Portland

Three weeks ago i was in Portland, Oregon, basking in what most people agree is the city that best approximates Pinko Commie Heaven. Bush I dubbed it "Little Beirut," which makes little sense given the city's demographics. UC paid my way to Portland because i was presenting results from the Death Valley work; you can find an abstract here. The entire conference was at the Oregon Convention Center, which is capped by those two glowing spikes in the foreground. The skyline of Downtown Portland lies behind.

Geographically, Portland is divided by the Willamette River, with the downtown on the west bank. Someone compared it to Cincinnati, which i suppose works if you move all of downtown Cincinnati across the Ohio. Barring that, Cincinnati is contemplating putting in streetcars, using Portland as a model.

Portland's Pinko Commie status, as well as Cincinnati's streetcar plan, are based on Portland's simply stellar environmental record. There's pretty much consensus that Portland is the greenest city in the United States (1 2 3 4 5). Perhaps the most tangible aspect of Portland's green initiative is the seamless integration of their streetcar, bus, and light rail systems. Public transit within the downtown area is free, meaning i was constantly shuttling across the Willamette to catch lunch before the afternoon technical sessions. The area is also fully supported by Google Maps. Add Portland's bike ethos and you have a metropolitan area that was, while i was there, quieter and completely free of traffic snarls.

People often lose sight of the fact that green initiatives can benefit in ways that have nothing to do with being "green." Portland's just another example of the quality-of-life improvements that green initiatives can bring to a city.

On a completely separate note, Portland has an excellent Japanese Garden, which is where Esteban and i spent an afternoon after our sessions.

Can't forget the food carts. This place does an authentic Loco Moco!