Two planners with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reveal how they use GIS to coordinate their efforts, using the recent tsunami and earthquake in Japan as an example.
Craig Williams and John Marinos, who work in the U.N.'s regional OCHA office for Asia and the Pacific, explain that "[m]anaging information during a humanitarian emergency is a crucial part of any operation." They use a variety of international data sets to help predict risk:
"OCHA adds value by displaying these data in conjunction with other operational information or information about particularly vulnerable groups (i.e. refugees or internally displaced persons), in a way that is useful for humanitarian workers and decision makers. OCHA offices at the country level often do similar types of vulnerability mapping but use data more specific to that particular country. This vulnerability mapping often forms the basis for the 'worst case' and "most likely" scenarios used in contingency planning."
FULL STORY: GIS Enables the Humanitarian Response: A Perspective from the United Nations

Rethinking Redlining
For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

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

Walmart Announces Nationwide EV Charging Network
The company plans to install electric car chargers at most of its stores by 2030.

New State Study Suggests Homelessness Far Undercounted in New Mexico
An analysis of hospital visit records provided a more accurate count than the annual point-in-time count used by most agencies.

Michigan Bills Would Stiffen Penalties for Deadly Crashes
Proposed state legislation would close a ‘legal gap’ that lets drivers who kill get away with few repercussions.

Report: Bus Ridership Back to 86 Percent of Pre-Covid Levels
Transit ridership around the country was up by 85 percent in all modes in 2024.
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 Moorpark
City of Tustin
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions