Category Archives: climate change

247 Smart cities and counting…

Posted on June 7, 2017 by

Above is a map of showing the 247 cities to date (as of 6/6/17) where the mayor has pledged their city will adhere to the Paris Climate Accord commitments on greenhouse gases. I am very proud to say our own … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, Advocacy, Alternative energy, branding, cities, climate change, culture, education, environment, geography, government, health, humanity, Maps, nature, planning, politics, pollution, Renewable Energy, States, sustainability, transportation, urban planning, weather | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Canaries in the climate change coal mine

Posted on January 19, 2017 by

I challenge any partisan climate change denier to travel to Alaska and tell the residents of the 31 communities shown on the map depicted above that climate change isn’t real. It’s easy to sit behind a microphone and blow steam … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, cities, civics, civility, climate change, Climate Change, culture, diversity, economics, environment, geography, health, humanity, land use, Maps, nature, planning, poverty, rivers/watersheds, Science, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, topography, urban planning, weather | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Great Lakes doomsday scenario pipeline

Posted on December 2, 2016 by

If you thought the Dakota Access Pipeline in North Dakota was bad, boy do we have a doozy of one for you here in Michigan. A 63-year old submerged twin pipeline (Enbridge #5), that was built with a 50-year lifespan … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, civics, climate change, energy, environment, geography, health, history, humanity, infrastructure, land use, logistics, nature, politics, pollution, product design, rivers/watersheds, tourism, transportation, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

This is why you want street trees

Posted on November 10, 2016 by

A picture says a thousand words – need I say more?

Posted in Advocacy, Cities, climate change, environment, infrastructure, land use, nature, pictures, placemaking, planning, spatial design, sustainability, tourism, Travel, urban planning, walking | Tagged | 4 Comments

Building a peaceful community with good planning

Posted on July 22, 2016 by

Building a peaceful community does not just result from how we treat one another (see previous post), but can be literally develop based on how we design our communities and allocate funding. The days of the “wrong side of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, Advocacy, airports, Alternative transportation, architecture, Bus transportation, Cars, cities, civics, civility, climate change, commerce, culture, diversity, economic development, environment, gentrification, geography, health, historic preservation, history, homelessness, Housing, humanity, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, Love, new urbanism, peace, placemaking, planning, pollution, poverty, rail, revitalization, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, sustainability, third places, traffic, transit, transportation, Travel, urban planning, walking, zoning | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Portland Conundrum 

Posted on June 20, 2016 by

Below is an eye-opening summary of the housing market in Portland, Oregon from the perspective of a new resident to the region, who also happens to be an urban planner and a friend of mine. The parallels to what we … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, cities, civics, civility, climate change, culture, demographics, diversity, economic development, economics, environment, fitness, food systems, futurism, gentrification, geography, health, holiday, Housing, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, logistics, Maps, new urbanism, placemaking, planning, politics, revitalization, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, sustainability, transit, transportation, urban planning, walking, zoning | 1 Comment

Rain shadow cities and planning

Posted on May 15, 2016 by

Rain shadows are a fascinating geological and meteorological phenomenon that results from moisture being squeezed out as weather systems pass over higher elevations on the windward side of the mountains, leaving the leeward side much drier, sometimes even with a … Continue reading →

Posted in cities, climate change, environment, geography, Geology, history, infrastructure, land use, Maps, nature, planning, seasons, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, topography, urban planning, weather | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments