The Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning (ACSP) and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy recently recognized ten land use case studies for addressing some of the biggest challenges facing the world.

The ACSP and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy have announced the winners of the 2020 Case Study Awards.
The Case Study Awards are designed to “address the rising social, economic, and environmental challenges facing cities across the globe, planners need foundational knowledge and skills as well as opportunities to apply them in real world situations,” according to the request for nominees announced by the organizations earlier this year.
The awards recognized case studies addressing six potential themes:
-
Low-carbon, Climate-Resilient Communities and Regions
-
Efficient and Equitable Tax Systems
-
Fiscally Healthy Communities and Regions
-
Functional Land Markets and Reduced Informality
-
Reduced Poverty and Spatial Inequality
-
Sustainable Land and Water Management
The ten winners, each awarded $2,000 each, are as follows:
-
Colleen Butcher-Gollach: University of Melbourne, Australia; Idyllic possible: planning for affordable and resilient settlements in the pacific island countries
-
Besmira Dyca and Kevin Muldoon-Smith: Northumbria University, UK; Progressive property tax on vacant land - dealing with land speculation in Sao Paulo
-
Minjee Kim: Florida State University; Opportunity for land value capture: land use impacts of the suncoast parkway extension project in citrus county, FL
-
Annette Kim and Andrew Eisenlohr: University of Southern California; The viability of community land trusts in high-priced urban land markets: the case of rolland curtis gardens in Los Angeles
-
Melina Matos, Sierra Woodruff, Malini Roy: Texas A&M University and Philip Gilberson, and Sara Merrow: Arizona State University; Comparing hazard mitigation and climate adaptation plans to understand in practice instruments that foster the creation of climate resilient community
-
Manuel Santana Palacios: University of California, Berkeley; Examining the Linkages Between Investing in Aerial Cable-Cars and the Evolution Informal Transport and Land Development: A Case Study of Ciudad Bolivar, Bogota
-
Emanuel Preciado: University of California, Irvine; Seeds of Resistance: Combating Spatial Inequality with Community Urban Gardens
-
Ross Rubenstein: Georgia State University; Should the Rochester Fast Ferry Sink or Swim?
-
Amruta Sakalker and Adrian Parr: University of Texas at Arlington; Trinity River Park Projects: Which project will be the long-desired bridge that connects the city of Dallas and the Trinity River
-
Henry Webber, Brian Phillips and Jodie Lloyd: Washington University in St. Louis; Forest Park Southeast: One neighborhood’s strategy to flight blight and disinvestment through a mixed income community development model
The Lincoln Institute of land Policy launched a digital library of case studies in 2017, which included 27 case studies before this recent round of awardees. The case studies are available to the public.
FULL STORY: Lincoln Institute Announces Case Study Award Winners

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

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

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

Bend, Oregon Zoning Reforms Prioritize Small-Scale Housing
The city altered its zoning code to allow multi-family housing and eliminated parking mandates citywide.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

LA Denies Basic Services to Unhoused Residents
The city has repeatedly failed to respond to requests for trash pickup at encampment sites, and eliminated a program that provided mobile showers and toilets.
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.
planning NEXT
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie