World
Global issues, U.N., etc.
Will the Historic Climate Accord Survive the U.S. Political Process?
While environmentalists were hailing the historic carbon emissions reduction agreement between the leaders of the United States and China, the world's two largest emitters, Republican leaders wasted no time in slamming the accord.
Urban Ecology and the Evolution of the City
A recent article reveals the inconspicuous nature of the city—an ecosystem, "pipes and all."
Lessons Learned from Berlin Shopfronts
Susan Henderson looks to Berlin's delectable shopfronts for pointers. Not from the usual suspects like Kurfürstendamm and Friedrichstrasse, but from the neighborhoods of Prenzlaur Berg, Scheunenviertal, Kreuzberg, and of course, Hackeschen Höfe.
Scarecrows 2.0
A new Dutch invention uses lasers to scare birds away, intended to mitigate their interference with critical industries.
Artisan Manufacturing Mixes Uses with Residential
Looking to integrate artisan manufacturing into a residential neighborhood? Berlin examples provide a few pointers, via Hazel Borys.
Friday Eye Candy: 'Crayon the Grids' City Mapping
Artist-scientist Stephen Von Worley is taking on a new project— mapping the world's city streets based on a complex set of algorithms and psychedelic colors.
The Environmental Downside of Falling Oil Prices
Ben Adler of Grist writes how falling oil prices will affect climate change. Cheaper gas prices may encourage more driving and more truck sales at the expense of hybrid, electric, and fuel efficient cars, but the news may not be all bad.
It's a Hydropower World
Around the world, countries are building new dams for hydroelectric power at a frenzied pace. Vox examines the benefits and drawbacks of hydroelectric power.
The New Wonder Drug? Cycling, Some Advocates Say
Cycling has positive impacts both for cyclists and non-cyclists alike, helping to reduce pollution and congestion and improving health and economic factors with just two wheels.
Study: Urbanization Not a Silver Bullet for Economic Growth
A study comparing urbanization and per capita GDP between 1980 and 2011 questions common assumptions about the connections between economic growth and cities.
Going Viral, but Not in a Good Way
Republicans and Democrats have connected failures to control spread of Ebola to the other guys’ actions. We’re requiring stressed-out bureaucracies to perform out-of-the-box with zero tolerance in arenas of mind-boggling complexity.
The Incredible Climate Mitigation Potential of Compost
Research has shown that the world's largest land use, grazing, holds enormous potential when linked with composting, to dramatically reduce the carbon content of the atmosphere through sequestration while concurrently restoring degraded rangeland.
Friday Eye Candy: Everyday Everywhere
#Everydayeverywhere is an Instagram hashtag connecting ordinary photographs from all over the world, which Nicole Crowder covered recently for the Washington Post's photography blog, In Sight.
Fracking's Formidable Foe
The worthy foe is not environmental regulations nor the the government or public demanding fracking moratoriums and bans. It is the falling global price of oil. Two radio reports explore how the global glut of oil affects U.S. shale oil production.
A Comprehensive Accounting of Economic and Environmental Performance: Who's in?
For the last several decades, North American cities have used growth as a primary economic engine. Increasingly less dense new growth is subsidized by the more dense core, but requires a growth rate that is not supportable in the long term.
Study Rates Car 'Infotainment Systems' for Levels of Distraction
A study conducted by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety assessed the mental demands required of six hands-free, in-vehicle systems dialing phones and changing radio stations.
Friday Eye Candy: 2014's Best Architectural Photography
The 2014 Arcaid Images Architectural Photography Awards were presented at the World Architecture Festival in Singapore recently.
Exploring the 'Finesse of the Avenue'
In his fourth "place-decoding" essay from France, Chuck Wolfe illustrates how a traditional placemaking intervention is especially powerful when underlying urban fundamentals align.
The Downtown Dystopia and the 'Continued March of Sameness'
Architecture critic Aaron Betsky provides a new take urban dystopia: bland and homogenous. The antidote, he argues, can be found on the edges.
The Best Country in the World to Grow Old
The country most friendly to electric vehicles is also the country most supportive of senior citizens, not that there's a relationship. After Norway, Sweden is the best place to grow old, according to the just released Global AgeWatch Index.
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.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association
