Social / Demographics

Road Rage for Pedestrians

Some researchers say that crowded sidewalks in cities like New York are contributing to "sidewalk rage".

February 26, 2011 - CBS

Rio de Janeiro Residents Protest Olympics Projects

As the city of Rio de Janeiro prepares to host the 2016 Summer Olympics, residents there say many of the projects underway are violating their rights.

February 26, 2011 - The Globe and Mail

Deaths Outpace Births in Many U.S. Counties

About a quarter of the counties in the U.S. are seeing more deaths per year than births, according to census data.

February 26, 2011 - ABC

Designing Out Obesity

An emerging design movement is trying to counteract obesity in American cities.

February 26, 2011 - Fast Co. Design

An Urbanized and Unequal Planet

In this piece from Metropolis, Joel Kotkin argues that as the world urbanizes, cities are becoming increasingly unequal and do not provide the opportunities they once did.

February 25, 2011 - Metropolis

Music Video Promotes Bicycle Use in Africa

The video was created by a group of Kenyan teenagers who submitted it for the "1 Minute to Save the World Video Contest," which they won.

February 24, 2011 - GOOD Magazine

Public Space and Revolution

Jay Walljasper discusses the role of public spaces in recent protests and revolutions from Madison, Wisconsin to Cairo, Egypt.

February 24, 2011 - On The Commons

Suburban Myths

Common conceptions about suburbs are fading away, according to William Upski Wimsatt.

February 24, 2011 - The Washington Post

Which US Cities Are Biggest "Brain Magnets"?

Joel Kotkin describes recent trends that he says may surprise city planners who have long pursued policies to attract college-educated citizens to their cities.

February 23, 2011 - New Geography

Top Ten Most Liveable Cities of 2011

Australian and Canadian cities dominate the Economist Intelligence Unit report.

February 22, 2011 - The Huffington Post

Bay Area MPO Cleared Of Racial Bias Charges

A federal appeals court upheld a federal district court ruling that the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, the Bay Area's transportation planning and funding agency, does not discriminate against minorities in the way it funds buses and trains

February 22, 2011 - San Francisco Chronicle

Learning from Flint's Experience

In this essay from Places, architecture professor Wes Janz documents and ponders the economic decay of Flint, Michigan.

February 21, 2011 - Places

The Importance of Cities to the World

Neal Peirce expounds on the increasing power and importance of cities, a dominant message in the new book "Triumph of the City" by economist Edward Glaeser.

February 21, 2011 - Citiwire

Demographic Flip-Flop in Washington D.C. and Suburbs

Washington D.C. has for many years had a high population of African Americans. But now, they're moving out to the suburbs and white people are moving in.

February 19, 2011 - NPR

Fundraising for Detroit RoboCop Statue As Urban Regeneration

A grassroots online campaign has already raised more than $50,000 to build a statue of the science fiction character RoboCop in Detroit. The effort's organizers call it an art project with the goal of urban regeneration.

February 18, 2011 - The Detroit Free Press

American Want Transportation Projects, But Not Their Costs

A new survey shows that the majority of Americans place high value on transportation projects, but even more of them say they're not willing to pay any more for it than they already do.

February 17, 2011 - The Washington Post

The Contrasting Urban Outlooks of Canada's Big City Mayors

In Canada, the mayors of two of the country's biggest cities are at the opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to cities and urban issues.

February 17, 2011 - The Toronto Star

US Census: Chicago Population Dips Below 1920 Level

The migration away from the city was accelerated by the recent recession, as explosive growth of suburbs far outside of Chicago resulted in some counties growing by as much as 35%.

February 17, 2011 - The Wall Street Journal

The Grammys for Built Environment Bloggers?

The award show, held at London's Building Centre, highlights social media use in the built environment, according to Joe Peach of This Big City.

February 14, 2011 - thisbigcity.net

In Defense of Public Input

Using the example of the failed regeneration of Green Bay's downtown led by Victor Gruen, Della Rucker argues that disregarding input from the public can have devastating repercussions.

February 14, 2011 - New Geography

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.