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.
Crowdsourcing Ideas for Richmond-San Rafael Bridge Replacement
The Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, connecting the East Bay and the North Bay near San Francisco, is 63 years old, but a local elected official is thinking about how to replace it.
Infographic: The Cumulative Carbon Emissions of Every Country Since 1750
The U.S. is exceptional when it comes to carbon emissions—that much is indisputable.
Air Pollution, Visualized
The New York Times created a visualization of air pollution that allows comparisons between local conditions and the worst air pollution in the world.
Introducing the National Public Housing Museum
The planned National Public Housing Museum, expected to open in 2021, will draw attention to a highly contested subject and connect to the relevance provided by contemporary anxieties about housing.
Trading Highways for Homes
More and more, cities are seeing little-used highways as a chance to reverse the planning decisions of the 20th century and provide more housing and economic opportunities.