World
Global issues, U.N., etc.
Neighborhood Mapping A Booming Business
Bernt Wahl is a pioneer of neighborhood mapping techniques. This profile in Wired profiles this growing industry, and Wahl's struggles with intellectual property. Who owns your neighborhood?
Climate Protection Jeopardized By Financial Crisis & Recession
The worldwide credit crisis will affect the ability of the developed world to tackle climate change. Businesses in Europe and U.S. are asking for delays in meeting emission reductions mandates notwithstanding the drop in oil prices.
Zip Line Your Way Across Town
Zip line tours- where you slide down a wire hanging from a lanyard- are growing in popularity in tourist spots like the canopies of rainforests. BLDBLOG proposes an urban application.
Golf Course Development Stuck in Sand Trap
The uber-wealthy are still buying homes on luxury golf course developments, but the rest of the market is hurting as courses close and projects stall around the world.
Economic Thinking is Job Number One
In the midst of this financial crisis, it is doubly important to understand the economic perspective on urban planning and real estate development, argues USC Professor Peter Gordon.
Closing Roads Sometimes Improves Traffic Flow
A new study finds that sometimes closing roads can improve traffic flow by forcing people to make alternative choices to the shortest route.
Taking City Revitalization Beyond Iconic Architecture
Many cities see new iconic buildings as a major element in recreating themselves into distinctive places. But if every city has distinctive buildings, the distinctiveness is diminished. This commentary argues for new revitalization ideas.
The Rise of the Amateur Mapmaker
The explosion of amateur mapmaking opened up by online services like Google Earth has expanded the reach of maps for a variety of uses. Professional mapmakers, on the other hand, foresee problems of quality and accuracy.
Fish as Private Property
David Bollier debunks the idea that the magic of 'private property' is saving fisheries from being overfished.
How Cities Can Compete - An Illustrated Guide
An artist recently drew an interpretation of a speech by author Richard Florida about the "creative class", competition between cities and the importance of place.
The President and Population Growth
Neal Pierce of Citiwire.net returns to the population issue, this time addressing U.S. federal foreign and domestic policies regarding the issue.
Emissions Study Comes to Cities' Defense
According to one study, cities are often wrongly blamed for 75 to 80% of greenhouse gas emissions; the figure is closer to 40%.
Planning an 'Eco-City'
This piece from Scientific American looks at plans for three "eco-cities".
Cars, Kids, and a Safer Environment Through Planning
Urban areas are filled with cars, and this creates an unsafe environment for children. This commentary argues that officials need to regain their faith in the power of planning to address the issue.
On 'Black Urbanism'
Architects and researchers are looking into the influences of African and African-American culture on urbanism.
A Person the Next President Should Listen To
Wired Magazine calls Mitchell Joachim 'a Frederick Law Olmsted for the 21st Century'. Joachim is at the forefront of thinking about the ecological footprint of cities, and one of Wired's 'People the Next President Should Listen To.'
Dams Threaten Future Water Supplies
Humanity has over-engineered the world's hydrology through dam-building, writes Rachel Olivieri.
'I Hate Green Architecture'
Cathleen McGuigan, Newsweek's architecture critic, is disdainful of the hype surrounding green architecture, particularly because it so often doesn't address the main problems with land use: proximity to jobs and services, and oversized development.
The Air-Powered Car is a Reality
The question, as WorldChanging's Adam Stein says, is whether it works well enough. A company called Zero Pollution Motors claims that its new, improved model will go 848 miles on one tank of compressed air.
The Future Of The Car Is The Present
GM will soon unveil its SUV of the future – the 'plug-in' hybrid known as the Volt. Mitsubishi's new mini, all-electric car will soon go to market in Japan. The days of the gas-powered car are numbered- or are they?
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
