Good for Cities

Welcome to Good for Cities , the podcast that examines the ideas, policies, and trends shaping urban life. Hosted by Matti Siemiatycki , Director of the Infrastructure Institute at the University of Toronto School of Cities , the show asks the essential question: are these interventions really making our cities better? Each episode features conversations with leading urbanists, challenging assumptions about city building to uncover which ideas stand the test of time, and which might need to be rethought—or even scrapped altogether.

Good for Cities is a society podcast hosted by infrastructureinstitutesoc, with 15 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

infrastructureinstitutesoc hosts Good for Cities, a society show with 15 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

• 

  Episode #16

  Is the Singles Tax Good for Cities?

  Aug 17, 202632 min

  How can cities better support the growing number of people living alone? In this episode of Good for Cities, Matti Siemiatycki speaks with journalist and author Renee Sylvestre-Williams about The Singles Tax and the intersection of housing, urban planning, and social connection. They explore how rising housing costs, outdated policies, and the design of our communities create unique challenges for single people, while examining the role of zoning, housing choice, public spaces, and transit in shaping everyday life. The conversation also looks at innovative housing models, the importance of third places, and why building cities that better support people living alone can create healthier, more connected communities for everyone.

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #14

  Are Urban Planning Influencers Good for Cities?

  Jun 24, 202639 min

  Urban planning is everywhere. From videos about walkable cities and public transit to debates about housing affordability, millions of people are learning about cities through YouTube and social media. But as urban planning content reaches wider audiences, a new question emerges: who do we trust to explain how cities work? In this episode of Good for Cities, Matti Siemiatycki speaks with Uytae Lee, urban planner, journalist, filmmaker, and creator of the popular YouTube channel About Here. They explore the rise of urban planning content online, the challenge of balancing accessibility with accuracy, and how creators build trust with audiences while navigating sponsorships and partnerships.

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #13

  Are Current Community Consultation Practices Good for Cities?

  Jun 3, 202643 minS0

  <p>Do Current Community Consultation Practices Work for Urban Planning and City Building?</p> <p>Community consultation is a key part of public participation in urban planning, but is it working as intended? In this episode of Good for Cities, Matti Siemiatycki is joined by Crystal Legacy to explore the growing crisis of consultation in city building and infrastructure planning.</p> <p>They discuss the limitations of formal engagement processes, including public meetings, stakeholder consultations, and advisory panels, and how these approaches can exclude informal participation and community knowledge. The conversation introduces the concept of structural gaslighting to examine how...

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #12

  Is Mission-Driven Design Good for Cities?​

  Apr 6, 202643 minS0

  <p>In this episode of the Good for Cities podcast, Matti Siemiatycki speaks with Nyasha Harper-Michon about community-led architecture, urban planning, and building more inclusive, sustainable cities.</p> <p>They explore how architects can integrate community engagement into design, align development with local needs, and navigate challenges like affordable housing, climate change, and urban inequality. Nyasha shares lessons from working beyond traditional architecture practice and advancing equity in city-building.</p> <p>This episode is ideal for architects, urban planners, and students interested in architecture careers, community-driven design, and the future of sustainable cities.</p>

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #11

  Are Financial Landlords Good for Cities?

  Mar 23, 202639 minS0

  <p>Financial landlords claim to contribute to the housing stock, but they also have higher rates of eviction and above guideline rent increases than other housing providers. Since the 1990’s, ownership of rental housing by financial firms has drastically increased, with more financial landlords, such as investment trusts and asset managers owning more apartment buildings than before. This has contributed to a shift that’s turned housing into an investment product for third-party investors, who have increasingly consolidated ownership of rental properties across the country.</p> <p>In this episode, Martine August, affordable housing advocate and financial landlord researcher, explains how...

  ListenShow Notes

Recent guests on Good for Cities. Study who booked and why before you pitch.

Based on semantic analysis of episode topics and host coverage, this show is a strong guest fit for executives in:

Industry fit is computed by PitchCentric using vector embeddings of the show's episode catalog.