posts, articles, and infographics | Sustainable Cities Collective

Live from CNU 20: The Economic Benefits of Good Urbanism

May 11, 2012 by Henry Spethmann
with 291 views

One of the best panels here at CNU today discussed quantifying the benefits of new urbanism and smart growth in a comprehensive manner. It featured Joseph Minicozzi, New Projects Director at Public Interest Projects, Galiena Tachieva, partner at DPZ, Michael Pagano, Dean of Urban Planning at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and... [read more]

Live from CNU 20: Tactical Urbanism at NextGen

May 9, 2012 by Henry Spethmann
with 111 views

We’re live from CNU 20 in West Palm Beach, Florida and one of the most intriguing presentations was by Mike Lydon, founder of the Streets Plans Collaborative, talking about tactical urbanism, essentially a method of planning that involves first step approaches that evolve into long-term implementable solutions. [read more]

Webcast: Energy Storage and Renewable Power

April 23, 2012 by Henry Spethmann
with 39 views

Energy Storage and Renewable Power:Is Storage a Solution to Renewable Intermittence and Grid Inefficiency? The intermittent nature of natural, carbon-free energy sources like the sun or wind has always been one of renewable power's major limitations, leaving us reliant on fossil fuels or nuclear power to supply the majority of so-called... [read more]

Audio Archive: Leveraging Bikes to Build a Better City

April 18, 2012 by Henry Spethmann
with 567 views

Leveraging Bikes to Build a Better City: Best Practices from Around the Globe In the past decade, bicycling has grown enormously in popularity as a green and active transportation alternative in many cities and metropolitan areas. Cities worldwide have developed strategies like dedicated cycling infrastructure, cycle-only days, car-free... [read more]

The Collaborative Economy

April 11, 2012 by Alex Colket
with 267 views

As our lives have become busier and our communities more fractured, we have lost access to the wealth of resources and opportunities that surround us. Fortunately though, the internet and social web provide us an opportunity to redesign the way we live and build community-based peer-to-peer economies that allow us to thrive within our means. [read more]

Are Urban Microcenters the Solution to Urban Sprawl?

April 10, 2012 by Francisco Vázquez
with 695 views

During the last decades, the conurbation problem in large cities has increased, reaching alarming levels. According to the information published in the 2010 Living Planet Report, 3,500 million people live in urban areas and estimations say that for the year 2050 this number will duplicate to almost 6,300 million people.In the case... [read more]

From Ingenuity to Implementation: Urban Ideas in Action

April 10, 2012 by Henry Spethmann
with 452 views

Over 180,000 people move into cities every single day. This has enormous infrastructural implications, from accommodating new hospital patients and updating sewer infrastructure to increasing energy production to serve new residents. [read more]

Mapping With Abandon

April 4, 2012 by J. Kevin Byrne
with 541 views

I teach at a design college. Last month a senior was mapping abandoned properties in Minneapolis using Google Fusion software; her purpose was to elicit some storytelling from urban residents. A couple dozen property markers popped up in her map of North Minneapolis neighborhoods; surprised by a noticeable linear pattern, she inquired of... [read more]

What Is the True Cost of Affordable Housing?

March 30, 2012 by Audrey Henderson
with 663 views

Affordable housing is not just a necessity for low-income individuals and families. Providing safe, affordable housing is essential to the overall health of our nation's communities and to the economy. It's possible to meet this basic need with innovative thinking and cooperation between government and private enterprise. [read more]

Why Revealing Buildings' Energy Use Creates Jobs

March 29, 2012 by Amanda Hurley
with 300 views

Check out how owners of large buildings are tracking exactly how much energy their properties use and using that data to lower their consumption. Cool! [read more]

Addressing America's Intersection Repair Problem

March 9, 2012 by Matt Landry
with 116 views

This is a piece I wrote to promote intersection repairs in my neighborhood in Seattle and to expose intersection repairs to a broader audience. Intersection repairs increases community building and can have an effect on neighborhood safety. [read more]

Ideas for Reincarnation - McMansion Style

March 5, 2012 by Polly Peterson
with 174 views

The home-building boom that saw suburban lot after suburban lot popping up with the same over-bloated house—the McMansion—has now left us in over our collective heads with houses too large for one family’s pocketbook. And now we have lot after lot of gigantic empty shells of neglected homes. So it is time to start... [read more]