Social / Demographics

Planning Beyond Mass Incarceration
Sheryl-Ann Simpson from Carleton University, Justin Steil from MIT, and Aditi Mehta from the University of Toronto write about a recent article they co-authored in the Journal of Planning Education and Research.

Lack of Racial Impact Analysis Opens Inwood Plan to Legal Challenge in New York City
New York City is appealing a judge's decision to toss the Inwood NYC Action Plan, approved by the city in 2018. Next City describes the racial justice implications of the court case and the plan.

Interstate 94's Legacy of Racial Injustice in the Twin Cities
The symbolism behind highway protests brings demonstrators to occupy Interstate 94 between St. Paul and Minneapolis.

Demand for City Living Hasn't Declined Yet, According to Real Estate Searches
Media is full of stories about people fleeing the city for suburban or even rural climes during the pandemic. The data from real estate search sites tell a different story.

The Bike as a Symbol of Freedom
It's no geographic accident that so many of the images emerging from nationwide protests have featured numerous protestors on bikes. These forces have been coalescing for years.

What's So Special About Oregon and Utah?
These two Western states did something that none of the 20 other states in the nation going the wrong way in the pandemic have yet to do: they paused their reopening plans due to rising coronavirus infections and hospitalizations.

Lack of Progress on Racial Justice Is Blocking Progress on Climate Justice
Climate justice and social justice are closely linked. Black climate expert Ayana Johnson explains why racial justice strides are required to make leeway for climate change issues.

Academic Studies: Staying at Home Saved Millions of Lives Globally
Separate coronavirus studies from the University of California at Berkeley and Imperial College London published June 8 in the journal Nature show the life and health-saving value of domestic stay-at-home orders, global lockdowns, and other measures.

Watch: Responding to Anti-Black Racism in Planning and Urbanism
A must-watch conversation between BIPOC researchers and advocates working in the realm of planning and urbanism is available to watch on YouTube.

Another Way to Achieve Racial Justice: Zoning Reform
An opinion piece calls out suburban communities for perpetuating structural inequality and housing discrimination. Recently converted social justice advocates should focus their zeal on zoning reform, according to the argument that follows.

Racial Disparity in Home Lending Is Today's Redlining
According to a new report detailing discriminatory lending in Chicago, people in majority-white neighborhoods continue to receive more loans, and in greater amounts, than people in majority-Black and majority-Latino areas.

The Pandemic's New Epicenter
On May 22, the World Health Organization declared Latin America the new epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic. Brazil is second in the world in reported cases after the U.S., and Ecuador, Peru, Chile, and Mexico are also suffering disproportionately.

Debating the Future of Cities After the Coronavirus, Volume 3
The third installment of an ongoing, curated list of a particularly contemporary genre of urbanism punditry.

The Midwest Paces the Nation in Population Loss
Two cities in Illinois are examined as case studies of population decline in the post-industrial economy.

Interstate 45 Realignment Would Cut Through a Historic Black Neighborhood in Houston
A plan to realign Interstate 45 in Houston has been criticized as a highway boondoggle as well as a failure of racial and social equity, and recent protests have only amplified the latter criticisms of the project.

Reports Offers COVID-19 Recovery Guidance for Struggling Communities
Communities struggling with the economic, social, and health realities of the 21st century must start planning now to mitigate the worst outcomes of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report from the Center for Community Progress.

How Emergency Street Redesign Projects Fell Short of the Black Lives Matter Cause
A leading advocate for a new, equity centering approach explains how plans to redesign streets for the needs of the coronavirus pandemic left behind racial justice as a secondary concern.

The Singapore Exception
Singapore, Taiwan, and Hong Kong were credited early in the pandemic with having successfully contained the coronavirus without resorting to lockdowns. However, Singapore lost its standing in that elite group. Crowding vs. density may explain why.

Coronavirus Success Stories
While the U.S. leads the world in COVID-19 infections and deaths, a small group of nations defied the odds and has shown remarkable success in containing the coronavirus. NPR investigates what they share in common, with a focus on New Zealand.

Designing for Life
A Black architect calls on designers to recommit their training and expertise to account for the health and safety of all, especially those who have been most harmed by the status quo of the built environment.
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