World
Global issues, U.N., etc.
Duany and Waldheim Battle Over Streets
New urbanist Andres Duany has been speaking out against the "landscape urbanism" movement for months, particularly against Harvard's Charles Waldheim for embracing it. At CNU19, Duany invited Waldheim to have his say and respond.
Mega-Cities Team Up to Fight Climate Change
The mayors of the world's biggest cities convened in Sao Paolo recently to team up against climate change and sea level rise. Neal Peirce sees much promise in the effort.
Friday Funny: The Totalitarian Utopianism of Smurfs
A new book by researcher Antoine Buéno looks at the cartoon and comic book characters the Smurfs as an example of a totalitarian regime with utopian goals.
Sideways Train Bridges as Precursors to Skyscrapers
The early skyscrapers were inspired by the idea of turning steel train bridges on their sides. This episode of 99% Invisible explains.
New Urbanism's Young Adherents Keep it Fresh
Writing on the recent Congress for the New Urbanism annual meeting, Grist's Sarah Goodyear finds some new ideas in a field that's gradually integrated itself into the mainstream.
GM's CEO says, "Increase the Gas Tax"
General Motors CEO Dan Akerson told The Detroit News that he wants the gas tax boosted to "nudge" consumers towards more fuel-efficient cars.
Good News for Metro DC, Says Richard Florida
The same economic reports from May (namely, the jobs report and the Home Price Index) that have led to some concern about the direction of the U.S. economy overall, tell a very different story about Wahington DC, according to Richard Florida.
Innovative Designs for Car Parks
Donovan Gillman writes that since most of us can't simply get by without cars, we need "more livable and likable places to park them." His post at Sustainable Cities Collective includes photos of some interesting car parks.
Kotkin Compares California to Iran
Calling California's attempts at environmental responsibility a "green jihad," Joel Kotkin argues that the state's "ideological extremism" has led to illogical economic and political decisions - similar to those made in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Urban Planners as "Zookeepers"
At the National Building Museum's Intelligent Cities Forum, one participant compared creating healthy cities to creating healthy animal environments in zoos.
LaHood and DOT Employees Bike to Work (VIDEO)
This two-minute video features U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood discussing the merits of bicycling and bike friendly places as he and other DOT employees bike to work.
Section 2 of NY's High Line Park Opens
A slideshow from Good Magazine highlights the newly opened section of the popular High Line Park in NYC.
More Evidence That Preserved Buildings are Greener Than New Ones
New studies are proving that replacing already built buildings with new, energy-efficient ones is not good environmental sense.
The Importance of Delight
On top of all of the planning factors that make a place great, David Roberts adds the element of delight.
Explaining Induced Traffic
Eric Jaffe at The Infrastructurist explains the non-intuitive reason why often removing freeways means less traffic.
Bicycles as an African Way of Life
Rural Africa is learning to embrace bicycles as a means of transportation.
Is the U.S. Green Building Council Too Powerful?
Architect Michael Liu asks, "Is it appropriate for a private fee-generating nongovernmental organization to assume what amounts to a regulatory role in the building industry?"
Livability Trumps Architecture at CNU19
At the 19th Congress for the New Urbanism, Planetizen's Tim Halbur finds a vibrant, active community of urban thinkers more interested in improving livability than in architectural principles.
Sustainable Skyscrapers
Fast Company lines up the greenest skyscrapers in the world, from the Pearl River Tower in Guangzhou, China to London's famous Gherkin.
New Google App: "Mapnificent"
A new google app, dubbed Mapnificent, allows you to choose a starting location and then see all the places that you can reach by public transportation within a specified amount of time.
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
