Aug 22, 08
From The Book
Cities: Introduction
We live on an urban planet. For the first time in history, a majority of us live in cities. How we grow those cities, how we build neighborhoods, how we provide housing, how we choose to get around, how well we incorporate nature into the places we live - these are the challenges that will largely determine our future.
And with millions and millions of people moving every year from the countryside to the city, all of these difficulties seem even more insurmountable. Appearances, however, can be deceiving. For, along with the boom in urbanization, we're seeing a boom in urban innovation. Simply put, we're getting better at building better cities.
image from ed burtynsky
Affordability and the City
Downtown housing affordability is an international problem. Interesting article: Alan Ehrenhalt argues in The New Republic that cities throughout North America are undergoing a "demographic inversion," in which the center city is once again becoming home to the well-off rather...
Cities are for People: The Limits of Localism
Columbia Professor Dickson Despommier has generated a fair amount of attention with his concept for "vertical farms," stacked, self-contained urban biosystems that would -- theoretically -- supply fresh produce for city residents year round. The New York Times showcased...
More Parking! Chicago Discovers Their Curbsides are Lined with Gold
San Francisco may have the most technologically nifty new parking system in the U.S., but Chicago wins big points for the mercenary genius of their approach: the city expects to raise over a billion dollars by auctioning a 50-year...
The Future of Shopping Malls: An Image Essay
By Morgan Greenseth Mall culture in the United States -- at least as we know it -- is coming to an end. Last month, the fall of Steve & Barry's became the next addition to a series of recent retailer...
Could Globalization Be Going In Reverse?
For the last three decades, it's been more or less assumed that globalization was a force that moved in only one direction -- towards ever-greater integration. And due to the logic of global trade, the assumption of ever greater...
This Week on Worldchanging Seattle
The new Seattle blog is coming along great, with some wonderful new local contributors on board. This week's headlines ranged from public health to shopping bags. Check out what's new: A Tool for Building Healthier Public Projects and Policies...
When is the next bus coming ... exactly?
Ottawa has introduced "a new GPS fleet tracking system on OC Transpo buses to improve service". Even with such a system, there may be significant challenges to running buses precisely on time with variable traffic. Once buses are GPS...
Concrete Dragon, a Book Review
We've written a lot about China and the future of the planet. If you want to better understand the role China will play in the future, you might want to start with The Concrete Dragon: China's Urban Revolution and What...
Cut Your Carbon and Save on Auto Insurance
By Adam Stern of Terra Pass. Pay-as-you-drive programs reward those who drive gently. Here’s another example of how the tortoise beats the hare. The insurance industry is starting to offer lower rates for drivers who drive less, apply a light...
Do Gas Taxes Cover the Costs of Roads?
The Texas highway department says no. I thought this was interesting. The Texas highway department – Texas, no less! -- says that roads simply don’t pay for themselves: … no road pays for itself in gas taxes and fees...
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