The Athenians had an oath for someone who was about to become a citizen. They had to swear that 'I shall leave the city not less but more beautiful than I found it.'

The more we get out of the world the less we leave, and in the long run we shall have to pay our debts at a time that may be very inconvenient for our own survival

There's nothing less funny than someone who looks cool. There's nothing more unappealing.

Of course I know very little about architecture, and the older I get the less I know.

I am much more passionate about cities than I am about nations. The competition between cities is more civilised than between nations. There is an understanding there.

I've found that nurturing untapped potential is far more exhilarating than finding someone who has already peaked.