World
Global issues, U.N., etc.
Who Pimped the Electric Car?
Rock legend Neil Young, that's who. He's got a team of people working to turn his 1959 Lincoln Continental into the heaviest electric car on the road. Young writes in the Huffington Post about the 'Lincvolt', another electric behemoth.
Exploring Geothermal Energy in Iceland
Stephen Lacey, host of the Inside Renewable Energy podcast, went to Iceland to see firsthand the country's geothermal infrastructure. The podcast is definitely worth a listen, and can be streamed directly off of the web page.
Killer Brown Clouds On The Rise
A U.N. report details the severity of the 'brown cloud' phenomenon affecting much of Asia and other parts of the planet. In addition to reducing sunlight and causing premature death, the clouds affect weather patterns, harvests, and glacier declines
Landscape Architecture, Reinvented
Landscape architect James Corner pushes the envelope of the field to create innovative projects like The High Line Park in New York. 'There is a desperate need for a different kind of professional who isn’t so Balkanized.'
With Last Recession Still Fresh in Mind, Hard Times Ahead for Architects
The economic recession will mean tough times for architects, who saw jobs cut by more than 40% during the last slump. Many in the field are wondering whether many architects will survive the current situation.
Brad Pitt on Transportation
The celeb narrates the PBS series e2, which tackles transportation in its third season.
Tapping the Vancouver Planning Brain Trust
Many of the planners who helped transform Vancouver into one of the world's most liveable cities have been lured to cities all over the planet to try to tap in to the brain power that made Vancouver a success. But it's not that easy.
Solar Doesn't Have To Be Ugly
Architect Stephen A. Mouzon illustrates one way to create solar power without making your home ugly, which he says is imperative to the future of green energy.
Hard Times for Alternative Energy
The global economic crisis and rapidly dropping oil prices are spelling trouble for the alternative energy sector.
Friday Funny: Magic Device Cuts Gas Consumption By 30%
The Magic Power System plugs into your car's 12v port, and purportedly improves your gas mileage by 30%, increases torque, reduces emissions, improves car audio quality, and cleans the entire car 'electrically'.
To Re-Imagine Cities, Re-Imagine Urban Design
Oil is running out and the climate is changing. How this impacts cities will largely be determined by how the urban design field reacts.
Estates for All
Wendell Cox looks at how single-family detached housing came to be, and why it's likely to remain a popular option for the middle class.
Architectural Mashups
Belgian photographer Filip Dujardin combines photos of wildly different buildings into new constructions of impossible architecture.
Mini-Reactors Reinvent Nuclear Energy
A newly-designed nuclear "battery" utilizing 50-year old technology promises to revolutionize nuclear power with sealed, shed-sized reactors suitable for powering thousands of households.
Oil Shortage & Climate Crisis On Horizon
Despite the reduction in oil consumption caused by the global recession, the world faces a duel energy-environmental crisis of an oil shortage and climate crisis, according to the World Energy Outlook written by the International Energy Agency.
Is 'Clean Coal' Really Clean?
The politicians name-checked 'clean coal' throughout the campaign. Has coal really cleaned up its act?
Skyscraper Lights Don't Have to be Dangerous or Wasteful
One architecture critic addresses two skyscraper-related conundrums: Decorative lighting that tops the buildings are energy inefficient, and they are dangerous to migrating birds.
James Bond, Architecture Critic?
The James Bond films have featured some of the most memorable built environments in all of cinema. Too bad Bond invariably blows them up.
Could Montreal Be Barcelona?
French starchitect Paul Andreu is creating a new iconic building for Montreal, but writer Joseph Baker posits that one splashy building does not a beautiful city make. Baker calls for a grand vision of city form on the scale of Barecelona's plan.
Spooky Friday: Top 10 Scary Places
The Bermuda Triangle tops this list of spooky places, but the compendium also includes the Pirate House of Savannah and Colorado's Stanley Hotel, the inspiration for The Shining.
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
