sir patrick geddes memorial trust
WHO WAS PATRICK GEDDES? Sir Patrick Geddes (1854-1932) was a lively and original
thinker, a polymath of world significance, a botanist, biologist, town planner
and landscape architect, and a pioneer in sociology, environmental education and
the arts.Words he devised such as ‘conurbation’, ‘megalopolis’, and ‘habitat’
seemed revolutionary during his lifetime, but are now common currency. His
injunction to “think global, act local” has become an environmental catch
phrase. His insight that cities are constantly-evolving organic entities
launched the urban and regional planning movement around the world. He was one
of the first biologists to stress the prime importance of habitat in what would
now be called ecology, using a method of survey and synthesis based on the
principle of “Place-Work-Folk”. THE TRUST Many organisations use Patrick Geddes’
name to boost their environmental credentials, but the Memorial Trust has a
unique position as the ONLY institution which still has a direct connection back
to Geddes himself. We promote the study of living society in its environment
according to Geddes’ principles and practice. On our website you will find
information about his life, work and lasting legacy.