Environment
Climate Talks End With Agreement and Bewilderment
Annual United Nations climate change negotiations concluded in Doha over the weekend with an agreement to extend the "increasingly ineffective" Kyoto Protocol a few years, while pushing off a more ambitious replacement agreement.
Top 10 Books - 2013
Planetizen is pleased to release its eleventh annual list of the ten best books in urban planning, design and development published in 2012.
Do Environmentalists Feed The Fire of Climate Change Denial?
Despite the extreme weather events of the past year, most Americans are still not persuaded that climate change is primarily the result of human activity. Why not?
China's Cities Hold the Key to the World's Future
In a globalized world, China's economic, environmental and urban development has implications for us all, posits Henry M. Paulson Jr. The problems the country faces, and any potential solutions, revolve around its approach to urbanization.
Preeminent Climate Scientist Blasts Cap & Trade
Dr. James Hansen was awarded the prestigious Stephen H. Schneider climate award at the Commonwealth Club in S.F. on Dec. 4 and chose to trash CA's landmark cap-and-trade program, preferring a 'simple, clean carbon tax'. Gov. Brown was attending.
Don't Mess With CEQA in San Francisco!
Although the landmark but now controversial environmental law, the CA Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is state law, it is implemented by the 'lead agency' of a project which can be a city. S.F. Supervisor Scott Wiener hopes to reform that process.
Invest in Public Transit to Slow Climate Change
Reflecting on the significance and impact of Superstorm Sandy, Bill McKibben and Lawrence J. Hanley propose a 3-step process focused on mass transit that America should pursue to promote community development, public health and the environment.
California's Alternative Energy Strategy, or Lack Thereof, Heads for a Reckoning
California has set a deadline of 2020 to rely less on fossil fuels and more on alternative energy, but a report finds this strategy could end up emptying ratepayers' pockets and damaging the state's environmental resources, reports Julie Cart.
Bloomberg Backs Beachfront Rebuild
In a speech Thursday, Mayor Bloomberg laid out his strategy for rebuilding a stronger, smarter New York in anticipation of future natural disasters.
NASA Gives Light to the Globe at Night
This week, scientists unveiled unprecedented images of the Earth at night, as captured by a new NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellite.
As Economies Return, So Does Frightening Asian Air Pollution
New studies are raising alarms about the growing threat of harmful air in Asia's cities. One recent report warns that air pollution could become the biggest environmental cause of premature death by 2050 if action is not taken.
Landscape Architects Step Into Vacuum Left by Planners and Architects
Landscape Architecture is a field in the ascendency, writes Alan G. Brake. Its rise can be traced to the inability of Architects and Planners to engage with some of the most important challenges of our time.
D.C. Debates How to Clean its Storm Water
The D.C. Water and Sewer Authority wants to revise a settlement reached eight years ago with environmental groups that would have seen the agency build three huge tunnels to manage storm water runoff. The Authority would like to build green systems.
Opening the Atlantic Coast for Offshore Wind Farms
The U.S. Department of the Interior has cleared the way for what could become the first offshore wind projects in the country. Next year, lease sales will be offered on 278,00 acres of land off the coasts of Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Virginia.
Supreme Court to Decide Who's Responsible for Storm Water Pollution
A case over "who can be held responsible for polluted storm water that runs off city streets and into rivers and bays" is headed to the U.S. Supreme Court tomorrow. The court's ruling on the Los Angeles case could have far-reaching impacts.
Ranking North America's Smartest Cities
For those of you who've been anxiously waiting since Boyd Cohen published his list of Europe's smartest cities last month...wait no longer, North America's top 10 smartest cities have been revealed.
Carbon Emissions Set New Record, No End in Sight
Two new scientific papers report that global carbon dioxide emissions set a record high in 2011. With no coordinated effort underway to curb them, researchers believe crossing the 2 degree Celsius threshold for the worst impacts may be inevitable.
Looking for the Good in Global Warming
Sick of reading about all the work that must be done to slow and mitigate the impact of global warming? A growing number of scientists are investigating how to "make climate change work for us."
Next Battleground in Climate Debate: Repealing State Mandates
While the federal government has dithered on comprehensive programs to limit greenhouse gas emissions, states and cities have led such efforts. Climate change skeptics are now leading efforts to reverse state renewable energy mandates across the US.
World Climate Talks Convene As Emissions Rise
World climate talks convened in oil and gas-rich Qatar on Monday, and many eyes have turned to the U.S. Will it be receptive to a climate treaty in light of the devastation reaped on the Northeast by Superstorm Sandy? Can the world agree to a treaty?
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
