Listening to Children: Mara Mintzer on Designing Cities for Belonging

In this episode, I’m joined by Mara Mintzer of Growing Up Boulder for a deep dive into youth-led placemaking and what it reveals about how cities can look, feel, and function differently—often at a fraction of the expected cost. From five-minute neighborhoods and safe routes to school to water play, native habitat, and spaces that invite lingering, kids consistently point to choices that make places healthier, more social, and more sustainable for everyone.

Mara shares how small, hands-on experiments sparked a citywide culture shift: children standing on a giant map to show what works and what doesn’t; teen consultants designing engagement for their peers; and preschool “picnics in the park” that use observation—not surveys—to uncover what little ones truly need. We explore the power of loose parts and nature play, including a $14,000 log-and-stone installation that dramatically outperformed a conventional playground costing many times more.

We also get practical for planners, designers, and developers. Mara breaks down tools that build trust and reduce friction—Place It model-building, intergenerational walks, and clear “what we heard / what we did” updates—and explains how these approaches can actually accelerate approvals rather than slow projects down.

At a systems level, we examine how child-friendly planning reduces car dependence, improves air quality, lowers injury risk, and tackles loneliness by making social connection easy and free. We talk about teen-friendly parks that prioritize autonomy over programming, affordable food options that give kids independence, and emerging “naturehoods” that link schools, libraries, and parks with safe, shaded routes and micro-habitats.

If you’ve been told the only answers are ball fields and plastic slides, this conversation will challenge the brief—and expand what you think is possible.

Resources mentioned: UNICEF’s Child Friendly Cities, Safe Routes to School, Green Schoolyards, and Growing Up Boulder’s new course on building a child-friendly city map with your community.

Subscribe, share this episode with a planner or developer who needs fresh tools, and leave a review to help more people find conversations about making better places possible.

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