Social / Demographics

'We are Entering the Steep Slope of the Epidemic Curve'
Dr. Scott Gottlieb, President Trump's former Food and Drug Administration commissioner, warned CBS viewers recently that the U.S. was at a "dangerous tipping point" in the pandemic. "We are on the cusp of exponential growth," he added later.

Tracking the COVID-19 Eviction Crisis
Advocates have sounded alarms since the pandemic's outset about the potential for unprecedented waves of evictions as Americans deal with the economic consequences of the pandemic, but authoritative real-time data on the rental market is lacking.

Pandemic Uncertainties Could Push Even More Black Residents Out of the Urban Bay Area
Add the coronavirus pandemic to an already deeply troubled housing market and the Bay Area has a recipe for even more displacement in a region already facing a massive demographic shift.

An American Urban Coronavirus Success Story
The City by the Bay has joined eight largely rural counties in California by advancing last Tuesday to the least restrictive tier of the state's new reopening criteria by reducing coronavirus transmission to nearly New York levels.

COVID's Extensive 'Excess Mortality'
The pandemic's cumulative death toll in the U.S. does not include over 100,000 fatalities that are directly or indirectly attributable to COVID-19, according to a CDC report released Oct. 20 on the subject of "excess deaths."

Abandoned Rural Spain Rebounds With People Fleeing Cities
COVID-19 is leading an exodus to rural areas, according to this article. The shift could hurt the economies of cities, but it also presents opportunities for younger residents and people looking for a more sustainable lifestyle.

Social Worker-Turned-Planner on How Planners Can Heal the Trauma of Cities
Jose Richard Aviles says community comes first in the planner-community relationship.

North Dakota Physicians Plead for State and Local Leaders to Mandate Masks
The medical community is sounding the alarm in North Dakota, where hospitals are overwhelmed with COVID patients. With the governor opposed to issuing a statewide mask mandate, physicians are asking local governments and the public for help.

Announcing an Antidote for Planning Uncertainty: A Pandemic Tool Kit for Local Governments
A new toolkit shares 22 actions governments should take to get the economy restarted, including the regulatory or policy tools needed to implement the actions.

Herd Immunity Finds Receptive Audience in White House and Florida
A trio of epidemiologists from Stanford, Harvard, and the University of Oxford have joined the president's new coronavirus medical advisor, Scott Atlas, in promoting an alternative approach to dealing with coronavirus infections.

3 Cities That Will Thrive Post-Pandemic—and 2 That Might Struggle
The most promising cities after COVID won't necessarily be the same that were ideal before.

The U.S. Might Soon Be Surpassed in Coronavirus Infections
India could be on track to overtake the United States in the number of COVID-19 cases. The surge is explained by a sharp and growing urban-rural divide in the ability and willingness to follow public health measures.

Equitable Transportation Planning Initiative Advances in Northeast Ohio
The Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) is moving forward with a groundbreaking policy to consider regional economic inequities when evaluating potential highway projects.

Wisconsin in Crisis
Hospitals in parts of Wisconsin are experiencing a medical crisis reminiscent of New York and Arizona—they are running out of beds due to a surge of COVID-19 patients. The outbreak is statewide, showing no relationship with density.

Can the Public Be Educated to Wear Masks?
The Midwest has been the epicenter of coronavirus since late August, led by North and South Dakota. Masks have the potential to significantly reduce viral transmission, but neither state mandates their use. Will a public health campaign help?

Overdue Rent Could Equal $34 Billion by January 2021
As Americans deal with job losses and ongoing unemployment, rent bills are piling up and a wave of evictions looms on the horizon.

What the Presidential Debate Revealed About the Suburbs
Trump has been repeatedly criticized for misunderstanding the suburbs, but former Vice President Jose Biden's take on the subject during the debate also missed the mark.

Airbnb City Portal Offers Transparency, Addresses Safety Concerns
A new Airbnb Portal gives cities a much-requested glimpse into the short-term rental company's books. Now operating in 15 cities, the Airbnb City Portal is poised for implementation on a global scale.

Landmark Environmental Justice Law Signed in New Jersey
New Jersey is now home to one of the "most stringent" environmental justice laws in the country.
Is it a COVID Car or Mask-Optional Car? Rail Commuters Decide
A midwestern commuter rail line found a unique, if controversial way to achieve 100 percent mask compliance on its trains: Set aside one car, though preferably not the bike car, for riders who opt to travel maskless.
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