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.
Memphis Targets Adaptive Reuse of Historic School for Neighborhood Benefits
A plan to rehabilitate the vacant former location of Melrose High School in Memphis' Orange Mound neighborhood "recalls many other recent initiatives aimed at elevating and investing in Black urban history."
Americans Are Moving Toward Climate Risk
More Americans are ignoring the realities of climate change emigrating—even as more and more climate refugees flee the damage.
The 'Mountain Lion' Cities Rising in the U.S. West
An economist identifies the growth in nine U.S. cities—scattered from Utah to Texas, Arizona, Washington, and Idaho—as similar to the economic power generated in parts of Asia.
Watch: The Laws and Policies Driving Up the Cost of Housing
A Vox explainer video tackles the rising cost of housing in the United States.
The History of Federal Infrastructure Funding: As Determined by the Founding Fathers
The ability of the federal government to fund, and define, infrastructure, owes itself to a history of state and federal leadership at the dawn of the nation's existence.