In the July edition of the Retire Better newsletter, we spoke about the 15-minute city and the ambition of civic leaders and urban designers to use the post-pandemic largesse of their central banks to Build Back Better.

In the article, we made reference to the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, as a leader who is planning to spend up big to make her city more liveable and more sustainable.

One of her signature projects is the complete transformation of the section of the Champs-Élysées that leads up to the Arc de Triomphe.

For an avenue that has a reputation as one of the most beautiful streets in the world, all of us who have been to Paris will know that the iconic boulevard is choked with traffic.

Here’s a video that shows us an alternative vision, with the cars largely removed and the boulevard opened up for pedestrians and gardens.

As exciting as the project sounds, the more important takeaway for Switched on Living members is the ambition of mayor Hidalgo and her team of city planners. It goes to show once again just how fundamental our mindset is if we want to Live Better and Retire Better.

Whether it’s taking cars off the most famous street in the world, or setting stretch goals with our Switched ON Living Wellbeing Plan, we have to be audacious with our dreams and determined with our plans.