Jaime Lerner — architect / urbanist with roots in the Russian Empire
Jaime Lerner was a Brazilian urban planner and politician of Polish-Russian Jewish origin who served three terms as mayor of Curitiba and twice as Governor of Paraná. His revolutionary urban planning — bus rapid transit, waste recycling, green spaces — transformed Curitiba into a global model for sustainable urban development.
Tracing the roots — Lodz (Poland/Rus)
Born in Curitiba in 1937 to parents who had emigrated from Lodz (Poland, then Russian Empire) and settled in Brazil, Lerner was raised in the Eastern European Jewish community of Paraná. His urban philosophy — that cities can be transformed through creativity rather than money — carried the immigrant's belief that resourcefulness beats resources.
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Lodz (Poland/Rus). At the time, this region lay within the Russian Empire, which spanned from Poland to the Pacific.
A career defined by ambition
"If you want creativity, cut one zero from the budget. If you want sustainability, cut two."