Posted by Kaid Benfield in Living Sustainably
In an article published in The Wall Street Journal on June 29, June Fletcher reports a new survey showing that large houses have fallen out of favor with the American homebuying market: "A new study out Monday by the American...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Environmental Justice , Living Sustainably
Warning: this is a long one. Readers of a certain age will remember Joni's Mitchell's iconic anthem "Woodstock," celebrating the famous 1969 music festival (which, incidentally, she did not attend, but I digress). The song became a monster hit for...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Health and the Environment , Living Sustainably
Streetfilms has released a great short video about how our streets and traffic patterns pose particular challenges to senior citizens on foot. With the assistance of New York City's Transportation Alternatives, that city's impressive DOT has begun an earnest look...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Living Sustainably , Solving Global Warming , U.S. Law and Policy
Tyler Caine has a terrific post on his sustainability blog Intercon extolling climate change policy to get on the smart growth bandwagon. He says it extremely well, so I am just going to quote a few bits and...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Health and the Environment , Living Sustainably
Last fall, I posted a two-part photo essay on school sprawl and the alternatives. As I wrote then (in Part 1), "schools used to be the heart of a neighborhood or community. Children and not a few teachers...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Living Sustainably
Cut'n'Paste Cities is a web-based participatory project that invites readers to share what they like best (and least) about cities, through their own photographs: "A global call to action and an invitation to urban dwellers to describe through photography...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Living Sustainably , Solving Global Warming
In the June 2009 issue of New Urban News, researchers Lawrence Frank and Sarah Kavage report that "location [of a neighborhood] within a region" is a highly significant determinant of residents' travel behavior and, therefore, "containing development at the fringe...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Health and the Environment , Living Sustainably , Saving Wildlife and Wild Places
These wonderful photographs of Frederick County, Maryland, are all by my friend Kai Hagen, writer, photographer, conservationist, entrepeneur, and County Commissioner. Kai is concerned that development is sprawling out onto prime soils even while there are ample sites within...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise , Living Sustainably , Solving Global Warming
This is the final installment of my miniseries about Cincinnati's remarkable Over-the-Rhine neighborhood, potentially a national model for smart, green revitalization. For previous posts in the series, visit Part 1 (the legacy and the challenge), Part 2 (building on...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise , Living Sustainably , Moving Beyond Oil , Solving Global Warming
For the most part, the climate change establishment - whether in government, industry, or the environmental community - has ignored the potential of land use strategies to provide significant reductions in carbon emissions while also producing multiple other environmental, economic,...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise , Living Sustainably , Moving Beyond Oil , Solving Global Warming
Grist has an informative and fun read, written by Jonathan Hiskes and Katharine Wroth, on "the best US transit systems you never knew existed": "As cities big and small rethink how their residents get around, new systems are taking...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Living Sustainably , Solving Global Warming , U.S. Law and Policy
This is not your father's DOT. A couple of days ago I wrote a post on the remarkable (and now three-agency) partnership on sustainable communities within the Obama administration. Secretaries Ray LaHood (DOT) and Shaun Donovan (HUD) and Administrator Lisa...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Green Enterprise , Living Sustainably
Barry Didcock, a contributor to Glasgow's Sunday Herald, seems to think it can. Me, I don't know that architecture can set my soul "free," exactly, but I believe it can indeed be soul-stirring and soul-nourishing. The question arises...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Living Sustainably , Solving Global Warming , U.S. Law and Policy
The more the merrier, and one only wonders what took them so long. Back in March, the Obama administration announced an exciting new partnership between the federal transportation and housing & urban development departments to pursue together an agenda for...continued→
Posted by Kaid Benfield in Environmental Justice , Green Enterprise , Living Sustainably , Solving Global Warming
This was going to be the final installment of my miniseries about Cincinnati's remarkable Over-the-Rhine neighborhood, but I'm on too much of a roll to finish today. (Or, as my man Van would put it, "it's too late to stop...continued→
