Location: Alabama
Website:
Our primary mission is to advocate for the collaboration of the design arts and their importance in creating and enhancing place in Alabama.
Who is DesignAlabama?
DesignAlabama is a nonprofit, citizen-led organization that seeks to raise the bar for design in our great state through education of the applied arts, promoting designers who live and work in Alabama and supporting sound design thinking to sustain our communities. Our board of directors is made up of design professionals, community development officials and business professionals who champion design.
What does DesignAlabama do?
DesignAlabama was founded in 1987 under the wing of the Alabama State Council on the Arts. The organization has since developed initiatives to bring awareness to design professions that help shape how we live and the environment around us. The design arts supported include a range of interconnected fields including architecture, engineering, graphic design, industrial design, interior design, landscape architecture and urban design.
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Some of our most impactful initiatives have been our Mayor’s Design Summits. In these daylong workshops civic leaders work with designers and planners to excavate ideas that will help make their communities desirable, profitable and more livable. We even tackle important design problem solving such as rebuilding after a natural disaster.
DesignAlabama also creates educational content to inform civic leaders and the general public of design processes and why design is a critical factor in using resources effectively. We share case studies from Alabama designers to highlight examples of successful creative work being done across our state.
Professionals associated with DesignAlabama visit communities selected to participate in the DesignPlace Program to provide design, planning and community identity assistance. Included are design professionals with experience in architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, graphic design, interior design and planning, showing the underlying success of community development when design arts are used. During intensive visits of one to four days, DesignPlace professionals survey the community, review issues to be addressed, meet with community groups and leaders, develop recommendations, and outline strategies for implementation.
How are communities selected for DesignPlace?
Communities who have been represented at the DesignAlabama Mayors Design Summit can apply to participate in DesignPlace. Please download the application, complete and submit to DesignAlabama for consideration. A committee of design professionals charged with directing the program will make final selections.
What are the benefits of DesignPlace?
Perhaps the greatest benefit is the stimulation and mobilization of the general public. Citizen participation is absolutely critical to the success of DesignPlace or any local design and planning initiative. A DesignPlace visit is not an end in itself; rather, a new beginning. DesignPlace is invaluable for illustrating the value of community design and planning in Alabama. It stimulates awareness of design issues and dramatizes the impact design can have upon a community’s vitality and the quality of life within its boundaries.
What are the costs associated with DesignPlace?
The DesignAlabama design professionals offer their time and expertise at no cost to the community. The community, however, is expected to commit to the following:
• Reimbursement of travel and other out-of-pocket expenses for team members
• Provide lodging, meals, equipment, supplies and a workspace for team
• Defray cost of publication and distribution of team’s findings and recommendations
• A financial commitment by the community to implement recommendations
Monday, July 31, 2017
Wednesday, January 18, 2017
Global Street Design Guide
Location: international
Website:
The National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) and the Global Designing Cities Initiative today unveiled the Global Street Design Guide, the first-ever worldwide standard for redesigning city streets to prioritize safety, pedestrians, transit and sustainable mobility for an urban century.
“The tested and proven designs in these pages can be adapted to city streets around the world to support local economies and make them safer for everyone, no matter how they get around. It is no longer a question of engineering or innovation but of the imagination and will be needed to update city streets for a new age.”
Global Street Design Guide sets a new global baseline for designing urban streets. Recognizing that cities are places for people, the guide shifts the parameters of designing urban streets from the typical point of view of automobile movement and safety, to include access, safety, and mobility for all users, environmental quality, economic benefit, enhancement of place, public health, and overall quality of life.
Created with the input of 72 cities in 42 countries, this new manual presents 21 street typologies and 50 unique street and intersection transformations applicable worldwide. With over 40 case studies, the Guide shows in actionable terms how to redesign streets to put people first. From moving more people with transit lanes to dedicating space for a vibrant economic activity like street vendors, this new global toolkit is applicable to a variety of contexts worldwide.
Urban Street Design Guide Urban Bikeway Design Guide, Transit Street Design Guide, expanding from a North American context to address a variety of street typologies and design elements found around the world.
Website:
The National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) and the Global Designing Cities Initiative today unveiled the Global Street Design Guide, the first-ever worldwide standard for redesigning city streets to prioritize safety, pedestrians, transit and sustainable mobility for an urban century.
“The tested and proven designs in these pages can be adapted to city streets around the world to support local economies and make them safer for everyone, no matter how they get around. It is no longer a question of engineering or innovation but of the imagination and will be needed to update city streets for a new age.”
Global Street Design Guide sets a new global baseline for designing urban streets. Recognizing that cities are places for people, the guide shifts the parameters of designing urban streets from the typical point of view of automobile movement and safety, to include access, safety, and mobility for all users, environmental quality, economic benefit, enhancement of place, public health, and overall quality of life.
Created with the input of 72 cities in 42 countries, this new manual presents 21 street typologies and 50 unique street and intersection transformations applicable worldwide. With over 40 case studies, the Guide shows in actionable terms how to redesign streets to put people first. From moving more people with transit lanes to dedicating space for a vibrant economic activity like street vendors, this new global toolkit is applicable to a variety of contexts worldwide.
Urban Street Design Guide Urban Bikeway Design Guide, Transit Street Design Guide, expanding from a North American context to address a variety of street typologies and design elements found around the world.
Thursday, January 5, 2017
Movement for Black Lives
Location: Nationwide
Website: m4bl.net
As we enter 2017, under an administration motivated by hate and greed, we renew our commitment to you, and to our fight for justice.
We know that Black people have always made a way, even when the odds were against us – as they are now. An administration full of racist, sexist, fear mongers are moving into the White House – and we should all be concerned about their potential impact on our lives. We are just beginning to see the effects of the fear and violence they support. In the last 30 days, we’ve seen an increase in hate crimes and hate speech against Black people, the vandalizing of Black churches, and vigilantes taking up arms in our communities to incite violence and fear. In the face of all this, millions of Black folks across the country are asking, “What can we do?”
We heard you loud and clear. While we don’t have all the answers, we know where to start – and we are committed to working alongside you to figure them out the rest. A lot is at stake right now. Some have cautioned us to wait and see, to give the new administration a chance, but we know that’s a mistake. We won’t sit idly by as people threaten the safety and quality of life of Black people across the country.
We are confident that we have the commitment, the people power and the vision to organize our country into a safe place for Black people — one based on inclusivity and justice, not intimidation and fear. Join us. Our vision has always included our children living in safety, our communities having control of our destinies, and an economy that provides good jobs, food, clean water and safe housing for our people. That hasn’t changed, and if anything, this moment requires that we work even harder for those things. We’ve done it before and we can do it again.
The Movement for Black Lives includes a number of organizations, individuals and networks focused on a hopeful and inclusive vision of Black joy, safety, and prosperity. That means freedom from violence and economic inequality, as well as the freedom to realize our greatest dreams.
Website: m4bl.net
As we enter 2017, under an administration motivated by hate and greed, we renew our commitment to you, and to our fight for justice.
We know that Black people have always made a way, even when the odds were against us – as they are now. An administration full of racist, sexist, fear mongers are moving into the White House – and we should all be concerned about their potential impact on our lives. We are just beginning to see the effects of the fear and violence they support. In the last 30 days, we’ve seen an increase in hate crimes and hate speech against Black people, the vandalizing of Black churches, and vigilantes taking up arms in our communities to incite violence and fear. In the face of all this, millions of Black folks across the country are asking, “What can we do?”
We heard you loud and clear. While we don’t have all the answers, we know where to start – and we are committed to working alongside you to figure them out the rest. A lot is at stake right now. Some have cautioned us to wait and see, to give the new administration a chance, but we know that’s a mistake. We won’t sit idly by as people threaten the safety and quality of life of Black people across the country.
We are confident that we have the commitment, the people power and the vision to organize our country into a safe place for Black people — one based on inclusivity and justice, not intimidation and fear. Join us. Our vision has always included our children living in safety, our communities having control of our destinies, and an economy that provides good jobs, food, clean water and safe housing for our people. That hasn’t changed, and if anything, this moment requires that we work even harder for those things. We’ve done it before and we can do it again.
The Movement for Black Lives includes a number of organizations, individuals and networks focused on a hopeful and inclusive vision of Black joy, safety, and prosperity. That means freedom from violence and economic inequality, as well as the freedom to realize our greatest dreams.
Sunday, January 1, 2017
c40
Location: International
Website: c40.org
The C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, now in its 11th year, connects more than 80 of the world’s greatest cities, representing 600+ million people and one quarter of the global economy. Created and led by cities, C40 is focused on tackling climate change and driving urban action that reduces greenhouse gas emissions and climate risks, while increasing the health, wellbeing and economic opportunities of urban citizens.
The current chair of C40 is Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo; three-term Mayor of New York City Michael R. Bloomberg serves as President of the Board. C40’s work is made possible by our three strategic funders: Bloomberg Philanthropies, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), and Realdania. C40 was founded on the idea that cities can achieve more by working together than acting alone. C40’s international staff supports mayors of the world’s megacities to deliver bold, ambitious and transformational action on climate change, through the exchange of ideas, programmes and policies; world class research; technical expertise; events that convene the world’s foremost climate experts and communications support to highlight the individual achievements and collective leadership of cities. Member cities have already committed to reducing their emissions by a total of more than 3 gigatons of C02 by 2030 - the equivalent of taking 600 million cars off the road. C40 Initiatives and Networks.
Working across multiple sectors and issues, C40 convenes networks that provide a range of services in support of cities’ climate change efforts. C40 has 17 networks organised under 6 initiative areas covering the mitigation, adaptation and sustainability topics of highest priority to C40 cities and with the potential for the greatest climate impact. C40 is also positioning cities as a leading force for climate action around the world, defining and amplifying their call to national governments for greater support and autonomy in creating a sustainable future.
C40 networks help cities replicate, improve and accelerate climate action. These city-only working groups provide for honest knowledge exchange, enabling cities to tap into the global expertise of their peers as well as connect with technical partners. Through networks, cities find opportunities to undertake joint projects in areas of mutual interest and benefit. C40 networks also amplify individual city solutions by providing a global platform for showcasing city successes. The result is that cities' climate actions to reduce GHGs and climate risks are bolder, more impactful, implemented faster, at a lower cost and with less resources than if they were to go it alone. No other organisation facilitates such deep connections amongst city staff across 50+ countries, 20 time zones and 26 languages to accelerate local action with major global impact.
Website: c40.org
The C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, now in its 11th year, connects more than 80 of the world’s greatest cities, representing 600+ million people and one quarter of the global economy. Created and led by cities, C40 is focused on tackling climate change and driving urban action that reduces greenhouse gas emissions and climate risks, while increasing the health, wellbeing and economic opportunities of urban citizens.
The current chair of C40 is Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo; three-term Mayor of New York City Michael R. Bloomberg serves as President of the Board. C40’s work is made possible by our three strategic funders: Bloomberg Philanthropies, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), and Realdania. C40 was founded on the idea that cities can achieve more by working together than acting alone. C40’s international staff supports mayors of the world’s megacities to deliver bold, ambitious and transformational action on climate change, through the exchange of ideas, programmes and policies; world class research; technical expertise; events that convene the world’s foremost climate experts and communications support to highlight the individual achievements and collective leadership of cities. Member cities have already committed to reducing their emissions by a total of more than 3 gigatons of C02 by 2030 - the equivalent of taking 600 million cars off the road. C40 Initiatives and Networks.
Working across multiple sectors and issues, C40 convenes networks that provide a range of services in support of cities’ climate change efforts. C40 has 17 networks organised under 6 initiative areas covering the mitigation, adaptation and sustainability topics of highest priority to C40 cities and with the potential for the greatest climate impact. C40 is also positioning cities as a leading force for climate action around the world, defining and amplifying their call to national governments for greater support and autonomy in creating a sustainable future.
C40 networks help cities replicate, improve and accelerate climate action. These city-only working groups provide for honest knowledge exchange, enabling cities to tap into the global expertise of their peers as well as connect with technical partners. Through networks, cities find opportunities to undertake joint projects in areas of mutual interest and benefit. C40 networks also amplify individual city solutions by providing a global platform for showcasing city successes. The result is that cities' climate actions to reduce GHGs and climate risks are bolder, more impactful, implemented faster, at a lower cost and with less resources than if they were to go it alone. No other organisation facilitates such deep connections amongst city staff across 50+ countries, 20 time zones and 26 languages to accelerate local action with major global impact.
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
Opportunity Urbanism
Location:International
Website:
WHAT SHOULD BE THE GUIDING PURPOSE OF A CITY?
Much of urban thinking today centers on the physical form of the city: its resources, infrastructure, and built space. Cities are told how to become “more sustainable” by expanding transit, reducing dependence on fossil fuels, and adopting restrictions and planning approaches that mandate higher densities, and, increasingly, bar the expansion of single-family home-dominated areas.This mindset creates a narrow and distorting view of a city, one that ignores or oversimplifies the role and agency of a city’s most important component: its middle class, especially families.
THE CENTER FOR OPPORTUNITY URBANISM IS A COUNTERPOINT
To us, cities emerge because they provide opportunity to people, and are sustainable only so long as they continue to do so.
For a city to sustain itself, it must provide a wide range of opportunities – not just for the affluent. And the city, better seen as a metropolitan area, needs to address the diverse interests and preferences of its residents. And given that those interests and preferences are constantly evolving, the “overplanning” mindset is untenable, even dangerous, to the future of cities that embrace it. Another paradigm is needed; one that concentrates more on human capital than physical capital. Such a paradigm would stress issues of upward mobility, human capital development, small business expansion, governance, and middle-wage job growth. It would not ignore the physical environment, but acknowledge that physical assets should adapt to serve human beings, not the other way around. It would also change the way we think about physical assets, giving higher priority to those that actually boost opportunity, particularly for working and middle-class residents.
PEOPLE-ORIENTED URBANISM
Given the current concern about economic inequality, this alternative perspective is desperately needed. In many cities, notably New York, there is already a growing focus among the political class away from economic growth, and towards a redistribution of income to the poorer members of society. But in many cases the focus is not only on the poor, but also in servicing the needs of well-organized rent-seekers, from speculators and some developers to public employee unions. Although these interests often express an admirable concern for social welfare, we believe that sparking broader-based economic growth represents the best way to achieve upward mobility for metropolitan area residents. Houston and other growing cities, we maintain, best represent this more people-oriented approach.
The Center will closely examine these issues, with particular interest in how planning and zoning decisions can hamper or spark economic growth. It will also highlight key demographic concerns, notably around the critical issue of families, who generally seek out housing that is both affordable and spacious enough to raise children. And governance – the question of who makes decisions about the commons – will also be a key area of exploration. An approach that focuses on good schools, good parks, decent jobs and strong neighborhoods may not thrill many architects, pundits and planners – who almost invariably favor ever-denser development – but they do matter to most people who live in urban areas.
The Center for Opportunity Urbanism will promulgate a perspective on urban development that is applicable to most American cities, and indeed to cities around the world. Initially the Center will be seeking to define this new model with comparative studies of different regions in terms of how they most efficiently address issues ranging from promoting upward mobility and reducing poverty, including among minorities, and spark broad-based economic growth. This involves such things as comparing regions based on their actual costs, relative to others, and how they create family-sustaining jobs across a broad spectrum of workers.
OPPORTUNITY FOR CITIZENS
It will be the primary task of the Center to spell out how cities can drive opportunity for the bulk of their citizens. Initially, at least, this will be primarily a virtual, media-centered effort. This is necessary given the very weak profile of key opportunity cities, including Houston, particularly in comparison with the key media centers located either in the Northeast or coastal California. A major reason why the current planning mindset so dominates policy discussion, in part, reflects that there is no coherent alternative vision. Our intention is through conferences, articles and studies to provide an alternative “pole” in the now very stilted and predictable trajectory of urban studies. It will help rediscover the essence of great cities, what Descartes called “an inventory of the possible.”
PRINCIPLES OF OPPORTUNITY URBANISM
The primary organizing principle of cities should be the creation of opportunity and social mobility.
People should have a range of neighborhood choices (including suburban), rather than being socially engineered into high-density, transit-oriented developments beloved by overly prescriptive planners.
Restricting housing supply unreasonably through regulation drives up costs and harms the middle class.
Education impacts housing choices, forcing parents to overpay in the few good school districts or move further out of the core city. Making educational alternatives available for working and middle class families is essential to upward mobility and long-term urban growth.
Supporting the needs of middle-class families should be just as important, if not more, than the needs of the childless creative class. Children, afterall, represent the future of society.
Successful economies need a broad spectrum of industries. Solid middle-class and blue-collar jobs are just as important as the much celebrated high-tech industries aimed at white-collar professionals. Educational choices should be made to address these varied needs.
Concentrations of power – whether through political or economic structures – undermine social mobility and the creation and pursuit of new opportunities. Decision-making power, therefore, should be as widely dispersed as practical.
Transit investments should be based in large part on serving cost-effectively those who most need it, to provide a reasonable alternative for those (the disabled, elderly, students) for whom auto transit is difficult. It should not be primarily a vehicle for real estate speculation or indirect land use control. The use of bus transport, including rapid bus lanes, as well as new technologies, including firms like Uber and driverless cars, need to be considered as potential answers to the issue of urban mobility.
In general, cities are better off with more market-oriented land-use policies than prescriptive central planning.
Website:
WHAT SHOULD BE THE GUIDING PURPOSE OF A CITY?
Much of urban thinking today centers on the physical form of the city: its resources, infrastructure, and built space. Cities are told how to become “more sustainable” by expanding transit, reducing dependence on fossil fuels, and adopting restrictions and planning approaches that mandate higher densities, and, increasingly, bar the expansion of single-family home-dominated areas.This mindset creates a narrow and distorting view of a city, one that ignores or oversimplifies the role and agency of a city’s most important component: its middle class, especially families.
THE CENTER FOR OPPORTUNITY URBANISM IS A COUNTERPOINT
To us, cities emerge because they provide opportunity to people, and are sustainable only so long as they continue to do so.
For a city to sustain itself, it must provide a wide range of opportunities – not just for the affluent. And the city, better seen as a metropolitan area, needs to address the diverse interests and preferences of its residents. And given that those interests and preferences are constantly evolving, the “overplanning” mindset is untenable, even dangerous, to the future of cities that embrace it. Another paradigm is needed; one that concentrates more on human capital than physical capital. Such a paradigm would stress issues of upward mobility, human capital development, small business expansion, governance, and middle-wage job growth. It would not ignore the physical environment, but acknowledge that physical assets should adapt to serve human beings, not the other way around. It would also change the way we think about physical assets, giving higher priority to those that actually boost opportunity, particularly for working and middle-class residents.
PEOPLE-ORIENTED URBANISM
Given the current concern about economic inequality, this alternative perspective is desperately needed. In many cities, notably New York, there is already a growing focus among the political class away from economic growth, and towards a redistribution of income to the poorer members of society. But in many cases the focus is not only on the poor, but also in servicing the needs of well-organized rent-seekers, from speculators and some developers to public employee unions. Although these interests often express an admirable concern for social welfare, we believe that sparking broader-based economic growth represents the best way to achieve upward mobility for metropolitan area residents. Houston and other growing cities, we maintain, best represent this more people-oriented approach.
The Center will closely examine these issues, with particular interest in how planning and zoning decisions can hamper or spark economic growth. It will also highlight key demographic concerns, notably around the critical issue of families, who generally seek out housing that is both affordable and spacious enough to raise children. And governance – the question of who makes decisions about the commons – will also be a key area of exploration. An approach that focuses on good schools, good parks, decent jobs and strong neighborhoods may not thrill many architects, pundits and planners – who almost invariably favor ever-denser development – but they do matter to most people who live in urban areas.
The Center for Opportunity Urbanism will promulgate a perspective on urban development that is applicable to most American cities, and indeed to cities around the world. Initially the Center will be seeking to define this new model with comparative studies of different regions in terms of how they most efficiently address issues ranging from promoting upward mobility and reducing poverty, including among minorities, and spark broad-based economic growth. This involves such things as comparing regions based on their actual costs, relative to others, and how they create family-sustaining jobs across a broad spectrum of workers.
OPPORTUNITY FOR CITIZENS
It will be the primary task of the Center to spell out how cities can drive opportunity for the bulk of their citizens. Initially, at least, this will be primarily a virtual, media-centered effort. This is necessary given the very weak profile of key opportunity cities, including Houston, particularly in comparison with the key media centers located either in the Northeast or coastal California. A major reason why the current planning mindset so dominates policy discussion, in part, reflects that there is no coherent alternative vision. Our intention is through conferences, articles and studies to provide an alternative “pole” in the now very stilted and predictable trajectory of urban studies. It will help rediscover the essence of great cities, what Descartes called “an inventory of the possible.”
PRINCIPLES OF OPPORTUNITY URBANISM
The primary organizing principle of cities should be the creation of opportunity and social mobility.
People should have a range of neighborhood choices (including suburban), rather than being socially engineered into high-density, transit-oriented developments beloved by overly prescriptive planners.
Restricting housing supply unreasonably through regulation drives up costs and harms the middle class.
Education impacts housing choices, forcing parents to overpay in the few good school districts or move further out of the core city. Making educational alternatives available for working and middle class families is essential to upward mobility and long-term urban growth.
Supporting the needs of middle-class families should be just as important, if not more, than the needs of the childless creative class. Children, afterall, represent the future of society.
Successful economies need a broad spectrum of industries. Solid middle-class and blue-collar jobs are just as important as the much celebrated high-tech industries aimed at white-collar professionals. Educational choices should be made to address these varied needs.
Concentrations of power – whether through political or economic structures – undermine social mobility and the creation and pursuit of new opportunities. Decision-making power, therefore, should be as widely dispersed as practical.
Transit investments should be based in large part on serving cost-effectively those who most need it, to provide a reasonable alternative for those (the disabled, elderly, students) for whom auto transit is difficult. It should not be primarily a vehicle for real estate speculation or indirect land use control. The use of bus transport, including rapid bus lanes, as well as new technologies, including firms like Uber and driverless cars, need to be considered as potential answers to the issue of urban mobility.
In general, cities are better off with more market-oriented land-use policies than prescriptive central planning.
Thursday, December 22, 2016
CREATE Streets
Location: Great Britain
Website: createsteets.com
What we do:
We are a RESEARCH INSTITUTE. We conduct and collate high quality research into what people actually want and what therefore drives long term value generation.
We ARGUE FOR CHANGE. We argue for specific changes to policy to make it easier to build the homes and streets that people actually want. We want homes for people not stakeholders.
We ADVISE. We are making our research available to landowners, developers, councils and Registered Social Landlords. We use our StreetScore tool to help investors, developers, councils and RSLs understand the correlations between what they own or build and happy, mixed communities for the long term.
We help DEVELOP. We are starting to identify actual sites for potential building and redevelopment and working with communities, housing associations and landowners and developers with the right long term values to help facilitate street-based development.
We ENGAGE. We encourage and help local communities to take control of their own neighbourhoods via neighbourhood plans and the communal preparation of specific schemes via schemes such as Community Right to Build.
We are non-partisan. Most of our members are not party political though we have members from all three main parties.
We wish to create streets which are:
Capable of matching high rise densities
Website: createsteets.com
What we do:
We are a RESEARCH INSTITUTE. We conduct and collate high quality research into what people actually want and what therefore drives long term value generation.
We ARGUE FOR CHANGE. We argue for specific changes to policy to make it easier to build the homes and streets that people actually want. We want homes for people not stakeholders.
We ADVISE. We are making our research available to landowners, developers, councils and Registered Social Landlords. We use our StreetScore tool to help investors, developers, councils and RSLs understand the correlations between what they own or build and happy, mixed communities for the long term.
We help DEVELOP. We are starting to identify actual sites for potential building and redevelopment and working with communities, housing associations and landowners and developers with the right long term values to help facilitate street-based development.
We ENGAGE. We encourage and help local communities to take control of their own neighbourhoods via neighbourhood plans and the communal preparation of specific schemes via schemes such as Community Right to Build.
We are non-partisan. Most of our members are not party political though we have members from all three main parties.
We wish to create streets which are:
Capable of matching high rise densities
Realistic, long term commercially viable
Environmentally friendly
Aesthetically beautiful and local
Tailored to what people actually want
Encouraging of mixed communities
BIMBY
Location: Great Britain
Website;bimby.org.uk
The BIMBY Housing Toolkit is a simple and practical online tool which enables communities, organisations, Local Authorities and developers to collectively or indiividually create a regional BIMBY Housing Manual. It is specifically designed to give both certainty to house builders, who can be sure of their housing's popularity, whilst also granting security to the community and local authority that new building projects will tie in with local preferences and needs.
Using the BIMBY Toolkit, you will be able to directly influence the quality and beauty of new housing by developing a BIMBY Housing Manual for your area.
You will feel empowered to engage in the siting and design of new homes, by influencing the planning process in a positive, rather than negative way.
You will feel empowered to demand that any new homes planned in your area are well located and well designed, by influencing the planning process in a positive, rather than negative, way.
The finished Manual is designed to:
Welcome developers into a community
Be clear about the placemaking principles, elevational proportions, materials and standards that the local community expect
Smooth the planning process so that there is more planning certainty for the right kind of development up front.
Website;bimby.org.uk
The BIMBY Housing Toolkit is a simple and practical online tool which enables communities, organisations, Local Authorities and developers to collectively or indiividually create a regional BIMBY Housing Manual. It is specifically designed to give both certainty to house builders, who can be sure of their housing's popularity, whilst also granting security to the community and local authority that new building projects will tie in with local preferences and needs.
Using the BIMBY Toolkit, you will be able to directly influence the quality and beauty of new housing by developing a BIMBY Housing Manual for your area.
You will feel empowered to engage in the siting and design of new homes, by influencing the planning process in a positive, rather than negative way.
You will feel empowered to demand that any new homes planned in your area are well located and well designed, by influencing the planning process in a positive, rather than negative, way.
The finished Manual is designed to:
Welcome developers into a community
Be clear about the placemaking principles, elevational proportions, materials and standards that the local community expect
Smooth the planning process so that there is more planning certainty for the right kind of development up front.
Prince's Foundation
Location: Great Britain
Website:
The Prince’s Foundation for Building Community evolved from The Institute of Architecture, established by HRH The Prince of Wales.
We believe that sustainably planned, built and maintained communities improve the quality of life of everyone who is part of them. They help us live better at a local level, and start dealing with the broader global challenges of urbanisation and climate change.
By 2050, the world’s urban population will almost double to nearly 6.5 billion people. We operate across the globe, building the capacity of the planners, architects, engineers, and communities that will be tasked with supporting a rapidly urbanising world. Our work puts people at the heart of creating resilient places – through community engagement and working with people who know their area best. Through educating future generations of practitioners, pioneering practises, and building places, we endeavour to create sustainable, vibrant communities that leave a legacy for future generations.
OUR PRESIDENT’S VISION;
“I wanted to create an organisation both to champion and to show what it means to build harmoniously and in an environmentally friendly manner. It simply cannot be a coincidence that creating places where people actually want to live – that are built with an eye to enduring appeal and versatility and where people can walk from their house to the shop to the local school – leads to more durable, contented and productive communities. And as you will not be surprised to hear, I have always believed that if you want to effect change it is not enough merely to champion an idea, but absolutely vital to make the effort to create tangible examples on the ground that prove this philosophy, and then inspire other communities to do the same.
I am incredibly proud of its commitment to investing in education and sharing knowledge and best practise, which has always been at the core of its work and mission. For over twenty years now, my Foundation has offered broad and much-needed education that is sadly unavailable elsewhere, giving people the kind of integrated, holistic skills they need to create sustainable and beautiful places through programmes such as the Summer School and Graduate Fellowship.
My Foundation now combines this education work with championing community-building worldwide, engaging with all sorts of people across the globe and bringing talented people together to create long-term, practical solutions.”
Website:
The Prince’s Foundation for Building Community evolved from The Institute of Architecture, established by HRH The Prince of Wales.
We believe that sustainably planned, built and maintained communities improve the quality of life of everyone who is part of them. They help us live better at a local level, and start dealing with the broader global challenges of urbanisation and climate change.
By 2050, the world’s urban population will almost double to nearly 6.5 billion people. We operate across the globe, building the capacity of the planners, architects, engineers, and communities that will be tasked with supporting a rapidly urbanising world. Our work puts people at the heart of creating resilient places – through community engagement and working with people who know their area best. Through educating future generations of practitioners, pioneering practises, and building places, we endeavour to create sustainable, vibrant communities that leave a legacy for future generations.
OUR PRESIDENT’S VISION;
“I wanted to create an organisation both to champion and to show what it means to build harmoniously and in an environmentally friendly manner. It simply cannot be a coincidence that creating places where people actually want to live – that are built with an eye to enduring appeal and versatility and where people can walk from their house to the shop to the local school – leads to more durable, contented and productive communities. And as you will not be surprised to hear, I have always believed that if you want to effect change it is not enough merely to champion an idea, but absolutely vital to make the effort to create tangible examples on the ground that prove this philosophy, and then inspire other communities to do the same.
I am incredibly proud of its commitment to investing in education and sharing knowledge and best practise, which has always been at the core of its work and mission. For over twenty years now, my Foundation has offered broad and much-needed education that is sadly unavailable elsewhere, giving people the kind of integrated, holistic skills they need to create sustainable and beautiful places through programmes such as the Summer School and Graduate Fellowship.
My Foundation now combines this education work with championing community-building worldwide, engaging with all sorts of people across the globe and bringing talented people together to create long-term, practical solutions.”
Monday, December 19, 2016
Democracy Collaborative
Location: Nationwide
Website: democracycollaborative.org
Through our cutting edge research and our many diverse programs, The Democracy Collaborative works to carry out a vision of a new economic system where shared ownership and control creates more equitable and inclusive outcomes, fosters ecological sustainability, and promotes flourishing democratic and community life.
We are a national leader in equitable, inclusive and sustainable development through our Community Wealth Building Initiative. This initiative sustains a wide range of Advisory, Research and Field Building activities designed to transform the practice of community/economic development in the United States. We also host the Next System Project, ongoing intellectual work designed to connect Community Wealth Building to the larger context of systemic economic transformation.
Our staff and associates are involved in a wide range of projects involving research, training, policy development, and community-focused work designed to promote an asset-based paradigm of economic development and increase support for transformative strategies among community stakeholders, anchor institutions, and key policymakers. As the premier innovator and leading national voice in the field of Community Wealth Building, we are known for our research and advisory services, as well as informing public policy, promoting new models and strategies, and establishing metrics to advance the field.
Throughout this work, our mission is to catalyze the transformation of our economy, working to build community wealth and create a next system anchored in democratic ownership and based on:
Broadening ownership and stewardship over capital Democracy at the workplace Stabilizing community and emphasizing locality Equitable and inclusive growth Environmental, social, and institutional sustainability
Website: democracycollaborative.org
Through our cutting edge research and our many diverse programs, The Democracy Collaborative works to carry out a vision of a new economic system where shared ownership and control creates more equitable and inclusive outcomes, fosters ecological sustainability, and promotes flourishing democratic and community life.
We are a national leader in equitable, inclusive and sustainable development through our Community Wealth Building Initiative. This initiative sustains a wide range of Advisory, Research and Field Building activities designed to transform the practice of community/economic development in the United States. We also host the Next System Project, ongoing intellectual work designed to connect Community Wealth Building to the larger context of systemic economic transformation.
Our staff and associates are involved in a wide range of projects involving research, training, policy development, and community-focused work designed to promote an asset-based paradigm of economic development and increase support for transformative strategies among community stakeholders, anchor institutions, and key policymakers. As the premier innovator and leading national voice in the field of Community Wealth Building, we are known for our research and advisory services, as well as informing public policy, promoting new models and strategies, and establishing metrics to advance the field.
Throughout this work, our mission is to catalyze the transformation of our economy, working to build community wealth and create a next system anchored in democratic ownership and based on:
Broadening ownership and stewardship over capital Democracy at the workplace Stabilizing community and emphasizing locality Equitable and inclusive growth Environmental, social, and institutional sustainability
Monday, December 12, 2016
NCST
Location: Nationwide
Website: stablecommunities.org/ncst
The U.S. housing market remains extremely uneven. While some areas have rebounded significantly from the recession and have a robust housing market, others – especially communities of color, lower-income areas, and cities where economic activity remains depressed – continue to grapple with high rates of vacant, abandoned and distressed properties that weaken nearby home values, create health and safety risks, lower local tax revenues, and thwart neighborhood revitalization efforts.
The National Community Stabilization Trust (NCST) is a non-profit organization that works to restore vacant and abandoned properties to productive use and protect neighborhoods from blight. Our programs facilitate the rehabilitation of vacant but structurally sound homes, enable safe, targeted demolition when necessary, and support creative and productive re-use of vacant land.
Established in 2008 by the sponsors listed to the left, NCST offers a unique blend of policy expertise and on-the-ground experience working with local partners to eliminate the blight caused by vacant and foreclosed properties and severely delinquent mortgages in distressed communities.
NCST supports neighborhoods and fights blight through these key activities:
Provide community-based buyers an opportunity to acquire vacant, abandoned and distressed properties as part of a neighborhood revitalization strategy. Our First Look REO acquisition program gives local affordable housing and community development organizations the opportunity to obtain properties in their market areas before they are marketed more broadly. In many cases, REO properties can be acquired at discounts that help make it financially feasible for nonprofit buyers to rehabilitate these properties for new occupants.
Partner with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in their Neighborhood Stabilization Initiative.
This partnership offers Fannie and Freddie REO properties to local affordable housing and community development organizations through a special First Look program in 18 strategic markets around the country, mostly east of the Mississippi river.
In collaboration with the Housing Partnership Network (HPN), NCST manages a portfolio of highly distressed mortgages to resolve delinquencies, assist homeowners, and prepare vacant properties for productive disposition. Financial institutions donate these mortgages to NCST and HPN to assist with asset resolution.
Along with many national and local partners, including our six sponsors, we research solutions and advocate for policies to help communities address blight and high rates of vacant, abandoned, and distressed properties.
Offer financing to support local housing work.
Our REO Capital Fund aggregates capital from philanthropic and social investment sources to provide flexible financing for local organizations to acquire and rehabilitate single family homes.
Website: stablecommunities.org/ncst
The U.S. housing market remains extremely uneven. While some areas have rebounded significantly from the recession and have a robust housing market, others – especially communities of color, lower-income areas, and cities where economic activity remains depressed – continue to grapple with high rates of vacant, abandoned and distressed properties that weaken nearby home values, create health and safety risks, lower local tax revenues, and thwart neighborhood revitalization efforts.
The National Community Stabilization Trust (NCST) is a non-profit organization that works to restore vacant and abandoned properties to productive use and protect neighborhoods from blight. Our programs facilitate the rehabilitation of vacant but structurally sound homes, enable safe, targeted demolition when necessary, and support creative and productive re-use of vacant land.
Established in 2008 by the sponsors listed to the left, NCST offers a unique blend of policy expertise and on-the-ground experience working with local partners to eliminate the blight caused by vacant and foreclosed properties and severely delinquent mortgages in distressed communities.
NCST supports neighborhoods and fights blight through these key activities:
Provide community-based buyers an opportunity to acquire vacant, abandoned and distressed properties as part of a neighborhood revitalization strategy. Our First Look REO acquisition program gives local affordable housing and community development organizations the opportunity to obtain properties in their market areas before they are marketed more broadly. In many cases, REO properties can be acquired at discounts that help make it financially feasible for nonprofit buyers to rehabilitate these properties for new occupants.
Partner with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in their Neighborhood Stabilization Initiative.
This partnership offers Fannie and Freddie REO properties to local affordable housing and community development organizations through a special First Look program in 18 strategic markets around the country, mostly east of the Mississippi river.
In collaboration with the Housing Partnership Network (HPN), NCST manages a portfolio of highly distressed mortgages to resolve delinquencies, assist homeowners, and prepare vacant properties for productive disposition. Financial institutions donate these mortgages to NCST and HPN to assist with asset resolution.
Along with many national and local partners, including our six sponsors, we research solutions and advocate for policies to help communities address blight and high rates of vacant, abandoned, and distressed properties.
Offer financing to support local housing work.
Our REO Capital Fund aggregates capital from philanthropic and social investment sources to provide flexible financing for local organizations to acquire and rehabilitate single family homes.
Sunday, December 11, 2016
Property Panel LA
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Website: propertpanel.la
The City of Los Angeles -- on behalf of its residents and taxpayers -- owns a vast portfolio of real estate, encompassing nearly 9,000 distinct parcels located within the County of Los Angeles. These include parks; libraries; municipal facilities; parking lots, and commercial, industrial, retail, office and residential buildings and vacant land. Some are small; some are very large. L.A.’s real estate holdings also include land at and around our airports, the Port of L.A. and properties owned by our nation’s largest municipally owned utility, the Dept. of Water & Power. The City has additional holdings in other California counties and outside the State.
Properties owned by the City serve many community needs and benefits. There are, however, many properties that are underutilized, and which could better serve the public -- be it as public space, revenue-producing income property, low-income housing … and much more. Some properties might benefit from being re-purposed by the City, while others could generate more value for Angelenos by being leased, sold or developed by the City, or in public/private partnerships. PropertyPanel.LA is intended as an informational tool, as a resource and as a call to action for the City to undertake a more organized, professional and strategic approach to our valuable shared public assets.
“Now everyone can know what we all own a piece of,” said Controller Galperin. “The extent of the holdings revealed by this map shows that we as a City have the opportunity to engage in widespread economic and community development, as well as to generate revenue for much-needed City services.
Website: propertpanel.la
The City of Los Angeles -- on behalf of its residents and taxpayers -- owns a vast portfolio of real estate, encompassing nearly 9,000 distinct parcels located within the County of Los Angeles. These include parks; libraries; municipal facilities; parking lots, and commercial, industrial, retail, office and residential buildings and vacant land. Some are small; some are very large. L.A.’s real estate holdings also include land at and around our airports, the Port of L.A. and properties owned by our nation’s largest municipally owned utility, the Dept. of Water & Power. The City has additional holdings in other California counties and outside the State.
Properties owned by the City serve many community needs and benefits. There are, however, many properties that are underutilized, and which could better serve the public -- be it as public space, revenue-producing income property, low-income housing … and much more. Some properties might benefit from being re-purposed by the City, while others could generate more value for Angelenos by being leased, sold or developed by the City, or in public/private partnerships. PropertyPanel.LA is intended as an informational tool, as a resource and as a call to action for the City to undertake a more organized, professional and strategic approach to our valuable shared public assets.
“Now everyone can know what we all own a piece of,” said Controller Galperin. “The extent of the holdings revealed by this map shows that we as a City have the opportunity to engage in widespread economic and community development, as well as to generate revenue for much-needed City services.
Silicon Valley Rising
Location: Silicon Valley, CA
Website: siliconvalleyrising.org
Silicon Valley Rising is a coordinated campaign driven by an unprecedented coalition of labor, faith leaders, community-based organizations and workers.
We aspire to a new vision for Silicon Valley where all workers, their families and communities are valued. We have high expectations for this Valley and for our communities:
We want to be a part of creating a new economic model that rebuilds the middle class.
We want to raise wages and standards for all workers so they can live and thrive here.
And we want to build housing that is affordable and accessible so that our families don't have to live in garages, in their cars, or near a creekbed.
Our campaign is about bringing everyone in this Valley together to solve the biggest challenges of our time.
Website: siliconvalleyrising.org
Silicon Valley Rising is a coordinated campaign driven by an unprecedented coalition of labor, faith leaders, community-based organizations and workers.
We aspire to a new vision for Silicon Valley where all workers, their families and communities are valued. We have high expectations for this Valley and for our communities:
We want to be a part of creating a new economic model that rebuilds the middle class.
We want to raise wages and standards for all workers so they can live and thrive here.
And we want to build housing that is affordable and accessible so that our families don't have to live in garages, in their cars, or near a creekbed.
Our campaign is about bringing everyone in this Valley together to solve the biggest challenges of our time.
Friday, December 9, 2016
DataCommon
Location: Southeast Florida
Website:southeastfloridadatacommon.org
Who Should Use the DataCommon, and How is it Useful?
Easily visualize relevant and meaningful information about your community and constituents to enhance understanding of important issues and inform policymaking.
Planners & Academics -
Find needed data and information at your fingertips to support local and regional planning, grant application development, and community collaborations.
Residents–
Quickly access the important information that you need about your community in a user friendly way
The Southeast Florida DataCommon is a unique tool that can be used to promote better communication, more informed policymaking, and broad-based collaboration around issues of shared importance. It is a resource for grant writers; providing data and analyses of relevant community and regional trends. Information provided in the context of larger issues can further community participation and engagement to bring about positive community change. It provides a portal through which users can easily access and visualize data about Southeast Florida’s communities.
A critical component the DataCommon is the importance and relevance of the information being presented to professional users, academics, policymakers, business leaders, and members of the general public. This platform was developed to encourage and facilitate meaningful dialogue within and amongst these groups. The continued development and expansion of the DataCommon will be instrumental in advancing a shared understanding of the Region and the opportunities and challenges facing our communities and fellow residents. As we explore issues that connect us to one another, better data and collaborative efforts will contribute to the development of public policy and cooperative action plans to support a better future for South Florida. The DataCommon will promote more effective inter-agency data sharing and will serve as a common platform to view pertinent issues in Southeast Florida.
Website:southeastfloridadatacommon.org
Who Should Use the DataCommon, and How is it Useful?
Easily visualize relevant and meaningful information about your community and constituents to enhance understanding of important issues and inform policymaking.
Planners & Academics -
Find needed data and information at your fingertips to support local and regional planning, grant application development, and community collaborations.
Residents–
Quickly access the important information that you need about your community in a user friendly way
The Southeast Florida DataCommon is a unique tool that can be used to promote better communication, more informed policymaking, and broad-based collaboration around issues of shared importance. It is a resource for grant writers; providing data and analyses of relevant community and regional trends. Information provided in the context of larger issues can further community participation and engagement to bring about positive community change. It provides a portal through which users can easily access and visualize data about Southeast Florida’s communities.
A critical component the DataCommon is the importance and relevance of the information being presented to professional users, academics, policymakers, business leaders, and members of the general public. This platform was developed to encourage and facilitate meaningful dialogue within and amongst these groups. The continued development and expansion of the DataCommon will be instrumental in advancing a shared understanding of the Region and the opportunities and challenges facing our communities and fellow residents. As we explore issues that connect us to one another, better data and collaborative efforts will contribute to the development of public policy and cooperative action plans to support a better future for South Florida. The DataCommon will promote more effective inter-agency data sharing and will serve as a common platform to view pertinent issues in Southeast Florida.
Monday, December 5, 2016
The Lowell Plan
Location: Lowell, MA
Website: lowellplan.org
The Lowell Plan, Inc. was established as a nonprofit economic development organization in 1980. For 30 years, the Lowell Plan has sustained constructive and productive dialogue among the city’s key leaders in business, government, education, and community development. Visitors from around the country and the world have asked how the city has become a model of urban revitalization. They want to know the formula. In its simplest terms, the answer is that Lowell’s public and private leaders have maintained an ongoing dialogue that has yielded practical responses to the challenges and opportunities facing the city.
The formula sounds simple, but it was revolutionary at the outset. The Lowell Plan created a neutral ground where public and private sector officials could speak candidly and collaborate on priority issues. Through the years the names and faces have changed, but the board’s structure and reputation for getting results ensure that the pieces keep coming together month after month.
The Lowell Plan has shown itself to be bold, versatile, and effective from funding the American City Corp.’s Downtown Master Plan and the Lowell Model for Educational Excellence in the early years to undertaking the feasibility study for the Tsongas Arena and the market analysis for a minor-league baseball team in the middle years—to recently funding the Urban Land Institute and Creative Economy Studies and administering the National Park’s trolley extension project. Click on past projects for a listing of the Lowell Plan’s involvement in Lowell since 1980.
Going forward, the Lowell Plan is committed to fostering a dialogue that will take Lowell well into the 21st century as a city with a productive and sustainable economy; lifelong educational opportunities; and vibrant and diverse cultural offerings. With a belief in the value of community service, the Lowell Plan make civic engagement a priority through its support of the leadership program “Public Matters.”
Lowell shines when the community’s best talent, backed by resources, is put to work to achieve common objectives. As we have done so often in our 30-year history, the Lowell Plan will work to achieve consensus on future courses of action to ensure the city’s ongoing revitalization.
Lowell will be the best city of its size in America. The Lowell Plan commits its resources to this goal, which will be achieved through partnership with the public sector in a renewed commitment to dialogue followed by action.
Website: lowellplan.org
The Lowell Plan, Inc. was established as a nonprofit economic development organization in 1980. For 30 years, the Lowell Plan has sustained constructive and productive dialogue among the city’s key leaders in business, government, education, and community development. Visitors from around the country and the world have asked how the city has become a model of urban revitalization. They want to know the formula. In its simplest terms, the answer is that Lowell’s public and private leaders have maintained an ongoing dialogue that has yielded practical responses to the challenges and opportunities facing the city.
The formula sounds simple, but it was revolutionary at the outset. The Lowell Plan created a neutral ground where public and private sector officials could speak candidly and collaborate on priority issues. Through the years the names and faces have changed, but the board’s structure and reputation for getting results ensure that the pieces keep coming together month after month.
The Lowell Plan has shown itself to be bold, versatile, and effective from funding the American City Corp.’s Downtown Master Plan and the Lowell Model for Educational Excellence in the early years to undertaking the feasibility study for the Tsongas Arena and the market analysis for a minor-league baseball team in the middle years—to recently funding the Urban Land Institute and Creative Economy Studies and administering the National Park’s trolley extension project. Click on past projects for a listing of the Lowell Plan’s involvement in Lowell since 1980.
Going forward, the Lowell Plan is committed to fostering a dialogue that will take Lowell well into the 21st century as a city with a productive and sustainable economy; lifelong educational opportunities; and vibrant and diverse cultural offerings. With a belief in the value of community service, the Lowell Plan make civic engagement a priority through its support of the leadership program “Public Matters.”
Lowell shines when the community’s best talent, backed by resources, is put to work to achieve common objectives. As we have done so often in our 30-year history, the Lowell Plan will work to achieve consensus on future courses of action to ensure the city’s ongoing revitalization.
Lowell will be the best city of its size in America. The Lowell Plan commits its resources to this goal, which will be achieved through partnership with the public sector in a renewed commitment to dialogue followed by action.
Saturday, December 3, 2016
L.A. Conservancy
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Website: laconservancy.org
Think about your favorite building in Greater Los Angeles. Chances are, it’s one of the fantastic historic places that help make the region unique. The Los Angeles Conservancy works every day – as we have since 1978 – to make sure these places survive and thrive for future generations.
A private, member-based nonprofit, the L.A. Conservancy was formed in 1978 as part of the effort to prevent demolition of the stunning Los Angeles Central Library. What started as a handful of concerned citizens is now the largest group of its kind in the U.S., with more than 6,000 member households, hundreds of volunteers, and a full-time staff of nearly twenty.
The Conservancy is based in downtown Los Angeles but works throughout L.A. County—which spans 88 cities plus the County’s unincorporated areas.We work through education and advocacy to raise awareness of historic places, prevent their needless demolition, empower people to save the places they love, and foster strong preservation laws and incentives.
Why Preserve Historic Places?
As people rely more on technology and virtual connections, and as cookie-cutter development makes cities look more and more alike, we have a growing need for authenticity, character, and distinction. We don’t want our communities to look like everyone else’s. Historic buildings, structures, landscapes, and neighborhoods help fill this critical need. They tell great stories, give us a sense of place, help us learn who we are and what we value as a culture, and embody our shared history.
The L.A. Conservancy has a vision of Los Angeles as a place that values our past and considers it an essential part of our present and future. The Conservancy is a nonprofit membership organization that works through education and advocacy to recognize, preserve, and revitalize the historic architectural and cultural resources of Los Angeles County.
We raise awareness of the value of historic places in strengthening communities, fostering economic development, and enriching lives.
For more than thirty-five years, our walking tours, special events, and other programs have brought countless Los Angeles residents and visitors closer to the beautiful buildings and unique spaces that make Los Angeles County so special. Our educational programs have introduced many people to the history and value of Greater Los Angeles' built environment.
We also work on a vast range of preservation issues throughout Los Angeles County, both proactively and in response to specific threats to historic cultural and architectural resources.
We provide technical assistance and resources to help people enjoy and preserve the historic places they love.
The largest local preservation group in the United States, our large and active membership reflects an unprecedented level of support for L.A.'s historic resources and we continue to gain ground in making preservation part of public policy, urban planning, and public consciousness.
Website: laconservancy.org
Think about your favorite building in Greater Los Angeles. Chances are, it’s one of the fantastic historic places that help make the region unique. The Los Angeles Conservancy works every day – as we have since 1978 – to make sure these places survive and thrive for future generations.
A private, member-based nonprofit, the L.A. Conservancy was formed in 1978 as part of the effort to prevent demolition of the stunning Los Angeles Central Library. What started as a handful of concerned citizens is now the largest group of its kind in the U.S., with more than 6,000 member households, hundreds of volunteers, and a full-time staff of nearly twenty.
The Conservancy is based in downtown Los Angeles but works throughout L.A. County—which spans 88 cities plus the County’s unincorporated areas.We work through education and advocacy to raise awareness of historic places, prevent their needless demolition, empower people to save the places they love, and foster strong preservation laws and incentives.
Why Preserve Historic Places?
As people rely more on technology and virtual connections, and as cookie-cutter development makes cities look more and more alike, we have a growing need for authenticity, character, and distinction. We don’t want our communities to look like everyone else’s. Historic buildings, structures, landscapes, and neighborhoods help fill this critical need. They tell great stories, give us a sense of place, help us learn who we are and what we value as a culture, and embody our shared history.
The L.A. Conservancy has a vision of Los Angeles as a place that values our past and considers it an essential part of our present and future. The Conservancy is a nonprofit membership organization that works through education and advocacy to recognize, preserve, and revitalize the historic architectural and cultural resources of Los Angeles County.
We raise awareness of the value of historic places in strengthening communities, fostering economic development, and enriching lives.
For more than thirty-five years, our walking tours, special events, and other programs have brought countless Los Angeles residents and visitors closer to the beautiful buildings and unique spaces that make Los Angeles County so special. Our educational programs have introduced many people to the history and value of Greater Los Angeles' built environment.
We also work on a vast range of preservation issues throughout Los Angeles County, both proactively and in response to specific threats to historic cultural and architectural resources.
We provide technical assistance and resources to help people enjoy and preserve the historic places they love.
The largest local preservation group in the United States, our large and active membership reflects an unprecedented level of support for L.A.'s historic resources and we continue to gain ground in making preservation part of public policy, urban planning, and public consciousness.
Pit Stop
Location: San Francisco, CA
Website: sfpublicworks.org/pitstop
San Francisco Public Works operates the Pit Stop program, which provides clean and safe public toilets, sinks, used needle receptacles and dog waste stations in San Francisco's most impacted neighborhoods.
The program utilizes both portable toilets, which are trucked to and from the sites daily after overnight servicing at a remote location, and the semi-permanent JCDecaux self-cleaning toilets.
All the Pit Stop facilities are staffed by paid attendants who help ensure that the toilets are well maintained and used for their intended purpose. The program, which began in July 2014, now operates at 11 locations, providing an alternative to using our streets and sidewalks as a toilet. Not only do the people who need a bathroom benefit, but so do the neighborhoods.
Website: sfpublicworks.org/pitstop
San Francisco Public Works operates the Pit Stop program, which provides clean and safe public toilets, sinks, used needle receptacles and dog waste stations in San Francisco's most impacted neighborhoods.
The program utilizes both portable toilets, which are trucked to and from the sites daily after overnight servicing at a remote location, and the semi-permanent JCDecaux self-cleaning toilets.
All the Pit Stop facilities are staffed by paid attendants who help ensure that the toilets are well maintained and used for their intended purpose. The program, which began in July 2014, now operates at 11 locations, providing an alternative to using our streets and sidewalks as a toilet. Not only do the people who need a bathroom benefit, but so do the neighborhoods.
Tuesday, November 29, 2016
Resiliant Landscape Guide
Location: International
Website:asla.org/resilientdesign.aspx
Working with nature -- instead of in opposition to it -- helps communities become more resilient and come back stronger after disruptive natural events. Long-term resilience is about continuously bouncing back and regenerating. It's about learning how to cope with the ever-changing “new normal.”
As events become more frequent and intense due to climate change, communities must adapt and redevelop to reduce risks and improve ecological and human health. It's also time to stop putting communities and infrastructure in high-risk places. And we need to reduce sprawl, which further exacerbates the risks.
Resilient landscape planning and design offers a way forward for communities. We can now use multi-layered systems of protection, with diverse, scalable elements, any one of which can fail safely in the event of a catastrophe.
Many communities have attempted to find a single solution to disasters through heavy-handed infrastructure projects: walls to keep out water, power plants to cool cities. But working with nature to create multi-layered defenses provides several co-benefits.
For example, constructed coastal buffers, made of reefs and sand, can also provide wildlife habitat and recreation opportunities; urban forests made up of diverse species clean the air while reducing the urban heat island effect; and green infrastructure designed to control flooding also provides needed community space and creates jobs.
The goal of resilient landscape planning and design is to retrofit our communities to recover more quickly from extreme events, now and in the future. In an era when disasters can cause traditional, built systems to fail, adaptive, multi-layered systems can maintain their vital functions and are often the more cost-effective and practical solutions.
In an age of rising waters and temperatures and diminishing budgets, the best defenses are adaptive, like nature.
This guide is organized around disruptive events that communities now experience: drought, extreme heat, fire, flooding, landslides, and, importantly, biodiversity loss, which subverts our ability to work with nature.
The guide includes numerous case studies and resources demonstrating multi-benefit systems as well as the small-scale solutions that fit within those. The guide also explains landscape architects’ role in the planning and design teams helping to make communities more resilient.
Website:asla.org/resilientdesign.aspx
Working with nature -- instead of in opposition to it -- helps communities become more resilient and come back stronger after disruptive natural events. Long-term resilience is about continuously bouncing back and regenerating. It's about learning how to cope with the ever-changing “new normal.”
As events become more frequent and intense due to climate change, communities must adapt and redevelop to reduce risks and improve ecological and human health. It's also time to stop putting communities and infrastructure in high-risk places. And we need to reduce sprawl, which further exacerbates the risks.
Resilient landscape planning and design offers a way forward for communities. We can now use multi-layered systems of protection, with diverse, scalable elements, any one of which can fail safely in the event of a catastrophe.
Many communities have attempted to find a single solution to disasters through heavy-handed infrastructure projects: walls to keep out water, power plants to cool cities. But working with nature to create multi-layered defenses provides several co-benefits.
For example, constructed coastal buffers, made of reefs and sand, can also provide wildlife habitat and recreation opportunities; urban forests made up of diverse species clean the air while reducing the urban heat island effect; and green infrastructure designed to control flooding also provides needed community space and creates jobs.
The goal of resilient landscape planning and design is to retrofit our communities to recover more quickly from extreme events, now and in the future. In an era when disasters can cause traditional, built systems to fail, adaptive, multi-layered systems can maintain their vital functions and are often the more cost-effective and practical solutions.
In an age of rising waters and temperatures and diminishing budgets, the best defenses are adaptive, like nature.
This guide is organized around disruptive events that communities now experience: drought, extreme heat, fire, flooding, landslides, and, importantly, biodiversity loss, which subverts our ability to work with nature.
The guide includes numerous case studies and resources demonstrating multi-benefit systems as well as the small-scale solutions that fit within those. The guide also explains landscape architects’ role in the planning and design teams helping to make communities more resilient.
American Architectural Foundation
Location: Nationwide
arch Website: archfoundation.org
The American Architectural Foundation (AAF) is dedicated to the vibrant social, economic, and environmental future of cities. In the past decade alone, AAF has worked directly with local leaders through more than 500 city engagements. During this time, AAF has served every major metropolitan region and most second-tier cities in the United States. All told, it has provided design leadership training and technical assistance to hundreds of elected officials, public-private partnerships, education leaders, business leaders, and other key local decision makers in the design process.
These engagements are based on real-world challenges and opportunities from the participants’ cities, which provide the focus for intensive, collaborative design leadership programs. The overarching goal is to equip these leaders with the knowledge, inspiration, and resources that they need to lead their communities to transformative change through design.
To inform its efforts, AAF leverages its extensive network of city leaders and design innovators. Their collective experience and expertise is rich in depth and diversity, spanning such key sectors as building design and construction, urban planning, landscape, transportation, infrastructure, finance, and communications. Underlying all these concerns is a commitment to advancing the cause of sustainability.
The impact of AAF’s efforts is visible in the local design leadership behind hundreds of projects across the United States, ranging from brownfield remediation to waterfront redevelopment to downtown corridor revitalization.
arch Website: archfoundation.org
The American Architectural Foundation (AAF) is dedicated to the vibrant social, economic, and environmental future of cities. In the past decade alone, AAF has worked directly with local leaders through more than 500 city engagements. During this time, AAF has served every major metropolitan region and most second-tier cities in the United States. All told, it has provided design leadership training and technical assistance to hundreds of elected officials, public-private partnerships, education leaders, business leaders, and other key local decision makers in the design process.
These engagements are based on real-world challenges and opportunities from the participants’ cities, which provide the focus for intensive, collaborative design leadership programs. The overarching goal is to equip these leaders with the knowledge, inspiration, and resources that they need to lead their communities to transformative change through design.
To inform its efforts, AAF leverages its extensive network of city leaders and design innovators. Their collective experience and expertise is rich in depth and diversity, spanning such key sectors as building design and construction, urban planning, landscape, transportation, infrastructure, finance, and communications. Underlying all these concerns is a commitment to advancing the cause of sustainability.
The impact of AAF’s efforts is visible in the local design leadership behind hundreds of projects across the United States, ranging from brownfield remediation to waterfront redevelopment to downtown corridor revitalization.
Tuesday, November 8, 2016
Indego
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Website: www.rideindego.com
The City of Philadelphia launched Indego in 2015 as the newest form of public transportation. With more than 1000 self-service bikes and more than 105 stations, Indego offers 24/7 access to the City on your schedule. Indego is an initiative of the City of Philadelphia and sponsored by Independence Blue Cross.
Indego was launched with a strategic focus on making a bike share that is accessible and equitable to all Philadelphians, and is the lead partner of the Better Bike Share Partnership, a collaboration funded by The JPB Foundation to build equitable and replicable bike share systems.
The Better Bike Share partnership supported the City of Philadelphia’s equity goals for Indego when the system launched in April of 2015, including the placement of 19 Indego stations in underserved neighborhoods, the industry’s first integrated cash payment option, and outreach and education work in partnership with the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia.
Earlier this year, the City of Philadelphia, with funding from the William Penn Foundation, added 30 additional stations to connect underserved communities with parks, waterways and resources throughout Philadelphia. This spring also marked the launch of the Indego30 Access pass.Since April, over 1,000 people have purchased an Access pass, taking more than 16,000 trips.
Website: www.rideindego.com
The City of Philadelphia launched Indego in 2015 as the newest form of public transportation. With more than 1000 self-service bikes and more than 105 stations, Indego offers 24/7 access to the City on your schedule. Indego is an initiative of the City of Philadelphia and sponsored by Independence Blue Cross.
Indego was launched with a strategic focus on making a bike share that is accessible and equitable to all Philadelphians, and is the lead partner of the Better Bike Share Partnership, a collaboration funded by The JPB Foundation to build equitable and replicable bike share systems.
The Better Bike Share partnership supported the City of Philadelphia’s equity goals for Indego when the system launched in April of 2015, including the placement of 19 Indego stations in underserved neighborhoods, the industry’s first integrated cash payment option, and outreach and education work in partnership with the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia.
Earlier this year, the City of Philadelphia, with funding from the William Penn Foundation, added 30 additional stations to connect underserved communities with parks, waterways and resources throughout Philadelphia. This spring also marked the launch of the Indego30 Access pass.Since April, over 1,000 people have purchased an Access pass, taking more than 16,000 trips.
Thursday, September 8, 2016
UD/MH
Location: International
Website: urbandesignmentalhealth.com
The Centre for Urban Design and Mental Health (UD/MH) is a start-up think tank focused on answering one question: how can we design better mental health into our cities?
More people are living and working in urban environments than ever before - and these environments affect how we feel. Urban design by architects, transport designers, city planners, developers, interior designers, urban gardeners, street artists, and many more impact our mental health as we move around our built environments.
The Centre for Urban Design and Mental Health: Reviews the breadth of research on urban design and mental health, summarizes, and identifies gaps.
Catalyzes interdisciplinary dialogue on urban design and mental health in cities around the world.
Showcases successful projects and innovative ideas,
Develops practical, evidence-based recommendations to improve mental health and reduce mental illness through urban design.
Mission:
To help inform, motivate and empower policymakers, designers, planners, and public health professionals to build better mental health into their cities through smarter urban design.
Vision:
To be a central repository and global go-to resource for policymakers, architects, transport planners, urban planners, developers, designers, engineers, geographers, and others who want to design better mental health into cities, and drive integration of mental health into urban design as standard.
Approach:
Share knowledge -
UD/MH brings together useful research, ideas, experiences and intelligence from across the world and shares it on our platforms to increase its reach and make it more accessible to academics and diverse city makers. We also publish external op-eds and participate in conferences and other events to share knowledge and inspire new audiences into action.
Increase knowledge -
There is still much we need to learn about how urban design can improve mental health. UD/MH encourages research and sharing of ideas and experience by providing global platforms for publication - the Journal of Urban Design and Mental Health, and our Sanity and Urbanity blog.
We also encourage investment in research focused on this field.
Improve cross-sector communication -
We convene cross-sector dialogues in cities around the world, bringing together experts from architecture, urban planning, transport, geography, public health, psychiatry, and many more to identify opportunities and discuss potential collaborations.
Empower practical action
UD/MH works closely with those involved in policy-making and on-the-ground citymaking to understand the barriers to integrating better mental health into urban design, and tries to help address these barriers by inputting to consultations and producing practical, evidence-based advice.
UD/MH launched in July 2015.
Website: urbandesignmentalhealth.com
The Centre for Urban Design and Mental Health (UD/MH) is a start-up think tank focused on answering one question: how can we design better mental health into our cities?
More people are living and working in urban environments than ever before - and these environments affect how we feel. Urban design by architects, transport designers, city planners, developers, interior designers, urban gardeners, street artists, and many more impact our mental health as we move around our built environments.
The Centre for Urban Design and Mental Health: Reviews the breadth of research on urban design and mental health, summarizes, and identifies gaps.
Catalyzes interdisciplinary dialogue on urban design and mental health in cities around the world.
Showcases successful projects and innovative ideas,
Develops practical, evidence-based recommendations to improve mental health and reduce mental illness through urban design.
Mission:
To help inform, motivate and empower policymakers, designers, planners, and public health professionals to build better mental health into their cities through smarter urban design.
Vision:
To be a central repository and global go-to resource for policymakers, architects, transport planners, urban planners, developers, designers, engineers, geographers, and others who want to design better mental health into cities, and drive integration of mental health into urban design as standard.
Approach:
Share knowledge -
UD/MH brings together useful research, ideas, experiences and intelligence from across the world and shares it on our platforms to increase its reach and make it more accessible to academics and diverse city makers. We also publish external op-eds and participate in conferences and other events to share knowledge and inspire new audiences into action.
Increase knowledge -
There is still much we need to learn about how urban design can improve mental health. UD/MH encourages research and sharing of ideas and experience by providing global platforms for publication - the Journal of Urban Design and Mental Health, and our Sanity and Urbanity blog.
We also encourage investment in research focused on this field.
Improve cross-sector communication -
We convene cross-sector dialogues in cities around the world, bringing together experts from architecture, urban planning, transport, geography, public health, psychiatry, and many more to identify opportunities and discuss potential collaborations.
Empower practical action
UD/MH works closely with those involved in policy-making and on-the-ground citymaking to understand the barriers to integrating better mental health into urban design, and tries to help address these barriers by inputting to consultations and producing practical, evidence-based advice.
UD/MH launched in July 2015.
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