Environment

Broken Inner-City Freeway Reborn as Garden

Activists have turned the site of a former inner-city freeway in San Francisco into a community garden.

March 21, 2010 - Good

The Urban Farms of New York

In the Bronx, Brooklyn, and even the Upper East Side, rooftop farming is making inroads. The City Greens profiles a handful of these urban pioneers.

March 19, 2010 - The City Greens

Seeking Solutions to California's Drought

This piece from National Geographic takes a look at the three-year drought that's plaguing California's cities and farms.

March 18, 2010 - National Geographic

CO2 'Domes' Pose Problems for Cities

New research suggests that huge domes of carbon dioxide hover over urban areas, which is prompting some scientists and policymakers to stress the importance of cities as the frontlines of the war on greenhouse gas emissions.

March 18, 2010 - Grist

Illinois Opens Door to New Nuclear Plants

State legislators in Illinois have lifted a 23-year ban on building nuclear plants within the state.

March 17, 2010 - Chicago Sun-Times

Sustainable Pittsburgh

The public image of Pittsburgh is of a dirty, industrial city, but the city has been at the forefront of sustainability for some time.

March 17, 2010 - Pittsburg Post-Gazette

Finding Solutions for the Colorado River Delta Problem

The Colorado River Delta is in tough shape once it ventures into Mexico. But now, a group of NGOs and local governments are showing how the sensitive area can be kept clean.

March 17, 2010 - Miller-McCune Magazine

The High Costs of America's Aging Water Infrastructure

As part of its extensive coverage of water issues in the U.S., The New York Times looks at the aging water systems that plague American cities and what it would cost to fix them.

March 16, 2010 - The New York Times

Green Features Aren't Selling Houses

Green housing features like solar roofs and angled walls add cost to a development, and lenders don't see added value. So as CNN reports, green housing currently faces a stiff market.

March 15, 2010 - CNN Money

Land Conservation Not Responsible For High Cost of Housing

High housing prices cannot be blamed on land conservation efforts, at least not in Silicon Valley, is the word from researchers at Stanford University.

March 13, 2010 - Stanford University News

Coastal Areas Prepare For The Other 'Big One'

California has just completed a landmark effort to assess the state's worst-case tsunami danger. Now emergency response officials, and even some planners, are considering how to keep the state's coastal populations safe.

March 13, 2010 - California Planning & Development Report

River Walk Leans Away From Tourism in San Antonio

San Antonio's River Walk is getting a new stretch of revitalized riverfront, but it's neither the utilitarian drainage ditch of the past nor the heavily sculpted tourist attraction of recent years.

March 12, 2010 - San Antonio Express-News

A Green Mega Mansion?

Approved plans for a 10,000 square foot mansion in Berkeley, California have been classified "green" by the city's environmental rating system. Neighbors and environmentalists, however, say the house is hardly an environmental model.

March 12, 2010 - The New York Times

Are California's Green Laws Killing Jobs?

California republicans are arguing that the state's environmental laws are hurting the economy. This editorial from the Los Angeles Times questions the wisdom of that argument and wonders what negative impacts would come from lifting CEQA.

March 11, 2010 - Los Angeles Times

Google Gets Bike-Friendly

The latest addition to Google Maps is a bicycle service, helping cyclists plan routes, find bike trails, and avoid hills.

March 10, 2010 - Chicago Tribune

Harvard Report: Gas Taxes Not Vehicle Credits Necessary To Reduce Emissions

$7 gas is necessary according to a new report if transportation emissions are to be reduced to EPA targets by 2020. What's more, providing tax credits for electric and hybrid vehicles would backfire. The report recommends steep gas tax increases.

March 8, 2010 - The New York Times - Science

Feds to Perform Ecological Studies on BLM Land

Tasked with managing millions of acres of public lands, the federal Bureau of Land Management has announced plans to perform detailed ecological studies of some of its most notable properties.

March 7, 2010 - San Jose Mercury News

Multi-Family Housing to Cure Loneliness

The Swedish, apparently, long for community. Kjellgren Kaminsky Architecture has proposed a redesign for an abandoned sanitarium, turning it into a green, multi-family community.

March 5, 2010 - Fast Company

The Complexity of Carbon Reduction in Planning

Warren Karlenzig delves into the unique challenges of reducing carbon in cities, where efforts may be misplaced. Should your city focus on green building, traffic emissions or water treatment?

March 4, 2010 - Common Current

Do California's Environmental Regulations Harm Business, or Drive Innovation?

Bill Fulton takes a rational approach to determining whether California's strict environmental regulations are a burdensome expense to business or if they drive them to innovate and succeed.

March 3, 2010 - Governing Magazine

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.