Researchers are starting to understand how urban bee populations can support healthy green spaces and reduce the urban heat island effect.

Writing for Wired, Matt Simon emphasizes the importance of bees in urban ecosystems. “Bees are critical actors in a burgeoning scientific field known as rurbanization, a way to improve food security and beautify urban landscapes.”
A group of researchers in St. Louis is working to identify the bee species that pollinate local plants and how to attract and protect the bees. “For example, bees don’t like big, open spaces. They appreciate vegetal cover—places to hide from predators like dragonflies that are waiting to pick them off.” Bees also thrive when patches of plain soil are present, something that might seem counterintuitive or aesthetically displeasing to gardeners.
Supporting urban bee populations isn’t just about aesthetics or having flowers or fresh herbs, Simon points out. “A community garden ‘sweats,’ as plants release water vapor, cooling the neighborhood—and if you’re in the garden itself, you can enjoy its shade.” Urban green spaces can help mitigate the urban heat island effect and reduce temperatures in cities. “The researchers hope their surveillance project will spur research in other cities so scientists can figure out how to nurture the relationship between pollinators and people.”
FULL STORY: Cities Need More Native Bees—Lots and Lots of Them

In Most U.S. Cities, Archaic Laws Limit Roommate Living
Critics argue laws preventing unrelated adults from living in the same home fail to understand the modern American household.

Ten Signs of a Resurgent Downtown
In GeekWire, Chuck Wolfe continues his exploration of a holistic and practical approach to post-pandemic urban center recovery, anchored in local context and community-driven initiatives that promote livability, safety, and sustainability.

Off-Peak is the New On-Peak
Public transit systems in major U.S. cities are starting to focus on non-rush hour travelers as pre-pandemic commuting patterns shift and transportation needs change.

Tacoma Coalition Calls for ‘Tenants’ Bill of Rights’
The group wants to put more power in the hands of tenants, but the city has its own, competing proposal for addressing the housing crisis.

New Power Transmission Line Approved in the Southwest
The proposed transmission line will transfer wind-produced power from New Mexico to cities in Arizona and California.

The Limitations of ‘Reconnecting Communities’
The Biden administration has pledged to correct the damage imposed on communities by highways and infrastructure, but many projects are only committing to minor improvements, not transformative changes.
Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission
Code Studio
TAG Associates, Inc.
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Montrose County
Knox County
Wichita-Sedgwick County Metropolitan Area Planning Department
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