees and 100,000 shrubs not only revitalizes weary international travelers, but is also open to the public.

Over the past six years, Safdie Architects has led a team that included PWP Landscape Architecture, Atelier 10, Burohappold, and ICN International to create this bar-raising travel experience.

As anyone who experienced the stress of air travel can attest, the onslaught of digital signs, loud speakers announcing departures, shops blaring music, and carts flying by quickly leads to draining sensory overload. Now imagine if there was a natural place to take a break amid the cacophony. As many studies have shown, just 10 minutes of immersion in nature can reduce stress, restore cognitive ability, and improve mood.

Jewel Changi provides that nearby natural respite with a 5-story-tall forest encased in a 144,000-square-foot steel and glass donut structure. During rain storms, water pours through an oculus in the roof — creating the 130-foot-tall Rain Vortex, a mesmerizing waterfall sculpture that can accommodate up to 10,000 gallons per minute at peak flow. Stormwater is then recycled throughout the building.

According to Adam Greenspan, ASLA, a partner at PWP, there is a forest valley and an upper canopy. Throughout, the firm used stone and wood to create winding paths that immerse visitors in nature.

The valley is organized into terraces, like you would find in a shade-covered coffee or tree plantation, and features three types of trees: Terminalia, a native to Madagascar; Agathis Borneensis, which is native to Malaysia and Indonesia; and Agathis Robusta, which is native to Australia. In addition, terraced planters are faced with Indonesian lava stone that epiphytic and and other plants can climb. Down at ground level, there’s a topiary walk and horticultural gardens, and event spaces for up to 1,000 people.

Amid the upper canopy, PWP planted a number of species of wide-spreading Ficus trees that will eventually create shade and a comfortable environment.

Throughout the biosphere-like terminal, PWP selected some 200 species of mostly-highland plant species, calibrating them to the giant torus’ unique conditions where temperatures and humidity levels are slightly cooler than outside. “Air movement, humidity, and natural light have all been balanced.”

In addition to hosting some 300 shops and restaurants and a transit hotel, the terminal connects to the city’s public bus system. Pedestrian bridges and an inter-terminal train link passengers and visitors to the airport’s many gates.

With Jewel Changi, Singapore has reinvented what an airport terminal can be, just as they re-imagined what a hospital can be with Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, which is not only a medical facility but also a green hub open to the community. Now let’s hope Singapore’s biophilic design culture spreads around the world, like the planes that leave its terminal.

At age 8, Greta Thunberg, who lives in Stockholm, Sweden, learned about climate change. By age 11, she had fallen into a deep depression because of the lack of global action to solve the climate crisis. A doctor diagnosed her with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), selective mute syndrome, and Asperger’s syndrome, which means she is on the autism spectrum. Being autistic, she said in TEDx talk, means she sees the world in “black and white.” And for her, acting on climate change is a black and white issue: “We must stop carbon emissions from fossil fuels. We have to change.”

Beginning at age 15, Thunberg started channeling her frustration into being a dedicated climate activist, sitting in front of Sweden’s National Legislature every day, during school hours, demanding the Swedish government reduce carbon emissions by at least 15 percent each year. Thunberg decided on such a radical move because “no one in the media is talking about climate change; and you would think they would talk about nothing else.”

Thunberg — who was inspired by the teen activists at Parkland in Florida skipping school to protest gun violence — has herself inspired a global movement of student-led climate protests. Last year, an estimated 20,000 school students held climate strikes in 270 cities. On March 15, the biggest global protest yet occurred — with an estimated one million children skipping school to march for climate action. Organizers estimated that there were some 2,000 strikes in 125 countries.

The UK Student Climate Network, which organized protests in London, released a manifesto that clearly relays the frustration and anxiety about the future that drives the protestors:

“We’ve joined a movement that’s spreading rapidly across the world, catalyzed by the actions of one individual in taking a stand in August last year. Greta Thunberg may have been the spark, but we’re the wildfire and we’re fueled by the necessity for action.

The climate is in crisis. We will be facing ecological catastrophe and climate breakdown in the very near future if those in power don’t act urgently and radically to change our trajectory. Scientists have been giving increasingly dire warnings about the state of our planet for years, with the urgency and severity of their message escalating in recent times. It’s abundantly clear: change is needed, and it’s needed now!”

According to CBS News, protesting students were united in their demand for a rapid transition to 100 percent renewable energy.

In the U.S., the strike was organized by Youth Climate Strike, a coalition led by Isra Hirsi, a 16-year-old sophmore from Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Haven Coleman, 12-year-old 7th grader from Denver, Colorado. In San Francisco, hundreds of students marched from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office to Senator Dianne Feinstein’s office, demanding action. In St. Paul, Minnesota, 1,000 students stood in front of the state Capitol chanting: “Stop denying the Earth is dying.”

Protests also occurred on March 15 across Europe, South America, Asia, and Africa. In Berlin, Germany, an estimated 20,000 student protestors waved signs such as “‘March now or swim later’ and ‘Climate Protection Report Card: F'” on their march towards German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s office. And in New Delhi, school children protested inaction on climate change as well as poor air quality, which causes an estimated 4.2 million premature deaths worldwide annually.

A recent Pew survey found that Generation Z, now aged 13-21, is equally as focused on climate change as the Millennial generation, now 22-37 years old. Some 54 percent of Gen Z sees climate change as being driven by human activity, while 56 percent of Millennials think the same. These numbers are considerably higher than for Gen Xers, Baby Boomers, or the Silent Generation.

The United Nations Secretary General António Guterres wrote an op-ed supporting the student protestors:

“These schoolchildren have grasped something that seems to elude many of their elders: we are in a race for our lives, and we are losing. The window of opportunity is closing – we no longer have the luxury of time, and climate delay is almost as dangerous as climate denial.

My generation has failed to respond properly to the dramatic challenge of climate change. This is deeply felt by young people. No wonder they are angry.”

Guterres argues that “commitment and activism” shown by these students gives him hope the world’s leaders will shift course in time but it’s important to keep up the pressure. A recent United Nations report found that dramatically reducing emissions over the next 11 years is absolutely critical.

There are a growing number of routes for those hardy souls who love the thought of biking from state to state, or even shore to shore. At the League of American Bicyclists’ National Bike Summit in Crystal City, Virginia, a group of nonprofit leaders described how street bicycle infrastructure forms into neighborhood and urban networks, then state and regional ones, and finally, an ever-growing national network.

Neighborhood and urban networks are for joy riders and bike commuters. The state and regional networks are for more hardcore “adventure cyclists” who are up for or multi-day or multi-week trips. Many entities, including local and national non-profits and state and federal governments, create the plans and make the investments needed for these networks to connect and cohere.

According to Sarah Clark Stuart with the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, government funds can kick start wider projects. A U.S. department of Transportation TIGER grant of $23 million to the city of Philadelphia to create a regional bicycle network helped spur an additional $300 million in investment from states and foundations. There are now some 334 miles of greater Philadelphia bicycle infrastructure, with 25 miles in progress (see image above). “This demonstrates the real power of leverage.” And the growing 750-mile regional circuit network  can now feed better feed into national networks.

“Imagine an epic journey — biking from Washington, D.C. to Washington State, through local trails,” mused Kevin Mills, senior vice president with the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy. “Approximately half of that network now exists,” and it’s called the Great American Rail Trail. Rails-to-Trails selected gateway trails in the 13 states that make up the 3,000-mile cross-country trail, including some of the most scenic and beautiful like the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historic Park Trail in the Washington, D.C. area; the Cardinal Greenway in Indiana; and the Casper Rail Trail in Wyoming. The group is now working on a more detailed set of recommendations to improve the connectivity along this TransAmerica Trail.

Ambitious coastal trails are in the works, too. Dennis Markatos-Soriano, executive director of the East Coast Greenway, said his organization seeks to realize a vision of a 4,000-mile route through 15 states, from Maine to Key West, Florida. Since 1991, about 3,000 miles have already been built, in partnership with states and mayors. About $1.1 billion is needed to complete the remaining 1,000 miles in the southern portion of the network through Florida. “We’ll need about $160 million a year in investment though 2030.” When complete, the East Coast Greenway will touch some 450 communities and about 25 million people live within 5 miles of the route.

The greater goal is for all of these cross-country and coastal routes to coalesce into a U.S. Bicycle Route System, said Ginny Sullivan, director of travel initiatives at the Adventure Cycling Association, which was an early shepherd of the expanding national network and continues to develop it. A task force at the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) officially proposes routes for the system, which state departments of transportation then approve. Sullivan said the network leverages infrastructure that has already been built, connecting neighboring states. So far, some 13,000 miles in 25 states and Washington, D.C. have been designated as part of the system; the eventual goal is 50,000 miles.

About 830,000 Americans biked to work in 2017, down from a high of 904,000 in 2014. Given communities large and small have made major investments in bicycle infrastructure — and bike share now seems ubiquitous — why haven’t the numbers of bike commuters dramatically increased?

In some cities, a safe, connected, and protected system of bicycle infrastructure has made it easy to get to work on two wheels. These cities include Berkeley, California, with a population of 120,000 people, where 9 percent of commuters travel by bike, and Portland, Oregon, with a population of 640,000, where more than 7 percent do. In those communities, safe infrastructure has been vital to achieving high numbers of bike commuters.

But looking from another angle, those numbers have been stuck at less than 10 percent for a number of years. Why? According to a number of speakers at the League of American Bicyclists’ National Bike Summit, held in Crystal City, Virginia, it’s because the bicycling movement hasn’t been inclusive.

Numerous sessions at the conference delved into how to broaden the appeal of bicycling for people of different ages, income levels, and races.

Christian Dorsey, chair of the Arlington County Board, said his community in Northern Virginia is in the process of revising its bicycle infrastructure master plan. The county’s goal is to “double the mode share of bike commuters.” But to achieve this goal, “we can’t just promote the new bicycle infrastructure to the bicycle advocates — it has to be for everyone.”

Danielle Arigoni, director of livable communities at AARP, and an Arlington resident who bikes to work, said that just 6 percent of older adults regularly bike — and that number has “flatlined.”

Bicycling fatalities have increased over the past few years, with those 65 and older killed “over-represented.” She said if bicycle infrastructure isn’t designed to be safe for everyone — and therefore inclusive of everyone — then “it’s not safe for anyone.”

Dorsey said it is important that access to bicycle infrastructure and bike share systems is equitable. Bike share stations need to be set up in all neighborhoods, not just the wealthy downtowns.

Furthermore, an important but rarely-mentioned barrier is that most employers of low-income people don’t offer showers or bike lockers. If someone is biking to work, they have to do so in their work clothes. “There are often no facilities at the other end.”

In reality, it’s easier for an executive, with access to those facilities, to bike to work than it is for someone who works at a fast food restaurant. That is unfortunate — as those working for less money would benefit far more from the lower transportation costs offered by commuting by bicycle.

If the many safety and social benefits of inclusive infrastructure aren’t enough, there are also economic reasons.

Steve Hartell, director of U.S. public policy for Amazon, said that Amazon selected Crystal City as the location of one of its second headquarters because it’s walkable, bikeable, and next to two Metro stations. “Look at downtown Seattle where Amazon grew up. There, 50 percent of our employees bike, walk, or take mass transit to work.” Amazon was looking for places with the same kind of connected network offering lots of transportation options. And other companies are too.

In another session asking attendees to “think outside the bike,” representatives from a number of urban bicycle non-profits explained how they are diversifying the community of bikers:

Nicole Payne, a program manager at NACTO, noted that Oakland, California required 50 percent of bike share stations to be placed in under served areas. NACTO and the Better Bike Share Partnership have released a guide to engaging a broader community in biking.

At West Town Bikes, a youth development center, in Chicago, Danni Limonez works hard to teach both bicycling and basic work skills. Kids are taught how to maintain bikes used for tours, and some end up getting hired around city bike shops. West Town Bikes also organizes rides for families on the 606 Trail, a 2.7-mile-long elevated bike way created by landscape architects at Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA). And there are tours for “women, transgender, and non-binary riders.”

For Cindy Mense with Trailnet, a community will only have an inclusive, accessible bicycle infrastructure if everyone’s voice is heard. St. Louis, Missouri, was envious of Indianapolis’ cultural trail and decided to create their own extensive bike network to connect cultural centers. Ensuring that feedback was received from all communities — especially those north of the “Delmar divide,” the predominantly African American community — Trailnet financed community champions, who were each given $250 for targeted engagement. “They made all the difference, as they told us what music and neighborhood events to go to” to find people to fill out their surveys.

And Waffiyyah Murray said her organization — the Better Bike Share Partnership — which is based in Philadelphia, is all about using bikes to build community. The organization provides low-cost tours throughout neighborhoods and to cultural centers like the Barnes Foundation; Internet, mobile phone, and bike safety education classes so people can better access Philly’s Indego bike share system; and free bike deliveries of food to the homeless. There are also programs using bikes to improve mental health and prevent suicides. “Biking can be a coping mechanism for anxiety and depression.”

Why take photographs of basketball courts but leave out the players? For photographer Bill Bamberger, basketball courts tell a compelling story by themselves. They are signs of play — and community life. And the environment surrounding a court tells a lot about the community that created it.

In Hoops, a new exhibition at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., Bamberger and curator Chrysanthe Broikos edited the 22,000 images of basketball courts Bamberger shot around the world over the past 15 years to just 75.

At the preview, Bamberger said he was intrigued by conceptual artists Bernd and Hilla Becher’s famous photographs of water towers and other industrial buildings. The duo shot objects in black and white, in the “same neutral light,” from the same angle, forcing the viewer to notice the small differences between the industrial remnants. The result was “there was no context.”

Bamberger seemed inspired by aspects of their approach. Clearly, the focus of this exhibition is entirely on one built object — the basketball court. But he also diverged from their path by highlighting the context — the environments surrounding the basketball courts.

In one photograph of a court at a charter school playground in Harlem, New York City, one can see the “color and the diversity of the place” that gave rise to it (see image at top).

In contrast, in Phoenix, Arizona, the basketball court at a wealthy school almost blends into the landscape, its edges fading back into the desert.

In a church playground in Kinihara, Rwanda, where Bamberger visited with his partner, who is an HIV/AIDS researcher, the “inventiveness” of the community is apparent — the handmade basketball posts are made of tree trunks, the backboard is made up of old wood planks, and the rim is fashioned from found metal. The space from which players shoot is demarcated by bricks embedded in the ground instead of the usual painted lines.

Basketball hoops pop up everywhere there is life — on the sides of buildings and homes and along streets. One of Bamberger’s favorite photographs is of a hoop on a grain silo in Portland, Oregon.

And one call tell from the pictures which hoops are well-used and loved and which have been abandoned. A hoop at an abandoned campsite in Tennessee, where a homeless family was living in an old bus, is a remnant left by people moving through.

Bamberger said some of the greatest hoops were found in communities facing incredible challenges. One charming court in the struggling North Fork, West Virginia, shows the hope and vitality inherent in the place.

The Hoops exhibition shows you that if you see a basketball court somewhere, some unique community built it. Basketball courts are really portraits of a community. “Play is a necessity in community life.”

Hoops opened just in time for the 2019 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments. The exhibition is on view through January 5, 2020.