Research shows that urban planning needs to take an holistic, systems-based approach in order to create safe, healthy living environments.
"Housing is perhaps the ultimate nexus between the built environment and health disparities, and it has been the focus of much recent research and intervention activity looking at new approaches to old problems. The intimate connection between housing and health has been well known for more than a century--Florence Nightingale once wrote, 'The connection between health and the dwelling of the population is one of the most important that exists.' But today there is renewed interest in discovering the complex pathways connecting housing factors, neighborhood factors, social factors, adverse health outcomes, and disproportionate disease burden in poor and ethnic minority communities--particularly with respect to skyrocketing rates of chronic diseases such as asthma, obesity, and diabetes."
Thanks to Michael Dudley
FULL STORY: Dwelling Disparities: How Poor Housing Leads to Poor Health

Florida Considers Legalizing ADUs
Current state law allows — but doesn’t require — cities to permit accessory dwelling units in single-family residential neighborhoods.

Manufactured Crisis: Losing the Nation’s Largest Source of Unsubsidized Affordable Housing
Manufactured housing communities have long been an affordable housing option for millions of people living in the U.S., but that affordability is disappearing rapidly. How did we get here?

HUD Announces Plan to Build Housing on Public Lands
The agency will identify federally owned parcels appropriate for housing development and streamline the regulatory process to lease or transfer land to housing authorities and nonprofit developers.

EPA Terminates $116 Million in Grants for Reducing Emissions from Construction Materials
C-MORE grants were earmarked for industry trade groups and universities.

BART Closes $35 Million Deficit
Cost control and revenue generation measures prevented service cuts.

The New Parisian Hearse is a Bicycle
Sleek, silent, and sustainable, a green trip to the graveyard has hit the streets of the French capital.
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.
City of Moreno Valley
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
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Harvard GSD Executive Education
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NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
City of Cambridge, Maryland