"Canada is getting hotter faster than ever before and at a faster rate than almost any other country," reports Anna Mehler Paperny, and the country's infrastructure, public health, and economy are vulnerable to unforeseen impacts.
As Canadian communities begin to apply new temperature norms, a decennial task, they are faced with abnormal trends. "Average temperatures are rising across the board, during winter most of all. In the past 65 years, Canada’s national average winter temperature has risen 3.2 degrees," reports Anna Mehler Paperny. She adds, "Rain, snow, sleet and hail storms are becoming more erratic. What were once considered exceptional weather patterns – the kind researchers reject to avoid skewing their data – are becoming common."
"Canada’s infrastructure wasn’t built for this kind of climate," notes Paperny. "And much of the burden falls on municipal governments, with road, sewer and transit systems that can barely cope with existing weather conditions, let alone future vagaries." Adapting to these higher temperatures is becoming a challenge for local public health officials trying to assist vulnerable populations, and for cities and developers dealing with changes to building codes. Even insurance companies and apple farmers are feeling the effects of erratic weather.
“Traditionally, in the whole area of climate change, almost 99 per cent of the discussion has focused on mitigating,” said Blair Feltmate, who runs Canada’s Climate Change Adaptation Project. "But 'climate change is a done deal. There’s nothing we can do to turn it off. … How do we adapt to that new reality?'”
FULL STORY: Dramatic temperature increases could threaten Canadian health, infrastructure

Planning for Congestion Relief
The third and final installment of Planetizen's examination of the role of the planning profession in both perpetuating and solving traffic congestion.

Minneapolis Housing Plan a Success—Not for the Reason You Think
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New White House Housing Initiative Includes Zoning Reform Incentives
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Proposed Transit Line Would Connect Downtown Tucson to Airport
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Strip Malls as a Housing Solution
The American strip mall may be a dying breed of commercial development, but could the buildings serve a new use as sustainable housing?

Study: Most of Vancouver Is a ‘15-Minute City’
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Urban Planning Partners
Sandy City
Ada County Highway District
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Redwood City
City of Rohnert Park
City of Hot Springs
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.
Hand Drawing Master Plans
This course aims to provide an introduction into Urban Design Sketching focused on how to hand draw master plans using a mix of colored markers.