Social / Demographics

The annual list of America's "Most Dangerous Cities" has prompted complaints from the U.S. Conference of Mayors -- a group typically dissatisfied with the list.

November 25, 2010 - SF Appeal

With new fast food restaurants temporarily banned in South L.A. and few new sources of food coming into the area, one local architecture professor set his students loose to work on ideas for a small urban farm.

November 24, 2010 - Los Angeles Times

Millions have been in the tent city of Mina in Mecca for the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Though the crowds are temporary, the infrastructure built to handle them is permanent.

November 24, 2010 - The Pop-Up City

New York City's Health Commissioner has urban design in his sights as he seeks to improve public health in the city.

November 23, 2010 - Transportation Nation

Planetizen is pleased to release its ninth annual list of the ten best books in urban planning, design and development published in 2010. This year's selection includes some big names, some big ideas -- and a book called "Toilet."

November 22, 2010 - Abhijeet Chavan

99% Invisible talks with Chris Downey, an architect who lost his sight three years ago and who continues to work.

November 20, 2010 - 99% Invisible

A beauty pageant contestant from the crime-ridden Compton, California made famous by 1990s gangster rap is hoping to improve her city's reputation.

November 20, 2010 - Los Angeles Times

Two artists have teamed with a favela in Rio de Janeiro to use bright colors to re-frame the slum as a more vibrant area.

November 20, 2010 - CNN

Millions of religious pilgrims travel to Mecca in Saudi Arabia every year for the Hajj. Officials there have been updating the city to better handle the crowds.

November 19, 2010 - NPR

It's kind of hard to tell, on a day-to-day basis, that humankind is drastically affecting the health of the environment -- a reality that makes arguing for sustainability even more difficult, according to Harry West.

November 18, 2010 - Fast Co. Design

A new high school has opened in East Los Angeles that focuses specifically on urban planning.

November 18, 2010 - Metropolis

This post from The City Fix looks at various efforts to increase communication between transit riders and transit providers in Chicago.

November 18, 2010 - The City Fix

Detroit reporter John Gallagher's new book "Reimagining Detroit" considers what it will take to remake The Motor City into a model that will work for the future.

November 17, 2010 - Model D

On his blog, Aaron Renn has done an analysis of 2008 tax return data from metropolitan areas to show where domestic migration is happening. Some of his findings are a bit surprising.

November 17, 2010 - The Urbanophile

A study of cyclists in Ashland, Oregon has found three distinct types of bike riders, the majority of which are interesting in riding, but concerned about safety issues.

November 15, 2010 - Ashland Daily Tidings

In this reflection on the new book "Los Angeles in Maps", James Rojas wonders what shape the city will take in the near and far future.

November 13, 2010 - KCET

As chain stores move into a Brooklyn neighborhood, some locals worry about the loss of local character and small businesses.

November 13, 2010 - The New York Times

Last week, China deployed six million workers for a 10-day effort to count the country's population. A surge in citizens relocating from rural to urban areas makes the task difficult, reports the Economist.

November 12, 2010 - The Economist

Jonna McKone asks, "How can transportation and urban development—from housing to public spaces to landscaping—repair a blighted American city?"

November 11, 2010 - TheCityFix

St. Louis' Forest Park is a model of good planning, but inner-city parks are in much worse shape and having an effect on the health of those communities, says a new study.

November 10, 2010 - The St. Louis Beacon