The scooters contribute to a more diverse mobility landscape, but the environmental impacts of producing and maintaining them need to be reduced.

Bird scooters are zero-emission vehicles, but the company faces a sustainability conundrum that it says it wants to address. While the scooters offer an alternative to driving, pollution is generated while collecting the scooters, energy is required to charge them, and their short lifespan means they need to be replaced often.
"But [Bird] is trying to cut those emissions; today, the company announced that it’s buying renewable energy credits and carbon offsets to mitigate the energy used to deliver and charge its scooters," reports Adele Peters.
The company says it is also working to make the scooters more durable. "Some reports have suggested that electric scooters last only about a month or two before they need to be replaced, which would mean the company was using an enormous amount of resources to replace those car trips," notes Peters.
FULL STORY: How Bird is working to make its scooters a truly sustainable transportation option

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?

Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series
The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.

BLM To Rescind Public Lands Rule
The change will downgrade conservation, once again putting federal land at risk for mining and other extractive uses.

Indy Neighborhood Group Builds Temporary Multi-Use Path
Community members, aided in part by funding from the city, repurposed a vehicle lane to create a protected bike and pedestrian path for the summer season.
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.
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service