James Brasuell, AICP is the former editorial director of Planetizen and is now a senior public affairs specialist at the Southern California Association of Governments. James managed all editorial content and direction for Planetizen from 2014 to 2023, and was promoted from manging editor to editorial director in 2021. After a first career as a class five white water river guide in Trinity County in Northern California, James started his career in Los Angeles as a volunteer at a risk reduction center in Skid Row. Prior to joining Planetizen, James worked at the Cal Poly Pomona College of Environmental Design, as an editor at Curbed LA, as editor of The Planning Report, and as a freelance contributor for The Architect’s Newspaper, the Urban Land Institute – Los Angeles Chapter, FORM, KCET, and the California Planning & Development Report.
Technology Enables a New Understanding of the World's 3.04 Trillion Trees
A news study, combining satellite imagery and field study, dramatically increases the estimated trees in the world. What has not changed: how quickly humans are killing those trees off.
Friday Funny: How to Break Up With (Your City Name Here)
The only thing as ubiquitous as love letters are break up letters. Now it's even easier to break up with your city, using real data from the U.S. Census.
A Tale of Two Neighborhoods: TOD, Fair Housing, and Economic Mobility
"Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing"—as a new rule by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development proposes to do—can vary widely, even in the same city.
'Vision Zero' Requires More Data in Washington, D.C.
Advocates say traffic safety data collection practices in Washington, D.C. don't meet national standards. They also say it will be hard for the District to meet its vision zero goal by 2024 if the problem persists.
10 of the Best Adaptive Reuse Projects
A list of adaptive reuse projects completed in the last five years includes a diverse collection of breweries turned hotels, a dry dock turned into a museum, and much more.