World

Global issues, U.N., etc.

Coal Mine

Global Coal Consumption Grows After Three Years of Decline

The rise is attributed to Asian nations, particularly India and China, where coal-power plants are newer than in the West. It shows a growing disconnect between energy and climate goals, warned the International Energy Agency.

November 6, 2018 - Financial Times

Subway in India

Delhi Metro Joins the 300 km Club

Only nine cities in the world—just one in the United States—have more than 300 kilometers of metro train tracks. Until recently that number was eight.

November 6, 2018 - Millennium Post

Autonomous Vehicles

New Global Survey of the Ethics of Autonomous Vehicles

A paper published in the journal Nature reveals the findings of a survey of 2 million people in 200 countries on the ethics of the "trolley problem" as applied to self-driving cars.

November 5, 2018 - MIT News

renewable Energy

Wind Turbines the Size of Football Fields

New offshore windmills are taller and bigger than their predecessors, and they will produce more power.

November 2, 2018 - Vox

Protest Crowd

Women's Safety and Security: A Public Transport Priority

Surveys indicate that women often feel exposed to threatening and unwelcome behaviour when using public transport. This report examines this problem and potential solutions from various perspectives.

November 1, 2018 - Women’s Safety and Security: A Public Transport Priority

Autonomous Vehicles

TEDx: How Will Autonomous Vehicles Transform Cities?

Nico Larco presents a TEDx Talk on the impacts AVs will have on cities, including impacts on land use, land valuation, and the environment. AVs are more than just a transportation issue, and planners need to prepare for the coming changes.

November 1, 2018 - TEDx Talk

Pedestrians

Jeff Speck’s Step-by-Step Guide to Making Better Urban Places

The new Walkable City Rules by Jeff Speck is an excellent book that can help your city become more hospitable to humans. Urban thinker Kaid Benfield reviews.

October 31, 2018 - PlaceShakers

Ikea in Brooklyn

IKEA Report: Many Americans Seek Solitude in Their Cars

An international survey from IKEA finds fewer Americans feel at home in the place where they live.

October 30, 2018 - Fast Company

Hurricane Sandy New York City Flooding

As Temperatures Increase, Maps Show Sea-Level Rise Will Devastate Cities

Data visualizations illustrate the catastrophic consequences of single-digit global temperature increases.

October 29, 2018 - The City Fix

Youngstown, Ohio

The Fragility of Growth in a Post-Industrial City

A chapter by Jeremy Nowak, who passed away this summer, adapted from the book "Shared Prosperity in America’s Communities."

October 25, 2018 - Penn IUR Urban Link

Old Car Batteries

The Most Carbon-Intensive Component of Electric Vehicles Deserves Attention

It's well known that an electric vehicle is only as clean, from a greenhouse gas perspective, as the electricity it consumes to power it. A new study finds that the electricity used in the manufacturing of car batteries also must be considered.

October 24, 2018 - Bloomberg News

Electric Car Charging

Electric Vehicles See Progress at Local Level but Setbacks in Washington

The new IPCC report calls for decarbonization of transportation. While many cities are attempting to do their part, two recent federal developments in trade policy and tax legislation threaten to will make progress more difficult.

October 17, 2018 - CityLab

Traffic

Op-Ed: Averting Climate Catastrophe Means Rethinking Our Transportation Habits

Given a recent dire report on climate change from the IPCC, Laura Bliss underscores the point that those who have the ability to do so should make changes to how they get around, and pronto.

October 11, 2018 - CityLab

Alberta Oil Sands

ExxonMobil's $1 Million Gift to Fight Climate Change Through Carbon Pricing

Two days after a Nobel prize was awarded to William Nordhaus for his work on carbon taxes to address climate change, the largest American oil and gas company announced a $1 million contribution to a group promoting a carbon fee and dividend plan.

October 11, 2018 - The Washington Post

Phoenix Dust Storm

Carbon Taxes and Climate Change Are Focus of Nobel Prize for Economics

The Nobel Prize was issued the same day as a landmark report by the IPCC predicting dire consequences if emissions aren't reduced. That's what William D. Nordhaus of Yale University has devoted his career to addressing.

October 9, 2018 - The New York Times

Fracking

Petrochemical Industry to Drive Major Growth in Oil Demand

A new report from the International Energy Association projects that petrochemicals will be the largest driver of oil consumption, greatly increasing greenhouse gas emissions and offsetting the effect of electric vehicles on oil demand.

October 7, 2018 - Reuters

Pollution 2

Washington Says Seven-Degree Increase Is Coming, Doesn’t Outline Solutions

A federal evaluation of fuel-efficiency standards says that while drastic climate change is imminent, there is little reason to do anything about it.

October 5, 2018 - The Washington Post

Mobility

Google Maps Goes Multi-Modal

A bunch of new features makes Google Maps user-friendly for transit commuters.

October 3, 2018 - Smart Cities Dive

Global Climate Action Summit

Art to Inspire Climate Action

The Coal+Ice exhibition was on view in San Francisco in September 2018, timed to leverage Governor Jerry Brown’s Global Climate Action Summit.

September 30, 2018 - James Brasuell

Connected cities

Looking Beyond the 5G Horizon to the 6G Future

The new 5G networks are almost here, but some think it is not too early to think ahead to 6G.

September 28, 2018 - Smart Cities Dive

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.