Technology
Games Are for Kids (and Planners Too)
Minecraft has players across the globe busy building future cities. Cities recognize the potential of MineCraft as a tool for engaging the public in imagining the future of their city.
Status Report: the Rise of Innovation Districts
Last year, the "innovation district" rose to prominence as a way to describe urban knowledge economy epicenters. This report from Bruce Katz and Brookings describes how the phenomenon continues to evolve.
Sunday Funday: Video Game Plays on Fears About Crumbling Infrastructure
The game is called INFRA—the action is set in a city where corruption in the private and public sectors has left the city on the brink of collapse.
Placemeter Provides New Ways to Measure Traffic
In the ongoing quest to better measure the use of streets by all modes—a new tool could be a game changer for transportation engineers, planners, and advocates alike.
Make Your City a Treasure Hunt
Do you remember going on a treasure hunt as a child? Treasure hunts are becoming increasingly popular with adults, as well as children. Technology has enabled mobile treasure hunts with cities across the world hosting hunts.
What Information Do Citizens Need In Tech-Enhanced Cities?
Search engines and mobile apps are becoming increasingly localized and personalized, providing recommendations based on who and where we are. These changes have the potential to impact our cities by encouraging people to broaden their experiences.
Self-Driving Cars as Public Transportation
No one in the business doubts that autonomous vehicles will have some role to play in the future of transit. But right now, questions abound and answers are still only speculative.
Should City Planners Worry About Water Supply?
It’s a big question being tackled by land use planners and water providers in Colorado, where the traditional disconnect between water realities and land use decisions precludes a sustainable balance between water supply and urban growth.
States Ally with Telecoms to Obstruct Municipal Broadband
Telecom companies don’t want to compete with local governments to provide Internet to residents, but a recent rule by the federal government allows them to do just that. Pushback has come from an unlikely source: state attorneys general.
Why Google's 'Sidewalk Labs' Is Such a Big Deal
Earlier in June, Google announced the creation of an "urban innovation company" called Sidewalk Labs. One writer explains the genesis of the company as well as its potential for the future of how cities operate.
The Early History of the 'Smart Cities' Movement—in 1974 Los Angeles
An article in Boom: A Journal of California extends the timeline of "smart cities" and "big data" efforts by a considerable amount—all the way back to the late 1960s.
Mapping the Age of Every Building in Los Angeles
Developed using open data from local government sources, built: LA is a mapping tool that displays the age of every building in the county. Much of the area's built environment is surprisingly old.
Labor Ruling in California Means Big Changes for Uber's Business Model
A California labor commissioner has resolved a long-standing dispute over the employment status of Uber drivers. Uber and other transportation network companies will have to adjust.
Designing The Urban Technology Landscape
Urban planners need to go beyond environment and stakeholder input, taking a stronger role in the development of new technologies to design new urban futures rather than relying on software engineers.
Lack of Data Still Impedes Multi-Modal Trip Navigation
A call for all transportation agencies to open their data.
Google Launches its First Smart Cities Company: Sidewalk Labs
Google, already one of the most pervasive technology providers of urban experiences everywhere, has increased its bet on the smart cities movement.
Full-Scale 'SimCity' Will Be Tech Testing Ground
Devoid of a human population, the Center for Innovation, Testing and Evaluation (CITE) is a planned, privately-operated trial lab for the smart city. The CITE design calls for a small, fully-functioning ghost town.
Looking for Inspiration? Try a Daily Dose of a Satellite's Perspective
Here's a strange idea that just might work: viewing the planet from afar might offer the perspective necessary to care for and protect our place in the universe.
The States Leading the Adoption of Electric Vehicles
A report from Navigant Research projects the growth of the domestic markets for plug-in electric vehicles. Spoiler: California dominates the list.
Urban Big Data: Where is the Signal in the Noise?
Amid growing skepticism, an international gathering examines the useful benefits for an age of critical urban challenges.
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.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority
