planning

Local zoning laws and strategic plans that promote transit-oriented development and pedestrian-friendly downtowns are helping to shape great cities. By Ian Spula Great power to effect change in cities resides within local development codes. The era of the single-use factory, the...

Celebrate National Bike Month with a look back at our recent cycling coverage by Megan Barber Over the last 20 years, the number of bicyclists has grown rapidly from coast to coast. Although still a small minority, an increasing number of people in cities like Portland,...

Mayors for 100% Clean Energy asks leaders to commit their cities to 100 percent clean energy by Patrick Sisson A groups of U.S. mayors announced a new drive to encourage sustainable energy yesterday, imploring colleagues across the country to make pledges and push their cities to...

New infrastructure, better bikesharing, and safer streets by Patrick Sisson London announced a plan to spend a billion dollars on bike highways and cycling infrastructure late last year. Oslo wants to transform its downtown into a car-free zone by 2019. German cities are testing...

Climate change is “one of the biggest global crises of the 21st century.” By Katharine Keane Today, the AIA released a statement outlining eight key principles on how architects can help mitigate and combat the effects of climate change, while calling upon...

Written by John Charles Robbins The City of Miami has formally joined the Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change Compact as a municipal partner, and has endorsed a climate action pledge. The move marks the city commission’s support for the compact, and its promise to consider...

University of Minnesota architecture students formulate a hypothetical Kickstarter campaign to unify divided communities. By Blaine Brownell Courtesy Lingxiao Shu and Qianyao Xu “Urban Bonsai” garden proposal for bridging generational gaps in China. A student’s...

The American Society of Civil Engineers has released this report every four years since 2001, with no improvement. By Selin Ashaboglu Yesterday, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) released its quadrennial Infrastructure Report Card, giving the United States an...

Climate change means more rain and higher temps, and as it gets hotter, mosquitoes bite more By Erik Bojnansky As the oceans continue to rise, Miami-Dade County communities will need to collaborate more with developers in order to form sustainable communities. This was the...

By Max Cohen de Lara and David Mulder van der Vegt Every one of the United Nations’ 193 member states has a legislature — and each has a plenary hall for its meetings. How does the architecture of these assembly spaces structure the way that legislature makes decisions? To answer...