2024 Winter Issue of Urban Land - 27

me as mayor, it was mainly
an opportunity to accelerate
the transformation of the city.
I really wanted the ecological
transformation to be accelerated,
and to be at the heart
of the games. It's important
because, in a country like
France, often the different
levels-the authorities, the politicians-everyone
argues and,
as a result, it sometimes delays
projects.
One of the big challenges
is swimming in the Seine. We
all had to come together for
one goal. And yes, we are
going to swim in the Seine for
the Olympic and Paralympic
games next year. And, after
the games, there will be three
swimming sites in the Seine
that will be in extraordinary
locations. I will swim next year
in July.
UL: You are also leading an
ecological transformation of
Paris that includes the goal
of planting 170,000 trees by
the end of 2026, and your
proposal to transform the
Champs-Elysées by creating
several gardens along the
famous avenue. What are the
benefits you hope to achieve
in terms of carbon reduction
and health, and what else
do you hope to unveil in the
future that will be part of this
ecological transformation?
Anne Hidalgo: It is very, very
important to plant trees. We
know, with the [shifts] that
are expected, linked to climate
change, temperatures in Paris
could reach 50 degrees Celsius
in summer [within] the next 30
years.
We are in the process of
transforming a very famous
square, designed by Ricardo
Bofill, in the 14th arrondissement
of Paris-the Place de
Catalogne, which will become
an urban forest.
For instance, we are going
to plant this winter, starting in
November, 40,000 trees.
We are also going to
create or enlarge, by 2035, 10
more major parks in Paris to
create precisely these breathing
spaces and these natural
spaces for Parisians.
And after the games, we
will have a large park-in fact,
56 hectares [560,000 sq m]-
that will be an extraordinary
wooded park, planted from
the Place du Trocadéro to the
Eiffel Tower. These are not utopias.
These are projects which
are either already being carried
out or will be carried out
just after the games-such as,
for example, the major project
from the Trocadéro to the
Eiffel Tower.
UL: You are the first woman
to hold the office of ... mayor
[in] Paris, elected by a clear
majority in 2014. In 2020, you
received a fine of 90 thousand
euros from the French national
government for naming 11
women, out of 16 positions,
to your upper management.
There has also been criticism
that you are perhaps too much
of a feminist. What should
other decision-makers understand
about your actions if the
world is ever to achieve equality?
Anne
Hidalgo: Being a woman
in this type of position is
already a bit disruptive in itself.
When a woman is elected
mayor of a major city-mayor
of Paris-it's not simply to say
to herself, " I'm there. If I've succeeded,
that's it! " It is about
changing things, and being
given such opportunity, well, it
gives me a lot of energy.
We must not be afraid to
go off the paths that politicians
who have more traditional
backgrounds usually
follow, even if sometimes we
are mocked. For instance,
considering the place of children
in the city is also a way
of changing things. It is about
making things happen, and
maybe maybe being a role
model for little girls and telling
them they can follow their
hearts.
For the detractors, I listen to
criticism when it is a way to
improve. We don't succeed at
everything. And we sometimes
make mistakes. I do not listen
to critics when they discard
the legitimacy of a woman
elected as the head of a city
like Paris, just because she
carries social and ecological
policies.
I really believe that female
leadership exists. It's complicated,
because women who
are elected to positions of
power can be tempted to
do like men, to forget that
they must also help other,
younger women to progress,
and [women in power must]
also take responsibility. But I
think that the biological difference
between men and
women does not count. What
counts are their different life
experiences. Such differences
between men and women
allow women to bring something
very new, and very
useful, to politics. UL
SIBLEY FLEMING is editor in chief of
Urban Land.
The transformation
of our infrastructure,
for example,
towards cycling,
has allowed us to
reduce pollution
by 40 percent.
This is a concrete,
measurable result
that we have today.
-ANNE HIDALGO
WINTER 202 4
URBAN LAND
27
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2024 Winter Issue of Urban Land

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