Jaime Lerner
Encyclopedia
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
of the state of Paraná
Paraná (state)
Paraná is one of the states of Brazil, located in the South of the country, bordered on the north by São Paulo state, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by Santa Catarina state and the Misiones Province of Argentina, and on the west by Mato Grosso do Sul and the republic of Paraguay,...
, in southern Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. He is renowned as an architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
and urban planner
Urban planner
An urban planner or city planner is a professional who works in the field of urban planning/land use planning for the purpose of optimizing the effectiveness of a community's land use and infrastructure. They formulate plans for the development and management of urban and suburban areas, typically...
, having been mayor of Curitiba
Curitiba
Curitiba is the capital of the Brazilian state of Paraná. It is the largest city with the biggest economy of both Paraná and southern Brazil. The population of Curitiba numbers approximately 1.75 million people and the latest GDP figures for the city surpass US$61 billion according to...
, capital of Paraná, three times (1971–75, 1979–84 and 1989–92). In 1994, Lerner was elected governor of Paraná, and was reelected in 1998.
Early life
Lerner was born to a Jewish family originally from PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
in Curitiba. He graduated from the Escola de Arquitetura da Universidade Federal do Paraná
Universidade Federal do Paraná
Federal University of Paraná is a university headquartered in Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.Established on December 19, 1912 and initially named as Universidade do Paraná , the Universidade Federal do Paraná – UFPR is regarded as the oldest Brazilian university.In 1920, the federal government split...
; (Architecture School of the Federal University of Paraná) in 1964. In 1965, he helped create the Instituto de Pesquisa e Planejamento Urbano de Curitiba (Institute of Urban Planning and Research of Curitiba, also known as IPPUC) and participated in the design of the Curitiba Master Plan.
As Mayor of Curitiba
In 1988, Jaime Lerner announced his candidacy for mayor of Curitiba with only 12 days remaining before the election. During his first term, Lerner implemented the Rede Integrada de TransporteRede Integrada de Transporte
Rede Integrada de Transporte is a bus rapid transit system in Curitiba, Brazil. The RIT was implemented in 1974 becoming the first BRT system in the world....
(also called Bus Rapid Transit
Bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit is a term applied to a variety of public transportation systems using buses to provide faster, more efficient service than an ordinary bus line. Often this is achieved by making improvements to existing infrastructure, vehicles and scheduling...
), and continued to implement a host of social, ecological, and urban reforms during his ensuing terms as mayor.
As mayor, Lerner employed unorthodox solutions to Curitiba's geographic challenges. Like many cities, Curitiba is bordered by floodplain. While wealthier cities in the United States such as New Orleans and Sacramento, have chosen to build expensive, and expensive-to-maintain levee systems to build on floodplain. In contrast, Curitiba purchased the floodplain and made parks. The city now ranks among the world leaders in per-capita park area. Curitiba had the problem of its status as a third-world city, unable to afford the tractors and petroleum to mow these parks. The innovative response was "municipal sheep" who keep the parks' vegetation under control and whose wool funds children's programs.
When Lerner became mayor, Curitiba had some barrio
Barrio
Barrio is a Spanish word meaning district or neighborhood.-Usage:In its formal usage in English, barrios are generally considered cohesive places, sharing, for example, a church and traditions such as feast days...
s impossible to service by municipal waste removal. The "streets" were too narrow. Rather than abandon these people or raze these slums, Lerner began a program that traded bags of groceries and transit passes for bags of trash. The slums got much cleaner.
Similarly, Curitiba has a nearby bay that was a dumping ground that would be extremely costly to clean up. Lerner began a program that paid fishermen for any garbage they retrieved (by the pound). This way, they can make money even outside fishing season, supplementing their income. The savings to Curitiba is in the millions.
Lerner instituted many innovative social and educational programs. Barrio kids can be apprenticed to city employees if they don't want to go to school. Although his term as mayor is not without controversy, Curitiba does not have the gangs of much more populous cities such as Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
.
Natural land-use patterns within the city of Curitiba support public transit systems. Buildings along the dedicated bus ways are up to six stories tall, gradually giving way, within a few blocks, to single story homes. This mix of densities ensures sufficient user population within walking distance of bus stops.
As Governor of Paraná
As governor, Lerner used a policy of attracting investment to turn Paraná into one of Brazil's industrial hubs, generating investments of over US$20 billion between 1995 and 2001. Following upon his experience in Curitiba, Lerner focused on issues like transportTransport
Transport or transportation is the movement of people, cattle, animals and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, rail, road, water, cable, pipeline, and space. The field can be divided into infrastructure, vehicles, and operations...
, education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, health
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
, sanitation
Sanitation
Sanitation is the hygienic means of promoting health through prevention of human contact with the hazards of wastes. Hazards can be either physical, microbiological, biological or chemical agents of disease. Wastes that can cause health problems are human and animal feces, solid wastes, domestic...
, leisure
Leisure
Leisure, or free time, is time spent away from business, work, and domestic chores. It is also the periods of time before or after necessary activities such as eating, sleeping and, where it is compulsory, education....
, and industrialization.
UNICEF awarded Lerner the Child and Peace Prize in 1996 for his programs "'Da Rua para a Escola'" (From the Street to School), "'Protegendo a Vida'" (Protecting Life), and "'Universidade do Professor'" (Professor's University).
Post-political career
At the General Assembly of the International Union of ArchitectsInternational Union of Architects
The International Union of Architects is an international non-governmental organization that represents over a million architects in 124 countries. The UIA was founded in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1948. The General Secretariat is located in Paris...
in July 2002, Lerner was elected president for a period of three years. Lerner is also a professor of Urban and Regional Planning
Urban planning
Urban planning incorporates areas such as economics, design, ecology, sociology, geography, law, political science, and statistics to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities....
at the Universidade Federal do Paraná
Universidade Federal do Paraná
Federal University of Paraná is a university headquartered in Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.Established on December 19, 1912 and initially named as Universidade do Paraná , the Universidade Federal do Paraná – UFPR is regarded as the oldest Brazilian university.In 1920, the federal government split...
, his graduated university, and has been a guest professor at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
.
In April 2005, Jaime Lerner participated in the Symposium of China Bus Rapid Transit Initiative (Shanghai) to promote the BRT project in some larger cities. He was specially interviewed which made an impact on mayors and urban planners across China.
Writing
Lerner's publications include:- Grupo de risco (Editora Igel, ISBN 857063093X, 1990)
- Acupuntura urbana (Editora Record, ISBN 8501068519, 2003)
- O vizinho: parente por parte de rua (Editora Record, ISBN 8501068772, 2005)
Awards
Lerner has won a variety of Brazilian and international prizes:- 1990: United Nations Environmental Award, awarded by the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP)
- 1990: Annual Prize of the International Institute for Energy ConservationInternational Institute for Energy ConservationThe International Institute for Energy Conservation is a non-profit, non-governmental organization with the mission of promoting sustainable approaches to energy use in developing countries.- History :...
(IIEC) - 1991: Scroll of Honor, United Nations Human Settlements ProgrammeUnited Nations Human Settlements ProgrammeThe United Nations Human Settlements Programme is the United Nations agency for human settlements. It was established in 1978 and has its headquarters at the United Nations Office at Nairobi, Kenya...
, 1991 - 1991: Tree of Learning, IUCN, 1991
- 1996: Child and Peace Award, UNICEF
- 1997: Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Architecture, University of VirginiaUniversity of VirginiaThe University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
- 2000: Prince Claus AwardPrince Claus AwardsThe Prince Claus Fund was inaugurated in 1996, named in honor of Prince Claus of The Netherlands. It receives an annual subsidy from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs....
, the Netherlands (2000) - 2001: Pioneer 2001, International Council for Caring Communities (ICCC-USA)
- 2001: 2001 World Technology Award for Transportation, National Museum of Science and IndustryNational Museum of Science and IndustryThe National Museum of Science and Industry is a collection of British museums, comprising:* The Science Museum, incorporating the Science Museum Library and the Wellcome collections of the history of medicine at South Kensington in London....
, UK - 2011: Leadership in Transport Award of the International Transport Forum at the OECD
External links
- Jaime Lerner official website
- TED Talks: Jaime Lerner sings of the city at TEDTED (conference)TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
in 2007 - Royal Institute of British Architecture International Dialogues Talk: The Sustainable City, Jaime Lerner(Video)2009