A year of intense challenges also offers a chance to break from the unsustainable, inequitable status quo.
The Island Press Urban Resilience Project has collected stories of resilience from the most difficult year in a century in a new free e-book called Resilience Matters: Reimagining the Future in a Tumultuous Year.
"2020 brought a deadly pandemic, crippling recession, protests against racial injustice, and bitter political division—all against a backdrop of unprecedented climate change impacts," according to the promotional material for the e-book. All of those disruptions and challenges allowed a new vantage point, however, and many people have used the new perspective to imagine a new kind of future. The book collects original articles and op-eds that do just that kind of productive work.
Authors included in the book include Angie Schmitt, Daniel Parolek, Mustafa Santiago Ali, Calvin Gladney, Jacqueline Patterson, Bechara Choucair, Corinne Kisner, and Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Jr. The entire work is edited by Laurie Mazur.
FULL STORY: Resilience Matters
Equity and 'Righting Past Wrongs' to Start the 2021 National Planning Conference
The American Planning Association's 2021 National Planning Conference started streaming this morning, with an obvious focus on equity and the historical role of the planning profession in perpetuating systemic racism.
Urban Planning in a Time of COVID
In Dallas, Dr. Eric Anthony Johnson is not letting last year's crises go to waste.
Planning Trends to Watch in 2021
The nation is now tasked with the challenge of changing course in the middle of multiple, global crises. The necessity of finding a way to overcome the failures of the past and lay the groundwork for a new kind of future has never been more clear.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Congressman Proposes Bill to Rename DC Metro “Trump Train”
The Make Autorail Great Again Act would withhold federal funding to the system until the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), rebrands as the Washington Metropolitan Authority for Greater Access (WMAGA).
The Simple Legislative Tool Transforming Vacant Downtowns
In California, Michigan and Georgia, an easy win is bringing dollars — and delight — back to city centers.
Albuquerque’s Microtransit: A Planner’s Answer to Food Access Gaps
New microtransit vans in Albuquerque aim to close food access gaps by linking low-income areas to grocery stores, cutting travel times by 30 percent and offering planners a scalable model for equity-focused transit.
This City Will Pay You to Meet Your Neighbors
A North Kansas City grant program offers up to $400 for residents to throw neighborhood block parties.
Commentary: Our Silence Will Not Protect Us
Keeping our heads down and our language inoffensive is not the right response to the times we’re in. Solidarity and courage is.
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.
Smith Gee Studio
City of Charlotte
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)