While the conversations with architects were for the most part approachable, very few of them stuck in my memory. On the other hand, I enjoyed the walks with historians and local activists.

Especially the two walks and conversations with Eric W. Sanderson, senior conservation ecologist for the Wildlife Conservation Society at Bronx Zoo, with the first one centred on the southern tip of pre-colonial Manhattan, or Manaháhtaan as it was called back when it was past of Lenape territory.

Or the walks through Greenwich Village with Andrew Dolkart, professor of Historic Preservation at Columbia University and founding member of the NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project, giving plenty of background information on the Stonewall riots.

Another memorable walk was with Monxo Lopez, an environmental and urban justice activist, who, on a walk through Mott Haven and the South Bronx told stories of various immigration waves in the history of the Bronx. He speaks about the two sides of being an activist, on one side, pain and fights against all the injustices, and on the other hand focus on painting a positive picture of the future, demonstrating what can be achieved by banding together and taking back their neighbourhoods. For example, their Mott Haven community land trust, while born out of an environmental justice goal, effectively transfers land from public and private ownership to community ownership, removing it from the speculative real estate market and ensuring permanent affordability.