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The 'Most Hopeful' New Housing in Turkey

Jennifer Hattam

February 23, 2018 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Turkey, Düzce

After an earthquake devastated the town of Düzce, Turkey, residents banded together to create a housing cooperative and later Düzce Hope Studio, a group of pro-bono architects and engineers working to help rebuild the town. What makes the building team unique is that the design process included and valued residents’ voices. Yaşar Adanah, an urban researcher, states, “What’s happening in Düzce is a rare example of a holistic approach to housing that can be a model for other neighborhoods.”

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A way out of Bozeman's shadow

Katheryn Houghton Lewis Kendall

February 11, 2018 |

Bozeman Daily Chronicle |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Belgrade, Montana

Belgrade, Montana, a city 12 miles outside of Bozeman, uses creative financing and revitalization to ensure its identity remains independent from its rapidly growing and ever-popular adjacent city. While many residents of Belgrade work in Bozeman, the city has developed "tax-based renewal strategies" and restaurant liquor license regulations to ensure Belgrade stays on the map.

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Singapore Is Creating a Subterranean Master Plan

Gregory Scruggs

February 09, 2018 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Singapore, Singapore

Singapore, among other cities around the world, serves as a model in the underground urban planning sphere as local governments combat over-densification. The city has begun expanding their underground network of public transportation, supply storage, and even water reclamation systems.

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When a town wants to grow — but not too quickly

Lewis Kendall

February 08, 2018 |

Bozeman Daily Chronicle |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Three Forks, Montana

The town of Three Forks, Montana has managed to grow at a steady, manageable pace, relying on multiple economic drivers to keep the community afloat while other towns nearby have suffered from over-reliance on the coal and railroad industries. Town leaders learned from the downfall of the railroad boom, investing in businesses processing cement, wheat, and more to maintain economic diversification.

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Here's one idea to make ‘Storrowing' a thing of the past

Matt Rocheleau

February 08, 2018 |

The Boston Globe |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Boston, Massachusetts

A persistent problem in Massachusetts of trucks going through tunnels or underpasses that are too low for safe clearance has prompted officials to look to Sydney, Australia for a possible solution. Officials in that city worked with a private company to develop a system where if a truck is too tall, it triggers a warning so officials can activate a sheet of water at the tunnel entrance upon which is projected the holographic image of a giant red Stop sign. It's proven successful in stopping drivers before they enter the tunnel.

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A new lick of paint can be all it takes to make cities safer for pedestrians

Anoush Darabi

January 30, 2018 |

Apolitical |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

Redesigning streets to be more pedestrian-friendly can have big impacts on traffic safety and local business. A fast, easy and cheap way to weigh the pros and cons of such changes is to simply redraw street lines using paint or chalk, then measure public response. After a day-long pilot in Sao Paulo, 97 percent of locals supported making the proposed changes permanent.

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Thousands of poor young people are using Minecraft to redesign their cities

Odette Chalaby

January 29, 2018 |

Apolitical |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: India, Mumbai

Too often, poor community members are not included in public discourse over how public spaces should look-- rather, the urban planning is more top-down. To change that, the UN’s Block by Block project is using the computer game Minecraft to include locals in shaping the physical spaces in their own communities by teaching them digital design skills. The UN program has engaged over 17,000 people, and 20 crowdsourced designs have already been built in cities around the world.

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In Medellin, cable cars transformed slums—in Rio, they made them worse

Anoush Darabi

January 10, 2018 |

Apolitical |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Colombia, Medellín

In the 20th century, Colombia’s city of Medellin was a center for drugs and violence. Then the city developed a cable car system that enabled cheap transportation for people to find employment. The cable car system revitalized the economy of the city and made it much safer. However, other cities have tried cable cars for revitalization and found less success, even failure.

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These Planners Stepped Away From the Spreadsheets and Into the Community

Oscar Perry Abello

December 06, 2017 |

Next City |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, New York

The Regional Plan Association is a research and urban planning organization. They are deeply influential in the urban planning in the New York, New Jersey, Connecticut metropolitan area. The regional planning process has historically represented the needs of mostly white, affluent people, so this time RPA partnered with eight grassroots organizations, and involved immigrants from Long Island to take part in the regional planning process through focus groups, surveys, and discussions. As many as 1,600 people were engaged.

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In a City Where 15 Percent of Voters Elected the Mayor, Downtown Is Claiming Power

Sara Vigneri

November 06, 2017 |

Next City |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Allentown, Pennsylvania

POWER Northeast is trying to fight against voter disenchantment and reach the parts of the community that usually feel excluded and disillusioned by politics. This organization goes all over Allentown, Pennsylvania speaking to the formally incarcerated and minorities, advocating to political leaders on behalf of the public, and helping make voter registration easier.

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