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.

The Shifting Demographics of Covid-19
For most of the Covid-19 pandemic, Black Americans died at much higher rates than White Americans. That trend has reversed at times during the past year.

The Consequences of Sprawl: Overcrowded Housing and Covid Deaths
Los Angeles is the nation's capital of both crowding and sprawl. A feature published by the Los Angeles Times provides the history of how the metropolis achieved this contradiction.

Breaking the Bias on Public Transport
How gender-sensitive data collection can make public transit safer for women.

Dodger Stadium Gondola Completes Draft Environmental Impact Report
No World Series? At least Dodger fans can imagine themselves soaring over the traffic jams on the way to and from Dodger stadium in a new gondola.

Gainesville Eliminates Single-Family Zoning
Gainesville is the first city in Florida to eliminate exclusionary zoning.