World

Global issues, U.N., etc.

Nine Women Leading the Public Interest Design Field

Rennie Jones of Architizer highlights nine women pioneering a variety of successful and poignant public interest design projects around the world.

August 21, 2014 - Architizer

Lean Urbanism: A Century-Old Practice?

A short case study in Lean Urbanism, compliments of Victoria Beach, Manitoba.

August 19, 2014 - PlaceShakers

Complete Street Vancouver

Bike Infrastructure Study: Bigger Investments Return Bigger Payoff

You get what you pay for, goes the old saying, and a new study out of New Zealand makes the case that when it comes investing in bike infrastructure, it's best to invest in quality.

August 18, 2014 - FastCompany Exist

Ten Years of OpenStreetMap

Exactly how does a student take on an open data political stance and transform it into "the largest crowd-sourced mapping project on the internet"?

August 16, 2014 - TechCrunch

Embodied Energy of Historic Buildings: Physical and Metaphysical

Inherently unlovable buildings—no matter how energy efficient—lacks the stuff of longevity. How can your EcoDistrict design for lovable buildings? It may not include tearing down the historic stock.

August 11, 2014 - PlaceShakers

The Mapping Tool that Helped Identify the Ebola Outbreak

An online mapping tool called HealthMap helped identify the recent outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa by pulling data from all over the big data spectrum. It can also tell provide insight into the health concerns in your area.

August 11, 2014 - PBS NewsHour - The Rundown

Researchers Pull Social Media Data to Track Migration

The limitations (and inaccuracies) of traditional data sources like the U.S. Census are well known, so researchers are looking social media to gather the data necessary to draw conclusions about societal movements.

August 10, 2014 - Forbes

London Skyline

The Dangers of Building Too Tall

An article by Steven Snell summarizes the drawbacks of building vertical cities.

August 9, 2014 - Fast Forward Weekly

Elfreth's Alley

Revisiting the Common Sense Elements of City Life

Chuck Wolfe revisits five instances of how we can learn from the urbanism we already have.

August 8, 2014 - The Huffington Post

New Applications for 3D Printing: Sanitation and Shelter

Called by some the "third industrial revolution," what are some of the opportunities and costs of applying 3D printing to issues facing the developing world, and more importantly, emergency housing?

August 6, 2014 - The Guardian

Weekend Inspiration: Kids Design 'Dream Cars of the Future'

The ideas generated by a global competition that asks children to design the "dream car of the future" are incredibly aspirational in their pragmatism.

August 2, 2014 - Fast Co.Exist

Google Self-Driving Car smaller

How Self-Driving Cars Can (and Should) Improve Transit

Comments on the proceedings of the Automated Vehicles Symposium (San Francisco, July 14-18, 2014), where participants addressed the many transportation and land use implications of an automated future.

August 1, 2014 - Daniel J. Fagnant

Architects Design Fix For New York's Retro Parking Requirements

The "9x18" design team (named after the dimensions of a standard parking space) has evaluated and reimagined New York's parking regulations so they reflect actual parking demand and support affordable housing goals.

July 30, 2014 - Architizer

Debate: How Much should 'Starchitects' be Faulted for Urban Ills?

In response to a recent polemic by Witold Rybczynski against the global proliferation of iconic but disconnected projects by starchitects, the New York Times hosts a debate that addresses the question: Are superstar architects ruining city skylines?

July 30, 2014 - New York Times

Glenwood Green Acres, Philadelphia

Are We There Yet? Affordability in the 'New Normal'

In the new normal, an affordable lifestyle is suddenly of interest to a larger circle of us. Here's what some interesting innovators are doing about it, between now and when our politics and legal structure fully align with our needs.

July 28, 2014 - PlaceShakers

Famous Mexico City traffic

New Study Predicts Vehicle Travel Saturation Levels

A new RAND Corporation study models motorization growth rates and saturation levels, and identifies potential policies to encourage more efficient transportation in developing countries.

July 27, 2014 - The Future of Driving in Developing Countries

SimCity 2013

Gaming for Planners—More than SimCity

At the Serious Gaming workshop held in South Africa, game-maker Tygron showcased their game "The Climategame" and examined game play for lessons in how planners might improve their professional practice.

July 25, 2014 - Future Cape Town

Ordinary Materials, Fantastic Opportunities

Michael Demkowicz says that steel, aluminum, and concrete are among materials we understand least, but all have big possibilities for engineers.

July 23, 2014 - MIT Spectrum

What's Missed When Taking the Scenic Route?

An app that plots the most beautiful route across cities made news earlier this month, but one commenter worries about how taking the more scenic route could make it harder to improve quality of life in the "less-than-scenic" sections of cities.

July 22, 2014 - TheCityFix

Worldwide Urbanization Reflected by Growth of Mega-Cities

A new report by the United Nations projects the growth of the world's urban population, which is expected to surpass six billion by 2045.

July 21, 2014 - Quartz

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.