Landscape

Kudzu vines growing abundantly in a field

Finding New Uses for the 'Vine That Ate the South'

Visually striking and aggressively invasive, kudzu has been choking the Southeast for decades. Now, designers, chefs, and activists want to find ways to make it useful.

April 25, 2021 - Southerly Magazine

New York jail

The Happy Jail

Where do the street trees come from, and where does the compost go? Rikers Island was New York City's growing outpost for years. But does “greening” the jail always improve things for prisoners?

June 19, 2018 - Urban Omnibus

Friday Eye Candy: How USGS Surveys Helped Build Pixar's New Dream World

Jody Avirgan shares insight into a new podcast with the creators of the new Pixar movie The Good Dinosaur, which reads like more of an advertisement for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

December 4, 2015 - Five Thirty Eight

How 'Affordance Theory' Informs Great Streets and Public Places

The affordance theory, a combination of environment psychology and art, can be tapped to help make the design of urban neighborhoods more appealing to a community, writes Phil Myrick, MIG’s head of placemaking and performance design.

May 29, 2015 - UrbDeZine

Places Journal Launches New Tool for Public Scholarship

Places Journal has just launched Reading Lists: a new, interactive tool that enables readers to create and share topical lists of articles, books, and other media from diverse sources.

March 13, 2015 - Places Journal

Urban Agriculture Projects in Chicago Show the Way

Successful Chicago urban agriculture projects on rooftop, in edible lawn, and at a school reviewed by resilience consultant Dave Hampton.

January 9, 2015 - UrbDeZine

Advocating a New Planning Covenant for Los Angeles

Two well-known Los Angeles civic leaders advocate a new framework for understanding the built environment and landscape of Los Angeles, setting a trajectory for sustainable development.

April 12, 2014 - The Planning Report

How Has 'Mapping' Changed How We Communicate Ideas About Buildings and Landscapes?

Cartographic Grounds, a recent exhibition at the Harvard Graduate School of Design — now online at Places — seeks to "reconcile the precision and instrumentality of the plan with the geographic and territorial scope of the map."

January 23, 2013 - Places Journal

Oil Spill in Michigan Still Affecting Town Two Years Later

Matt Pearce reports on the town of Marshall's road to recovery after a 2010 oil spill damaged the area's human and natural ecosystems, and describes how these long-term impacts should serve as a warning to other communities.

August 2, 2012 - The Los Angeles Times

Tulsa "Code Enforcement" Sparks Outrage

The demolition of a Tulsa resident's edible garden, deemed "too tall" by city inspectors, has sparked a civil rights lawsuit, and is generating national attention.

June 21, 2012 - Grist

Redesigning the "Fascist" Park in Front of the White House

The National Capital Planning Commission invites the public to weigh-in on five proposals for improvements to the Ellipse, the large public park between White House and the National Mall.

June 23, 2011 - Fast Company's Co.Design

Invisible Landscapes of the Atmosphere

The atmosphere has latent architectural possibilities, writes Javier Arbona in this intriguing essay on the potential of air and atmosphere in urban design and architecture.

October 22, 2010 - Places

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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.