Architecture

What Is the City Beautiful Movement?
Known for grand buildings and sweeping green spaces, the City Beautiful movement combined philosophy and architecture into a powerful planning ideology that still drives urban design into the present day.

Improving Housing Through Trauma-Informed Design
A growing awareness of the link between the built environment and mental health has led some designers to examine the ways we can make housing feel more safe and welcoming for vulnerable populations.

Balancing Aesthetics and Affordability
Policies too narrowly focused on design can drive up the cost of construction and prevent the development of affordable housing.

The Race Barriers of American Cities
The United States has a long and insidious history of erecting structures to control the movements of African Americans in urban and suburban spaces.

Interior Architects and Designers Decide the Fate of the Traditional Office Space
Coronavirus-mitigating design interventions make their debut indoors as interior architects and designers ponder the possibilities for traditional office spaces.

Empowering Architects to Reduce Carbon Emissions
Stephanie Carlisle, a principal at Philadelphia architecture firm KieranTimberlake, discusses the need for a toolkit of decarbonization strategies that designers can use for all design efforts, "not just the fancy projects or the unique projects."

To Reduce Carbon Emissions, Focus on Existing Buildings
Architects are uniquely positioned to reduce global warming, argues the CEO of Urban Green Council—but first they need to rethink their role.
The Fascinating Transformation of Suburban Architecture
The metamorphoses of suburban commercial buildings reflect a story of the urban landscape waiting to be told.

Atlanta’s Planning Commissioner Won’t Tolerate Bad Design Any Longer
Tim Keane says quality design isn’t negotiable and developers need to aim higher.

A Showcase of Innovative Climate Change and Resiliency Design Projects
A competition in the San Francisco Bay Area highlights projects considering new ways to design for impending environmental changes.
County of Napa
Clarion Associates
Urban Planning Partners
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Redwood City
City of Rohnert Park
City of Hot Springs
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.
Hand Drawing Master Plans
This course aims to provide an introduction into Urban Design Sketching focused on how to hand draw master plans using a mix of colored markers.