May

23

Now Urbanism Lecture: The University and the City (Thursday)

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Thursday, May 26: The University and the City

A capstone and a conversation about the global role of universities shaping present-day urban realities and future urban possibilities.

With:

  • Phyllis Wise, Interim President, University of Washington
  • Kåre Bremer, President, Stockholm University
  • Lynne Brown, Vice President, New York University
  • Dr. Wu Zhiqiang, Dean of the College of Architecture and Planning, Tongji University, Shanghai Session

For more, go to Now Urbanism.

Mar

24

What’s an Eco-City?

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The American Society of Landscape Architects’ blog, The Dirt, asks What’s an Eco-City? You can find out or decide for yourself and explore the evolution of this concept through a new UW symposium “Next Eco-City.”

The University of Washington’s landscape architecture department has put together a symposium that will explore the idea of the Eco-City. In ”Next Eco-City,” a range of leading landscape theorists and practitioners like Kristina Hill, Affiliate ASLA, Pierre Belanger, ASLA, and Yu Kongjian, International ASLA, will cover how the Eco-City concept has evolved with increased urbanization and rapid globalization.

The conference organizers argue that “urban environments worldwide are in the midst of multiple shifts, driven by interconnected flows in capital, people, and resources at local, regional and global scales. It impacts not only cities but also the network of social and ecological systems well beyond their borders.”

Despite the fact that a true Eco-City has never really existed, the idea continues to have legs, and has persevered as a potential solution to global challenges. “In contrast to the complexity of today’s urbanization, the concept of the ‘Eco-City,’ arguably dating back to the ideal of the 19th Century Garden City, seems like an overly simplistic and utopian vision. Yet, the imagery and language of an idealized ‘Eco-City’ continue to shape the planning and design of contemporary cities while disregarding the vital complexity of contemporary urban conditions and issues.”  More…

Mar

10

If the most fertile land in the country produces cars and chemicals, what do we eat?

Filed Under Cities, Food System, Land Use, Zoning | Leave a Comment

Out of India, where government investment can result in the conversion of agricultural land into office parks, comes a fundamental question relevant to the global smart-growth movement:

If the most fertile land in the country produces cars and chemicals, what do we eat?

via Don’t just develop land, develop future – India – DNA.

Mar

8

EPA: energy efficiency is about location, location, location

Filed Under Cities, Housing, Land Use, Sustainability | Leave a Comment

One way for emissions to be noticed as a part of a home's environmental footprint. Via HikersItch.com

We’ve said it before: green don’t mean a thing if it aint got that urban swing…

Where we live has an enormous impact on energy use, according to new research commissioned by the EPA. The report, “Location Efficiency and Housing Type — Boiling It Down to BTUs” finds that Americans use far less energy if they live in an apartment building in a transit-oriented neighborhood than if they live in a detached suburban house, even if that house has green building features and sports fuel-efficient cars in the driveway.

When it comes to this report, a picture’s worth a thousand words. As the graph above shows, the biggest energy efficiency gains come from living in transit-oriented neighborhoods.

A household living in a single family detached house located in a typical sprawl development uses an average of 240 million BTU British Thermal Units, a unit of energy output of energy a year, while the same household would only use 147 million BTU if the exact same house were located in a compact neighborhood. Make that single family house an apartment and energy use is down to 93 million BTU. …More: via Streetsblog Capitol Hill » EPA: Energy Efficiency Is About Location, Location, Location.

Mar

7

Region’s largest cities aren’t accommodating population growth as planned

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The Downtown Seattle Association blog takes a look at Census data to see how we’re performing on our regional commitment to grow our cities where it makes the most sense (inside them).  We can do better…

The Puget Sound region has adopted specific strategies and goals that call on the largest cities to absorb a significant share of the total population growth projected to occur over the next three decades. The 2010 Census figures released this month show we are falling well short of those goals.

The Puget Sound Regional Council’s VISION 2040 is the four county region’s plan for how we will accommodate population and employment growth over the next three decades. The plan projects approximately 1.7 million more people and 1.2 million more jobs between 2000 and 2040 in King, Pierce, Snohomish and Kitsap counties. That’s a lot of people!  …More via Region’s Largest Cities Aren’t Accommodating Population Growth as Planned | Let’s Talk Downtown!.

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