Diving into Swimmable Cities

From his early credentials as a landscape architect to his current status as an environmental advocate, advisor, educator and entrepreneur, Australian Matt Sykes’ major focus has shifted to helping shape a new movement: Swimmable Cities.

“Looking back my start on this path began in 2011 when I was attending the IFLA World Congress in Zurich,” says Matt.

“In between one of the programme breaks, I was walking through the streets and heard voices and water splashes. It was summer and despite being in the middle of a populous city, my instinctive desire to ‘cool off’ had led me straight to a ‘hidden’ river bathhouse.

"Months later I was in Copenhagen and soon realised that being able to swim in cities was a ‘thing’. This was particularly strange as the thought of swimming in my home city of Naarm Melbourne, in the Birrarung / Yarra River, seemed crazy at the time”.

Fast forward to the 2020s and Matt is now the convenor of an international steering group that is working hard to ensure that Swimmable Cities makes a big splash.

By December 2023 his company Regeneration Projects had published a Swimmable Cities Handbook. This year he’s been working with the steering group to organise reach-outs around the world that were neatly timed to coincide with World Water Day (22 March), World Environment day (5 June) and World Bathing Day (22 June).

Then of course came a headline event like no other, this year’s Paris Olympic Games. Matt says the significance of the Seine River taking centre stage at the games marked another turning point in the visibility of swimmable cities. He got goosebumps at the sight of Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo jumping in feet first in July.   

This historic moment was a springboard for adding momentum to the Swimmable Cities movement through the launch of a 10 point Charter – copied in full at the foot of this article. One of its many ripple effects is a move by the City of Rotterdam to align the Charter to their urban waterfront redevelopments.

“Paris has set the scene for a Summit we plan to hold there in 2025. The incredible images from the Olympics will always be a highlight, along with the ‘we could do that’ point of reference that it generated,” says Matt.

Matt is now on a mission to expand the list of Charter signatories, and has his sights on Aotearoa New Zealand. There are eight in Australia: City of Yarra, Yarra Pools, Regen Melbourne, Löyly Studio (Melbourne), Sydney Water, Parramatta River Catchment Group and Nicole Larkin Design (Sydney).

The latest window for expressions of interest will close as soon as this Friday 13 September (for an extension email hello@swimmablecities.org) - with new signatories to be announced on World Rivers Day on 22 September. See the EOI form here.

Matt: “A key aspect of the Charter is to embrace Indigenous Peoples’ rich ecological knowledge – first principles from first peoples. We are also mirroring our activities to the Kunming-Montreal UN Global Biodiversity Framework and the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030)”.

“There is a definite element of recognising the interconnections between the Rights of Nature and the Right to Swim. Our relationships to rivers and beaches are a mirror of ourselves, and that we have to clean up our act,” says Matt.

Matt reflects that his time as a landscape architect has provided skills that continue to pay dividends. “It’s provided me with the skillset to conceptualise and to activate concepts by becoming a part of building bridges between people and nature.

When he was in practice it’s not surprising that he specialised in ecotourism developments, wildlife corridors, native gardens and hot springs.

“What motivates me about the idea of Swimmable Cities is that it so simply captures the imagination of everyday people, by connecting water health and social benefit.

“It’s encouraging to think of the accessibility being given to open water quality information and a growing awareness that building climate resilience and achieving Nature Positive goals requires a ‘whole of society’ approach. And for that, we need the involvement of people like landscape architects who think across traditional sectoral silos”.

 Further reading:

 

THE SWIMMABLE CITIES CHARTER

Foundational values

1. The Right to Swim

Safe, healthy and swimmable waterways should be accessible to all people.

2. One Health, Many Swimmers

Swimmable urban waterways are vital to the liveability of cities and communities, as shared civic places that promote the health of people (physically, mentally, spiritually) and the health of Mother Earth.

3. Urban Swimming Culture

Urban swimming culture is a unique expression of life in cities and communities, reflecting the distinct interplay of sports, recreation and tourism in each given place, as well as natural and cultural heritage.

4. Water is Sacred

Urban swimming should celebrate natural waterways as living, integrated entities that nurture communities; promoting universal accessibility and peaceful coexistence inclusive of religious, cultural and gender diversity.

Enabling conditions

5. Rewriting the Rules

Urban waterway swimming should become part of a new status quo in public access standards, challenging accepted conventions such as industrial uses and stormwater pollution, with governing authorities swiftly amending legal and regulatory frameworks to enable citizens access to its benefits.

6. Democratic Participation in Swimming Places

Urban swimming places and experiences should be planned, designed, made and operated through inclusive, integrated water management approaches; with managers ensuring universal access via community-led programs for learning how to swim in natural waterways and ecological literacy.

7. Reconnection & Resilience

Urban swimming places and experiences should be invested in as an innovative way to enable resilient communities to adapt and thrive in a changing global climate, environment and economy.

Sharing benefits

8. New Economic Opportunities

Urban swimming development models should balance social, cultural, ecological and economic values, creating new jobs, careers and livelihoods in regenerative professions and industries.

9. Sharing Wellbeing Benefits, Culture & Knowledge

Urban swimming should create wellbeing benefits to local citizens, ecosystems and economies; enhanced by the respectful sharing of Indigenous, traditional and Western water culture knowledge.

Next generation

10. Stewardship for Today, Tomorrow & Future Generations

Urban swimmers are stewards responsible for protecting the health of their local waterways, working alongside Mother Earth’s closest carers, such as Indigenous peoples, rangers and waterkeepers as well as urbanists, architects, social changemakers, educators and policy-makers.

 

Urban, Waterways, Pool Design, PeopleStephen Olsen