Why Are Phoenix and Minneapolis Starting to Look Alike?

It's not the proliferation of chain stores and restaurants making some of America's most geographically distant cities look more and more alike. Ironically enough, local vegetation is to blame, as the country heads towards ecological homogenization.

1 minute read

November 28, 2012, 9:00 AM PST

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


Maggie Koerth-Baker investigates the effects of ecological homogenization, as normative approaches to how natural landscapes "ought to look," have caused places like Baltimore, Minneapolis and Phoenix to become "more like one another ecologically than they are like the wild environments around them."  

As Koerth-Baker notes, the topic is the focus of "a huge, four-year project financed by the National Science Foundation to compare urban ecology in six major urban centers — Boston, Baltimore, Minneapolis, Miami, Phoenix and Los Angeles. The purpose of the study is to determine how much cities are homogenizing and to create a portrait of the continentwide implications of individual decisions we make about our backyards."

"Why does any of this matter to anyone who’s not an urban ecologist?"

"'If 20 percent of urban areas are covered with impervious surfaces,' says Peter Groffman, a microbial ecologist and one of the study participants, 'then that also means that 80 percent is natural surface.' Whatever is going on in that 80 percent of the country’s urban space — as Groffman puts it, 'the natural processes happening in neighborhoods' — has a large, cumulative ecological effect."

Tuesday, November 27, 2012 in The New York Times

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

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.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

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

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

White and purple sign for Slow Street in San Francisco, California with people crossing crosswalk.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths

Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

July 1, 2025 - KQED

Google street view of red brick multi-story power plant building in Pittsburgh, PA.

Defunct Pittsburgh Power Plant to Become Residential Tower

A decommissioned steam heat plant will be redeveloped into almost 100 affordable housing units.

July 4 - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Cyclist on protected bike lane in middle of street in Washington D.C. with Washington Monument obelisk visible in background.

Trump Prompts Restructuring of Transportation Research Board in “Unprecedented Overreach”

The TRB has eliminated more than half of its committees including those focused on climate, equity, and cities.

July 4 - Streetsblog USA

Blue and silver Amtrak train at small station.

Amtrak Rolls Out New Orleans to Alabama “Mardi Gras” Train

The new service will operate morning and evening departures between Mobile and New Orleans.

July 3 - New Orleans City Business