The Trailer Park as Affordable Urban Housing?
Where I grew up, a lot of people lived in mobile homes, as a way to enter the housing market at an affordable price. Still do. And now there is […]
Beyond the Stimulus: Whither Communities In The Next Transportation Bill?
I am immensely grateful to my colleagues at NRDC and in the broader smart growth movement for being on top of what’s been going on in the stimulus negotiations, particularly […]
Two Americas On Display: DC & Las Vegas
I was struck by two hugely contrasting stories in Sunday’s Real Estate section of The Washington Post. If you want evidence that John Edwards’s “two Americas” campaign theme had substance […]
Transforming the market for development location
One of the most popular tags on the blogging site of my organization, NRDC, is “market transformation.” I’m a believer. Not everything we need for sustainable development can be accomplished […]
To The New First Family: Welcome To My Hometown
What an exciting time to be a D.C. resident. In this historic and wonderful week, the Obamas are moving not only to a new job but also to a new […]
Parks For Revitalization
The image in this post, which photographer Bill Lim has made available to us through the wonder of the Creative Commons, is of the beautiful Martin Luther King, Jr., memorial […]
Visions for Transforming America
President-elect Obama will take office next week vowing to fight climate change, tackle oil dependency and revive the U.S. economy. NRDC believes that smart growth and transit are a big […]
For The Holidays: These Are a Few of My Favorite…Places
Herewith, some of my very favorite smart, livable places that are contributing positively to the environment, as I’ve written about them on my NRDC blog over the past year. When […]
President-Elect Obama on Smart Growth, Transportation, Cities, and Regions
[Editor’s note: The links in this post to Barack Obama’s campaign position papers are no longer active. The Obama White House archives are here, and will have documents related to […]
Smart, Sustainable Development Can Aid Economic Recovery
Whatever Wall Street does next, we’re going to have to find more efficiencies in our economy. Consumers are going to have less to spend on things like housing, utilities, and […]
Portland Shrinks Carbon Footprint with Revitalization, Walkability
Portland, Oregon has become such a recognized model of progressive planning and development that people like me are actually discouraged from talking about the region in professional circles. “Everybody already […]
Needed: National Leadership for Sustainable Development
Imagine a country of walkable neighborhoods, transportation choices, healthy homes, less time in traffic, and more disposable income, complemented by a beautiful landscape of conservation lands and working forests and farms. That is still within our reach with vision and leadership.