The battle over who can present the most compelling infographical maps is apparently escalating. The good news, no matter the result, we all win. While these 80 maps may not explain everything, they sure do say a lot.
A few months ago, BuzzFeed put together a collection of 38 fascinating "maps you never knew you needed." Earlier this month, Bored Panda assembled its own list (some overlapping with Buzzfeed), of "40 maps they didn’t teach you in school."
Not to be outdone, The Washington Post's WorldViews blog took up the challenge. "Maps can be a remarkably powerful tool for understanding the world and how it works, but they show only what you ask them to," writes The Post's Max Fisher. "So when we saw a post sweeping the Web titled '40 maps they didn’t teach you in school,' one of which happens to be a WorldViews original, I thought we might be able to contribute our own collection. Some of these are pretty nerdy, but I think they’re no less fascinating and easily understandable."
Enjoy exploring such treasures as the "red hair map of Europe", "the world according to Americans", and "the best and worst places to be born".
Read the full story: 40 Maps They Didn’t Teach You In School
Mapping the Land Uses of the United States
The McHarg Center's "The 2100 Project: An Atlas for the Green New Deal" provides a series of maps an infographics to illustrate the way the United States uses land.
Pop Quiz: Can You Identify Cities By Density Alone?
A Planetizen editor failed this quiz.
Mapping the LGBTQ-Friendliness of the World's Cities
A colorful data visualization tool maps information about which cities have the most protections for LGBTQ people in place. The tool is intended as a resource for LGBTQ travelers.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
‘Going backwards:’ Baltimore mayor, students rally against state's transit funding plan
Maryland's proposed six-year plan provides no funding for Baltimore’s BMORE bus program and reduces its road maintenance funding.
Detroit to transform waterfront with $2.2 billion investment
Developers will convert about 18 acres of unused parking lot space into civic spaces.
Data center developers are using lawsuits, cash offers to ‘overwhelm’ rural America
Newsrooms in five states worked together to uncover the tactics big tech developers use to buy land from reluctant communities.
U.S.-Iran war may have ‘devastating’ impact on cost to warm homes
Vermont and Maine residents may see a 76% increase in the cost of warming their homes this winter.
Senate bill would ‘overhaul’ environmental permitting laws
Under the proposed act, government agencies would also not be able to suspend or rescind permits after granting them.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
One Hundred Miles
County of Mendocino
planning NEXT
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
Montrose County
Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA)
The Pocatello Development Authority