In last month's State of the Union address, President Obama described his desire to increasing the efficiency of homes and businesses throughout the country. Philadelphia is already ahead of the game, reports Laurie Actman.
Actman traces Philadelphia's cutting edge policies and projects dedicated to increasing the city's energy efficiency to the election of Mayor Michael A. Nutter in 2008. "During his campaign, Nutter pledged to make Philadelphia the 'Greenest City in America,' and he followed through with his commitment by creating the city’s first Office of Sustainability and releasing Greenworks Philadelphia, the city’s first sustainability plan, during his first year in office."
Following that plan, the city has developed a dedicated partnership of business leaders, neighborhood organizations and city residents who have helped secure and implement significant investments in increasing energy efficiency. The latest outcome of that work is the region’s "most ambitious energy efficiency opportunity to date" — the Energy Efficient Buildings Hub.
"A public-private partnership led by Penn State University, the Greater Philadelphia Innovation Cluster — now EEB Hub — came together to successfully compete for the nation’s first Energy Regional innovation Cluster, a $125 million federal grant opportunity with the dual purpose of accelerating the adoption of energy-efficient building technology and fostering economic development opportunities and job growth through the creation of a new sector and industry in greater Philadelphia," explains Actman.
Since its creation, EEB Hub has led the effort to develop "scalable market solutions for the retrofit of average size commercial and multifamily buildings in Greater Philadelphia," and has helped the city to define and implement its benchmarking initiatives.
"Mayor Nutter's commitment to sustainability and energy efficiency combined with EEB Hub’s partnership with the Office of Sustainability creates a unique opportunity to position Philadelphia as a global leader in the adoption of building technologies and retrofit strategies that create a more efficient, resilient and competitive building stock."
FULL STORY: How Philadelphia is leading in energy innovation

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?

King County Supportive Housing Program Offers Hope for Unhoused Residents
The county is taking a ‘Housing First’ approach that prioritizes getting people into housing, then offering wraparound supportive services.

Researchers Use AI to Get Clearer Picture of US Housing
Analysts are using artificial intelligence to supercharge their research by allowing them to comb through data faster. Though these AI tools can be error prone, they save time and housing researchers are optimistic about the future.

Making Shared Micromobility More Inclusive
Cities and shared mobility system operators can do more to include people with disabilities in planning and operations, per a new report.
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.
planning NEXT
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie