World

Global issues, U.N., etc.

How NOT to Do Bus Rapid Transit

As Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) gains popularity, Annie Weinstock describes new standards for BRT, taking a lesson from some failing systems.

July 21, 2012 - Next American City

Where Americans Can Retire 'Like Kings'

Lisa Stark identifies the top ten U.S. cities were retirees can live on less than $100 per day.

July 20, 2012 - ABC News

Is Creative Class Urbanism This Generation's Urban Renewal?

The 10th anniversary and updating of Richard Florida's "Rise of the Creative Class" has brought about a re-evaluation of "creative class" urbanism. Will Doig surveys a series of popular essays that question Florida's highly influential arguments.

July 20, 2012 - Salon

Gotham's Mirror Reflects American Views of the City

On the eve of the premiere of the most highly anticipated blockbuster of the summer - "The Dark Night Rises" - Adam Rogers probes the "deeply dysfunctional love story" between Batman and Gotham.

July 19, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

New Books Rhapsodize About Public Transit

The romance of cars has been long documented, but public transit is finally getting in on the act. 'Human Transit' provides a lucid primer for stakeholders and armchair planners alike, while 'Straphanger' takes readers on a world tour.

July 18, 2012 - California Planning & Development Report

Celebrating the Anniversary of a Discovery That's Completely Changed the Built Environment

Following on the hottest ever first half of a year in America's recorded history, James Barron examines the history behind the creation of air conditioning, on this day in 1902.

July 17, 2012 - The New York Times

The World's Coolest Bus Stops

From shelters integrating public art to fully enclosed and air conditioned refuges, Scott Gutierrez shares his picks of the coolest bus stops from around Seattle, and around the world.

July 16, 2012 - SeattlePI

What is the Real Reason Millennials Won't Buy Cars?

Josh Allan Dykstra argues that the reason Millennials aren't buying cars, or much of anything else for that matter, is due to "an evolution in consciousness" that is changing what it means to own something. And it isn't limited to one generation.

July 16, 2012 - Fast Company

Residential: The Obvious Undervalued Ingredient in Town Centers

Geoff Dyer describes the essential role that a residential component plays in any mixed-use town center. For Dyer, residences are "the substrate on which a healthy mixed-use environment is based."

July 14, 2012 - PlaceShakers

What Does Amazon's New Strategy Mean for Main Street?

Farhad Manjoo probes the internet retail giant's shifting strategy on the geographic distribution of its facilities, and wonders what the implications are for local retail once Amazon can offer same-day delivery.

July 13, 2012 - Salon

The Best Odes to the Subway

Does riding the subway make you want to burst out into song? For the performers of the 10 ballads deemed by Eric Jaffe to be the best songs about the subway, there may be no greater muse.

July 12, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Consuming Class to Rapidly Expand and Shift Markets by 2025

A new report by the McKinsey Global Institute finds that the global consuming class will grow by 1 billion people by 2025, and undergo a profound geographic shift. Cities and businesses should prepare for this shift with targeted investments.

July 11, 2012 - McKinsey & Company

The Peril of the Pedestrian Mall

Pedestrian malls have had a very mixed success ever since Victor Gruen debuted them back in the 1960s. Scott Doyon says the problem is that going pedestrian-only is the flipside of being autocentric.

July 9, 2012 - PlaceShakers

Awesome Infrastructure Projects Around the World

Unsurprisingly, most of the projects compiled by the company KPMG called "Infrastructure 100: World Cities Edition" are in expanding countries like China and Saudi Arabia. Tyler Falk pulls out some favorites.

July 7, 2012 - SmartPlanet

Mixed-Use for the Mixed-Up

What exactly is defined by mixed-use is often somewhat up to debate. Howard Blackson of Better Cities & Towns helps us clarify what the term "mixed-use" should really mean.

July 6, 2012 - Better Cities & Towns

Building a 'Slow' Streetcar to 'Speed' Development

A common criticism of streetcars are their relative slow speed combined with high capital and operating costs. Still, streetcars are being constructed in both large in small cities to help incentivize development.

July 6, 2012 - The Naked City

Disaster Planning Requires Social Safety Net

Nate Berg says that planners have a crucial role in making sure cities are prepared for natural disasters.

July 5, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Cities Built By Air-Conditioning

A device invented to cool factories changed where and how our cities formed.

July 2, 2012 - The Atlantic

A Tale of Two Shopping Centers

As the global recession continues to hit the global economy, shopping centers take on two distinct development patterns in developed and developing nations.

June 28, 2012 - Retail Traffic

Is Any City Truly Unique?

As new research data on cities pours in daily, interesting patterns emerge regarding income, green space and urban growth. Like people in their genetic make-up, are cities fundamentally all the same?

June 28, 2012 - The Economist

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.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

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.