Environment
In Oslo, Streets for People, Not Cars
New measures will greatly reduce vehicle traffic in the city center as Oslo moves to put pedestrians, cyclists, and air quality before cars.
Lamenting the Decline of Caracas, Once the 'Jewel of Latin America'
"A generation ago, Venezuela’s capital was one of Latin America’s most thriving, glamorous cities; an oil-fuelled, tree-lined cauldron of culture that guidebooks hailed as a mecca for foodies, night owls and art fans."
District of Columbia to Adopt the Nation's Strongest Renewable Energy Target
Move over, Hawaii and California, with your ambitious goals of going to 100 percent renewable electricity generation by 2045. The District's city council passed legislation on Tuesday that sets 2032 as the target to reach 100 percent renewable.
An East Coast Cap-and-Invest Approach to Reducing Transportation Emissions
Nine Mid-Atlantic and Northeast states and the District of Columbia have agreed to work together to develop a policy to price emissions from transportation, set a 'cap' on them, and invest the revenues in low carbon transportation solutions.
YourCoast App Will Make California's Public Beaches More Accessible
The app, developed by tech mogul Sean Parker (of Napster and Facebook fame), brings technology and environmental regulation together to give people the information they need to get to public beaches.
Texas Has a Lot of Work to Do to Prepare for Future Hurricanes, Says Report
A new report outlines a long list of measures the state needs to take to prevent catastrophic outcomes. However, it avoids directly discussing climate change as a cause of increasingly severe natural disasters.
California Delta Project Facing Approval Challenges
The plan to update the state’s water system has hit a major snag.
A Vision for the Future of Transportation in Massachusetts
A long awaited report on the future of transportation in the Bay State was released last Friday. Among the recommendations: a phaseout on the sales of gas and diesel powered light duty vehicles and allowing cities to enact cordon congestion pricing.
California Orders All Electric Buses by 2040
Converting all the public transit buses in California would save reduce carbon emissions in the state by 1 million metric tons by 2040.
Updating the Land Development Code to Protect Trees in Louisville
The Louisville Metro Council has tasked the Louisville Metro Department of Planning and Design with updating the code to preserve and add trees to the city.
Implementing the Paris Climate Agreement in Katowice, Poland
Representatives from nearly 200 nations have been attending the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Katowice since Dec. 2 to work on implementing the 2015 Paris climate agreement. Scheduled to end Friday, it will be extended two days due to discord.
Who's Advocating Rolling Back Fuel Economy Standards?
Conventional thinking is that the auto industry, wanting to sell more fuel-gulping SUVs, are pushing for weaker fuel economy standards, but Hiroko Tabuchi, climate reporter for The New York Times, exposes Big Oil's stealth campaign.
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke Resigns Amid Scandals
With a tweet from the president on Saturday morning, the public learns that yet another embattled cabinet member will lose his job. Zinke, a former congressman from Montana, is the subject of numerous investigations and controversies.
EU Commission 'License to Pollute' overturned by top European court
The General Court of the European Union upholds action brought by cities: annuls in part the European Commission’s regulation setting excessively high NOx emission limits tests introduced following Dieselgate scandal
Athens Fights Rising Temperatures
At the recent Smart Cities Conference in Barcelona, Mayor Kaminis of Athens highlighted how the city is helping residents survive the increasingly hot summers in the Greek capital.
Carbon Pricing Strategies Under Consideration in Seven States
Several states, and even the federal government, are considering adopting carbon pricing plans.
EPA and Army Corps of Engineers Propose Revision of Wetlands Definition
Fulfilling a promise he made as a candidate, the Trump administration proposed a redefinition of what is classified as a wetland, with the result being the loss of federal protection of millions of acres of waterways and wetlands.
California Fire Chief: Consider Ending Development in Fire Prone Areas
When will California listen to the experts and stop building in fire prone areas? Not today.
Twin Cities Set Ambitious Target for Electric Buses
The planned opening of a new bus rapid transit line is the impetus for a larger-scale shift to electric buses by Metro Transit.
Cities Need to Create Level Playing Fields For New Mobility (That Tilt Towards Community Goals)
The new mobility landscape requires a few key roles from government.
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.
planning NEXT
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie
