National Network for Equitable Library Service

2015 Speaker's Book Award — Shortlisted City planning in the GTHA has been mired in political grandstanding for the past decade, The New Urban Agenda offers a plain language solution to the issues plaguing the GTHA. Politics in the Greater Toronto, Hamilton Area (GTHA) have become increasingly divisive over the past decade, and solutions to the city’s problems have become hot-topic issues debated in council and the press, but never finding resolution.The New Urban Agenda is equal parts history, social science, and call to action to solve the major problems facing the GTHA. Issues such as urban and suburban development, transit, the region’s environmental impact, affordable housing, and the seemingly inherent gridlock of municipal politics are all discussed. Award-winning author Bill Freeman offers a level-headed approach to the problems and lays out an agenda that will lead to an improvement in the quality of life in our neighbourhoods and downtowns and make our cities more economically viable. He encourages individuals and communities to speak up for themselves and get involved in politics at a grassroots level. With no shortage of examples, he shows how this strategy can create the change that is needed to move cities forward in a way that benefits everyone, not just the business and political elite.