Director, Sustainable Communities, NRDC; co-founder, LEED for Neighborhood Development rating system; co-founder, Smart Growth America coalition; author, Once There Were Greenfields (NRDC 1999), Solving Sprawl (Island Press 2001), Smart Growth In a Changing World (APA Planners Press 2007), Green Community (APA Planners Press 2009); voted one of the "top urban thinkers" in poll on Planetizen.com and named one of "the most influential people in sustainable planning and development" by the Partnership for Sustainable Communities.
Attorney, recovering litigator, cyclist, blogger, dreamer.
Follow Kaid on Twitter: @Kaid_at_NRDC.
Posted February 3, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise, Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
WheelChange, an advocate for new, smart multi-modal transportation systems, asserts that a more sustainable future of personal transportation could be based on communications technology, smaller vehicles, and sharing: “By enabling a diverse set of existing and new transportation options to work...continued→
Posted February 2, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Health and the Environment, Living Sustainably
As regular readers may remember, I am fascinated by the relationship of our cities, and the way they are configured, to our mental and emotional well-being. The relationship of urban form to physical health is finally getting some of...continued→
Posted February 1, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise, Living Sustainably
A bad economy hurts sustainability, in part because sustainability requires new approaches that must be funded, frequently with money from investors able and willing to take chances, or from local governments whose revenues are tied to declining property values or...continued→
Posted January 31, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise, Living Sustainably
Where I come from, a lot of affordable housing – especially rural and semi-rural housing – takes the form of mobile homes. Nothing wrong with that. But I wouldn’t expect to find many in the city of Boston, and...continued→
Posted January 30, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Health and the Environment, Living Sustainably
Hackescher Markt, Berlin I’m not sure there is any one word that describes my concept of a sustainable community place more than walkability. At least when it comes to describing the physical aspects of a place. Is it...continued→
Posted January 27, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Living Sustainably
Cartoon from xkcd via NRDC's OnEarth website. Kaid Benfield writes (almost) daily about community, development, and the environment. For more posts, see his blog's home page. Please also visit NRDC’s sustainable communities video channel....continued→
Posted January 26, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise, Living Sustainably, Solving Global Warming
I’m fond of saying that the best-conceived plan for managing growth and development in North America is the Places to Grow framework adopted by the province of Ontario, Canada. Constructed pursuant to enabling legislation adopted by the province in...continued→
Posted January 25, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Curbing Pollution, Green Enterprise, Living Sustainably
(Note: Today’s post was conceived and largely authored by my friend and frequent collaborator, Lee Epstein. Lee is an attorney, land use planner, and sustainability advocate working in the mid-Atlantic region.) As NRDC’s water program rightfully emphasizes, one of...continued→
Posted January 24, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise, Living Sustainably, Solving Global Warming
We already know that, in many cases, retaining older buildings - especially those of architectural or historic character - can strengthen the enduring legacy and enjoyment of a community. But is it good for the environment? Lots of people...continued→
Posted January 23, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Curbing Pollution, Living Sustainably
When you look at the official US drought monitor map, you immediately see that many American cities may be in the wrong places for long-term water sustainability. In particullar, note the presence of “long-term,” severe-to-extreme drought conditions across most...continued→
Posted January 20, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Health and the Environment, Living Sustainably
A provocative new 4-hour series soon to air on public television, Designing Healthy Communities, examines the impact of our built environment on key public health indices, including obesity, diabetes, heart disease, asthma, cancer and depression. The series documents the...continued→
Posted January 19, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise, Living Sustainably
Washington, DC is finally getting a green waterfront development to be proud of. A 42-acre redevelopment along the Anacostia River, The Yards will comprise some 1.8 million square feet of office space, 400,000 square feet of retail and cultural...continued→
Posted January 18, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise, Health and the Environment
Where would you rather be? Here? Or here? Let’s try it again. This time assume you are an environmentalist who understands that we need more urban density in order to reduce suburban sprawl. You’re hoping to persuade a...continued→
Posted January 17, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise, Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
We know it’s just a matter of time before gasoline prices go up again, right? And another matter of time before they go up yet again. The era when low-cost driving made far-flung living – 30-minute car trips to...continued→
Posted January 16, 2012 by Kaid Benfield in Environmental Justice, Living Sustainably
I am old enough and was lucky enough to have heard Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. speak in person. It was not long before his death, at a mountain retreat facility owned by the Baptist church, not far from...continued→
Switchboard is the staff blog of the Natural Resources Defense Council, the nation’s most effective environmental group. For more about our work, including in-depth policy documents, action alerts and ways you can contribute, visit NRDC.org.
