World

Global issues, U.N., etc.

Climate Change's Barometer Has No Climate Change Plan

The Florida Keys are likely the most vulnerable places to sea-level rise in America. Despite this danger, officials there have set no plans for counteracting or dealing with climate change.

July 1, 2009 - Miami Herald

Community Colleges Set Green Workforce Training Mission

Already a national leader in green building and looking to expand its leadership, the Los Angeles Community College District is launching several collaborative efforts to train a new, green workforce.

June 28, 2009 - The Planning Report

Good Parks Good for Urban Economies

Anne Schwartz compiles recent studies on the economic value of parks, describing how an investment in parks by the city will result in a healthier urban economy.

June 27, 2009 - Gotham Gazette

Starchitecture?

The Architect's Journal selects the most significant architecture and urban design from the Star Wars films.

June 23, 2009 - The Architect's Journal

Most Unaffordable Housing, Most Livable Cities?

The Economist magazine has published it's list of the most livable cities in the world. But quite a few of these cities have the most unaffordable housing, complains Owen McShane.

June 22, 2009 - New Geography

Closing the Loop on Energy Use

Architect Michael Palwyn is designing sustainable architecture that combines solar power and seawater into an ultra-efficient loop of resource conservation.

June 22, 2009 - GOOD Magazine

Health Researchers Connect Global Warming and Obesity

A new book by four public health researchers shows that global warming and obesity have the same causes- we drive too much, and carbon-intensive foods have become our daily bread.

June 21, 2009 - Grist

Sidewalks Key Factor Influencing Physical Activity

A new study provides further evidence that incorporating sidewalks into existing neighborhoods is a practical and inexpensive way of encouraging people to exercise.

June 18, 2009 - SDSU NewsCenter

US-Arab Annual Cities Forum Next Week

Next week, the Greater Amman Municipality will host activities of the 2nd US-Arab Forum, which will last from June 22 to June 24.

June 17, 2009 - Jordan Times

The Mathematics of Traffic

A study from MIT's Department of Mathematics provides new means of understanding how traffic jams form.

June 16, 2009 - Science Daily

Reinventing America's Cities: Discovering Opportunities by Challenging Biases

Dr. Aseem Inam takes writers on urbanism and architecture to task for spreading stereotypes about "third world cities", particularly when used to generalize about urban form.

June 15, 2009 - Aseem Inam

Suburban Home Comes to Venice

American artist Mike Bouchet constructed a full-sized replica of a standard American suburban home to float outside the Venice Biennale art exhibition. Instead, the house sank, suggesting new meanings for the artwork.

June 9, 2009 - AFP

Experiencing Debtenfreude

Schadenfreude is a German concept that means "taking pleasure in the suffering of others." Columnist Meghan Daum is experiencing 'debtenfreude'; the pleasure in watching house flippers and McMansion builders fall to the economic downturn.

June 8, 2009 - Los Angeles Times

Powerful Human Impact on Landscapes and Environment

The videos from the time-lapse images compiled from NASA Earth Observatory show some most impressive conquests of man over environment.

June 7, 2009 - THE DIRT

President Obama's Aiming for U.S.-China Deal

The Obama administration is making a U.S.-China deal on climate change a centerpiece, according to The Guardian (UK).

June 5, 2009 - THE DIRT

Proactive Vs. Reactive Transportation Planning

Alex Marshall takes a look at Spain's recent record of proactive transportation planning, connecting cities to direct development rather than to connect already successful areas.

June 3, 2009 - Governing Magazine

Chu Says: Paint the World White

Energy Secretary Steven Chu is the latest to get behind the idea that painting roofs and buildings white can help counter global warming.

June 2, 2009 - The Times Online

The "Greenest" Consumers

Consumers in India, Brazil, and China scored the highest (and those in the U.S. the lowest) in a survey conducted by National Geographic and Globescan for green behavior.

June 2, 2009 - THE DIRT

Watch the Land Change Through Google Earth Images

These videos show images of locations that have seen significant change over the past few years as seen through Google Earth images, from Dubai's manmade archipelago to Utah's disappearing Lake Powell.

June 1, 2009 - Wired

Scramble for the LEED

As the U.S. Green Building Council prepares to give its LEED-AP certification standards a major overhaul, test takers are scrambling to take the exam before it becomes a whole new ballgame.

June 1, 2009 - The Architect's Newspaper

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.