United States

Green Healthy Community

Making Healthy Places

The editors of the book "Making Healthy Places," recently published in a second edition by Island Press, discuss the intersections of public health and planning, including key concepts such as green gentrification, health impact assessments, and AI.

September 18, 2022 - Laurie Mazur

Air Pollution

Democrats Call for Stronger Action on Environmental Justice

The Justice40 initiative could make a major difference for communities burdened by pollution, but only if funds are spent on projects that maintain a focus on equity.

September 18, 2022 - The Washington Post

Woman sitting at countertop with laptop facing window

Census Bureau: Remote Work Tripled Between 2019 and 2021

The percentage of Americans working primarily from home tripled to over 27 million people during the pandemic. Will the popularity of remote work last?

September 16, 2022 - U.S. Census Bureau

BART Train

Inclusive Prosperity: No Displacement Necessary

Recent analysis identifies nearly 200 U.S. neighborhoods that have achieved the highly-sought-after goal of increasing the prosperity of residents without displacing the existing community.

September 15, 2022 - Brookings

Highway Construction

‘Highway Boondoggles’ Report Highlights Nation’s Most Wasteful Projects

The bipartisan infrastructure law, which directs massive investments to state transportation projects, could fast-track some of the most destructive highway expansion projects.

September 15, 2022 - Streetsblog USA

A family of Black Americans brings moving boxes into a home.

The 'New Great Migration' Picks Up Pace

Recent American Community Survey data solidifies an underappreciated pattern of migration in the United States: a reversal of the Great Migration of the 20th century, when an estimate 5 million Black Americans left the South.

September 15, 2022 - Brookings

Electric car being charged at a station

How the Electric Grid Can Handle All the New Electric Vehicles

A key question of the U.S. approach to greenhouse gas reductions is whether an already stressed electric grid will be able to handle a whole fleet of new electric vehicles.

September 13, 2022 - The Equation

Driver reaching for chagne at drive-through window

Faster Food

Responding to pandemic-era shifts in customer demand, fast food and fast-casual chains are stripping away dining rooms, restrooms, and human cashiers in favor of drive-through and automated pickup options.

September 13, 2022 - Slate

Green Monopoly houses on game board

Richard Florida Explains the Housing Crisis

The urbanist puts the blame for rising housing costs largely on landlords and property owners, arguing that much of the wealth created by modern capitalism is ‘plowed back into dirt.’

September 13, 2022 - Bloomberg CityLab

View of Jackson Square, New Orleans with cathedral and street dancers in foreground

Bringing Back America’s Town Squares

Digital connection is no substitute for the vitality and community created by open, pleasant public squares and plazas.

September 13, 2022 - Governing

Bikes on Marcy Ave, new York

Centering Bikes in the Future of Mobility

Those in search of high-tech solutions for urban congestion and pollution often overlook the bicycle as a powerful, if simple, tool for reducing both and improving urban transportation.

September 12, 2022 - Next City

Harvey Floods Houston

Access to Flood Risk Data Shifts Homebuyer Behavior

With climate risks threatening more communities, providing clear, accessible risk information to potential homebuyers can help households make informed decisions and inform local resiliency efforts.

September 12, 2022 - Redfin

Bike Infrastructure

Is ‘Protected Bike Lane’ an Oxymoron?

Some research suggests that separated and even ‘protected’ bike lanes actually increase the likelihood of car-bike collisions.

September 12, 2022 - Forbes

Homeless encampment on overpass in downtown Los Angeles with police car in foreground

The ‘Meanest Cities’ in America

A list dubbed the ‘Dirty Dozen’ shames the cities where unhoused people face the most harassment and least support from authorities.

September 12, 2022 - National Coalition for the Homeless

Wyoming

Measuring the Urban Exodus

New data reveals truths about one of the biggest questions to emerge from the pandemic: Did the public health risks and economic disruptions of 2020 and 2021 spur an urban exodus away from the urban cores of large metropolitan areas?

September 11, 2022 - Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University

Self-Driving Cars

Skepticism for an Auto-Dependent Future

A new book makes the case that the promises of the transportation technology industry will fall short of the needs of cities and the planet.

September 11, 2022 - Vox

Dense, run-down apartment buildings in New York City

Can We Prevent Slumlords From Buying More Buildings?

Why should owners of buildings in illegally poor repair be able to buy more rentals? As Washington, D.C. found, it can be a difficult thing to prevent.

September 11, 2022 - Shelterforce Magazine

Foggy rural road with power lines and haystacks along the side

Nearly Half of U.S. Traffic Deaths Occur on Rural Roads

A lack of access to public transit, scarcer law enforcement, and reduced access to nearby medical care contribute to more risky behavior and more deadly crashes on rural roads.

September 9, 2022 - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Gray houses under construction

How to Retrofit the Housing Economy

Are policy changes enough to address the housing problems we face?

September 9, 2022 - Shelterforce Magazine

Aerial view of elevated Buffalo Skyway freeway in Buffalo, New York

‘Freeways Without Futures’ Spotlights Freeway Removal Efforts

Around the country, cities and states are starting to listen to decades-old demands to remove freeways that have displaced and fractured communities.

September 9, 2022 - CNU Public Square

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.

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.