Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

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  • Why Public Transportation Works Better Outside the U.S.

    October 10, 2018 |

    Bloomberg CityLab |

    Text |

    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States

    American cities can find solutions to low transit use by looking to other cities in Europe and Canada where the focus is on robust service and getting people to major transit hubs. These transportation systems use existing infrastructure and space with strategy so that transit is efficient and affordable. This in turn means more people are likely to use it because service is better.

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  • Fight for Cleaner Air in the Bronx

    October 01, 2018 |

    The Innovator |

    Text |

    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, New York, New York

    The New York-based organization, Sustainable South Bronx, is working to reverse the public health effects, namely asthma, that poor air quality has caused. The initiative works to educate residents about the environmental hazards they face while also working to reverse those hazards with projects like reflective roof coatings. With pollution disproportionately affecting low-income communities, the city too is taking steps toward reducing emissions in these areas.

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  • Underneath This 'Pop-Up Forest' Is an Abandoned Highway

    October 01, 2018 |

    Governing |

    Text |

    Under 800 Words

    Response Location: United States, Akron, Ohio

    When the Innerbelt, a freeway in Ohio, was discontinued, a designer named Hunter Frank threw a party to liven up the space. From there, he pushed to transform it to a permanent greenspace. “There’s value in simply letting people use a space and allowing their behavior to inform a more permanent plan,” reporter Alan Greenblatt writes. While local governments often focus on planning and details, the success of the “Innerbelt National Forest” can be attributed to experimentation: kids playing alongside live music and trees may be what allows the “forest” to stay.

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  • Students explore nature in densely built Los Angeles

    September 24, 2018 |

    High Country News |

    Text |

    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

    A principal in one of the most park-poor and low-income areas of LA is imploring students to "find nature in the unlikeliest of places." By setting up a community garden, sharing a passion for birdwatching, and sparking interest in the schoolyard's habitat, Brad Rumble is instilling in future stewards the key principles of urban conservation.

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  • Citizen Engagement 101

    September 19, 2018 |

    The Philadelphia Citizen |

    Text |

    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    The Citizens Planning Institute has equipped 500 residents with the relationships and the know-how to make a difference at the local level in their communities. The institute is a seven-week course supported by a city’s Planning Commission, and these institutes now exist across the U.S. and even are spreading as far as Australia. By engaging with local civic leaders, ordinary citizens have a chance to learn and then make improvements that are meaningful to themselves and their neighborhoods.

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  • 'For me, this is paradise': life in the Spanish city that banned cars

    September 18, 2018 |

    The Guardian |

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    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: Spain, Pontevedra

    Rather than attempt to change traffic flow, the city of Pontevedra cut straight to the source of their congestion frustrations; they eliminated cars from their streets entirely. The city center, which now fills to the brim with walkers and bicyclists each day, has seen a massive reduction in traffic accidents and carbon emissions since closing the streets to cars.

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  • Much to Do about (Vacant) Lots

    September 10, 2018 |

    Next City |

    Text |

    Over 3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, St. Louis, Missouri

    In St. Louis, Philadelphia, Detroit, and other postindustrial cities, community organizations and city officials are trying a number of methods to reduce the number of empty lots and vacant houses that plague neighborhoods. As opposed to earlier, one-off programs, cities are now forging coordinated approaches that acknowledge the systemic issues underlying persistent vacant land -- for example, in St. Louis, an inventory of all vacant properties is shaping the work of a series of related city initiatives.

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  • No helmets, no problem: how the Dutch created a casual biking culture

    August 28, 2018 |

    Vox |

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    Over 3000 Words

    Response Location: Netherlands

    Most people in Holland ride a bicycle every week thanks to a widespread public commitment to a biking culture and infrastructure where everyone feels welcome. That includes very visible dedicated bike paths designed for the most sedate cyclist, courses teaching children safe cycling skills, and connections to combine biking and transit. Most Dutch don't need helmets because rather than making bicyclists dress to confront danger, the country has made the environs safer for cyclists.

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  • Why your favorite bench might be there to thwart a terrorist attack

    August 27, 2018 |

    The Washington Post |

    Text |

    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, Washington, District of Columbia

    How do you make a public space inviting so people will gather, but also safe from the growing danger of attackers using vehicles to ram large numbers of people? Many cities have responded to such attacks with concrete bollards and other barriers. But designers and architects are increasingly innovating other options that protect people via planters, fountains, trees, bike racks, steps and traffic calming designs to stop or slow down vehicles.

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  • Community-Centered Development

    August 08, 2018 |

    The Philadelphia Citizen |

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    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, Portland, Oregon

    Preventing housing loss due to gentrification requires getting community members to the table before development plans take effect. Radix Consulting, a B Corp based in Portland, OR, is promoting community-led urban development in a city hit hard by gentrification. The principles of community and land use developed by Radix helped to influence policy in Portland’s 2035 Comprehensive Plan. While the plan in Portland addresses an existing crisis, other cities are looking to this model as a way to proactively manage their community development.

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