Toronto Photographer | Simplification - Random thought

I recently read an article with a very significant (to me) line - "Many cities are preparing for an uncertain future - unsure if the old way of living will be possible again." This line is interesting to me for a couple of reasons. One, the fact that "the old way of living" isn't even a year ago, and two, do we want to go back to the "old way of living"?

Of course, we want to be able to visit friends and family freely. We want to be able to travel and entertain ourselves in the ways we did before Covid-19, but does that mean we have to go back to "normal"?

There is also a lot of talk about supporting local. It is a hyper-local focus which that gets a lot of lip-service, but not a lot of planning for the future of sustaining that movement. The immediate knee-jerk solution for many is "online". Sell online, present online, everything is online, but that doesn't work for everything. Some things need that in-person experience. Artisans of all types will typically agree on this point.

I may be out of the loop or off my rocker, but this is an excellent time for towns and cities to establish a "better way of living." Why not shift into a way to continue to support the hyper-local movement as we advance. Avoid those big-box stores and bring life back into the downtowns of our communities. Imagine small boutique environments, local tailors, butchers, daily open-air markets, pedestrian-only zones (during certain hours - we need to allow for deliveries), more walking and cycling, and lifestyle and culture that is healthier, more productive and less frantic. We've learned; working from home works (for a lot of people - not all), supporting local vendors is incredible; being outside with fewer vehicles makes the environment better, the animals want to come out and play, and so on. So, why go back to the "old way of living?" Instead, let’s go to an “older way of living.”

Innovation and progression through simplification