Green roofs are growing on the tops of schools in New York City, where small farms are being integrated into the curriculum.
The Fifth Street Farm Project is building the new farm on a building in New York's Lower East Side that houses three schools.
"Construction is due to commence this fall, and by next spring, school children should be planting vegetables on a 3,000-square-foot roof deck with spectacular views of the surrounding neighborhood. This experiment in urban agriculture, led by the World Trade Center Memorial designer Michael Arad, will be integrated into existing school courses on science and nutrition. The children will also have the opportunity to eat the food grown on the roof in their school cafeteria."
Parents groups at other schools throughout Manhattan are also looking to get small-scale farms onto the roofs of their kids' schools and into their classrooms.
FULL STORY: Little Green Thumbs
Program Protects School Diversity in Gentrifying Neighborhoods
The benefits of diverse classroom settings are well established. How then to protect diversity in schools when the surrounding neighborhood is quickly becoming homogenous?
Treetops in the Rooftops
A NY-based landscape architect, Thomas Balsley, FASLA, has created a new type of green roof using Austrian pines.
Aging NYC Subway Cars No Match for Extreme Heat
The MTA receives thousands of complaints about broken air conditioning on subway cars each summer.
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.
In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?
Cal Fire Chatbot Fails to Answer Basic Questions
An AI chatbot designed to provide information about wildfires can’t answer questions about evacuation orders, among other problems.
What Happens if Trump Kills Section 8?
The Trump admin aims to slash federal rental aid by nearly half and shift distribution to states. Experts warn this could spike homelessness and destabilize communities nationwide.
Sean Duffy Targets Rainbow Crosswalks in Road Safety Efforts
Despite evidence that colorful crosswalks actually improve intersection safety — and the lack of almost any crosswalks at all on the nation’s most dangerous arterial roads — U.S. Transportation Secretary Duffy is calling on states to remove them.
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.
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie