Environment
Portland the Weird
The Economist looks at Portland's "weirdness" with an arched eyebrow, and asks, is this the next great model for the American city?
Denmark Leading the Way on Garbage to Energy Conversion
Clean-tech incinerators are making their way into Danish neighborhoods. Why is the U.S. not implementing this technology? Environmental groups hate them, and land fills have been abundant.
Communicating Codes Through Song
When working a charrette in Jamaica, architect Steve Mouzon inadvertently inspired local children to set a recommendation for urban farming to song.
Seeking Solutions to Stormwater and Sewage Issues
In many cities, stormwater and sewage water are collected in the same sewer. As a result, good rainwater is combined with dirty sewage water. Overflows can create major problems for cities. But avoiding those problems is not exactly easy.
U.S. Armed Forces Predicting Peak Oil
Surplus oil production capacity could go away in the next two years and shortages could get serious by 2015, says a new report from the U.S. Joint Forces.
How to Solve America's Water Crisis
Robert Glennon, author of the new book "Unquenchable" outlines the nature of America's emerging water crisis, and how ending water subsidies could encourage efficiencies and conservation.
Conservation Efforts Straining Water Infrastructure
Water conservation efforts that limited when Los Angeles County residents could water their lawns may have caused a spate of water main bursts last summer and fall.
Underground Business District
The Atlantic guides a tour through the underground business zone of SubTropolis, a 5-million-square-foot complex 100 feet below Kansas City, Missouri.
Giving Neighborhoods a Role in PlaNYC
New York City's long-term sustainability plan is coming up on its three-year anniversary. Tom Angotti says that now's the time to take its broad citywide efforts down to the neighborhood level.
First Come, First Served for Water in Alberta
Under Alberta's present water allocation system, new and rapidly growing communities are unable to purchase new water licenses, as priority goes to historical users, not those with the greatest need. A persistent drought may force a change.
Green Building Flourishes in New Orleans
With more than 500 energy-efficient homes with environmentally friendly features are being built in New Orleans. This rise in green building is being called one of the positive legacies of Hurricane Katrina.
New York City Takes Over Governor's Island
The City has reached a deal to take over 172-acres of undeveloped land from the State, and redevelopment possibilities are flooding in - public park, high school, commercial buildings, NYU satellite campus, and more.
Art and the Built Environment
Artist Roberto Mollá finds inspiration in the urbanity of Tokyo, and the isolation of city life.
Planning for Sustainability, Japanese-Style
Artist and student of architecture Azby Brown has spent 25 years in Japan, and today sees a number of design principles that drive the Japanese way of building and living that can be used by designers.
Climate Measure Would Raise Gas Tax But Not Fund Transportation
A new senate climate measure is proposing to raise the gas tax, a move many in the transportation field have been suggesting for years. But the measure is meeting criticism for not directing the increased revenue towards transportation projects.
Does Land Conservation Drive Housing Costs?
A new study in the San Francisco Bay Area says no, that had there been no controls in place there would be only 6.5% more housing built over the past 50 years.
Farming Settles into the City
The idea of urban farming has gone from fringe to functional, with backyards plots and small infill operations teeming across North America. Lloyd Alter takes a look at the trend.
Global Leaders Discuss the Mutual Challenges of Urbanization
The recent World Urban Forum in Brazil attracted media from around the world, but surprisingly few from the U.S. But as Neal Peirce writes, that doesn't mean the U.S. government wasn't involved.
New Orleans' Recovery Lessons for Haiti
Nearly five years after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, the bungled recovery effort offers lessons to Haiti and Chile as they recover from more recent natural disasters, according to this piece from Allison Arieff.
Combined NHTSA & EPA Standards for New Cars Issued
Normally fuel economy standards are set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Due to the 2007 Supreme Court ruling on the Clean Air Act, the new rules are jointly issued by the EPA to regulate tailpipe emissions as well as CAFE.
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.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association
