Social / Demographics

Refugees Learn to Survive as Pedestrians on Houston's Dangerous Streets
For one refugee family, living in Houston has meant facing a host of new challenges as they traverse the city’s roadways without a car.

Neighborhood Preference Splits on Partisan Lines
Preferences in the characteristics of communities—from the shape of the built environment to demographics—reveal stark partisan preferences. Planners are faced with the task of navigating ideological divides.

To Curb the Honking, Mumbai’s 'Punishing Signal'
Incessant honking just adds to the chaos on city streets, so Mumbai police put up a clever device to remind drivers that making noise will not ease traffic woes.

Real-Time Art Installation Reveals the Many Dimensions of Data
Using a wagon filled with phones, an artist in Berlin demonstrated the disconnect between data and the real world.

U.S. Cities Where Homeowners Stay Put the Longest
A study identifies cities where people stay in their homes longer, and they tend to be at either end of the income and home values spectrum.

Study Shows Link Between Car Ownership and Decrease in Physical Activity
A study of residents in Beijing, China who became car owners indicates that they used alternative transportation modes less after buying cars.

Tech Buses: Not Just for Techies, and Not Just for San Francisco
What began as Google buses, transporting highly paid engineers from San Francisco to Silicon Valley, has transformed into multi-company fleets serving white- and blue-collar workers in the 3,000-square-mile Northern California megaregion.

The State of Public Meetings
Dating back to a tradition begun in the 1630s, public meetings are an essential part of the political systems, and planning processes, of U.S. cities. Public meetings are also broken, according to this article.

Top Planning Issues for State Legislatures
The American Planning Association identifies three issues that will define the year in state legislatures around the country.

Report: Virginia's Drivers Ranked Rudest in the Nation
Auto insurance comparison outfit Insurify reviewed two million insurance applications and calculated the states with the rudest drivers based on one or more driving violations.

Lessons in Architecture and Development Found in This Year's Oscar-Nominated Films
A pair of articles mine the films nominated for Academy Award for lessons in design and development that could potentially benefit housing equality.

Rental Searches Shed Light on Where People Want to Move
Renters looking for new apartments in other cities are not looking to move far, a new study shows.

The Winners and Losers of Atlanta’s Transformation
The city has reinvented itself in many ways, but its residents are not reaping those benefits equally.

For Transit to Better Serve Women, More Data Needed
Understanding how women use transit does not just help make systems more equitable. It also guides policy and planning changes that benefit all riders.

The Impact of Segregation and Disinvestment on Chicago's Black Population
The city is losing black residents, but those who stay are relocating to parts of the city with less transportation access and opportunities.

Black Homeownership Climbed in 2019
Black homeownership climbed in 2019, but still lags far behind homeownership rates for the entire country.

Leaving New York
Data released by the U.S. Census Bureau showed New York with an estimated population of 19.5 million people as of July 1, 2019, making it the fourth largest state in the country, but also showed that New York’s population dropped.

Coming to Terms with the Racist Causes of Pollution
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania took the dramatic step of officially declaring racism a public health threat. Public policy has yet to mitigate the city's worsening air quality, however.

Census Information for Rental Property Owners
There are a number of obstacles and issues related to the 2020 Census enumeration of apartment building residents. This set of FAQs covers “Census Information for Rental Property Owners.”

Fewer Baby Boomers Choose Urban Lifestyles Than Previous Generations
Despite appearances and a popular media narrative, Baby Boomers aren't becoming more urban in old age—when compared to previous generations at the same age.
Pagination
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.
EMC Planning Group, Inc.
Planetizen
Planetizen
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service