• Thanksgiving and the magic of community

    This holiday is about places and people and memory, and that has an impact on how we build and experience cities and towns.
    To me, Thanksgiving smells of cool gray skies, bare trees, decaying leaves, and an old town in Connecticut. That’s where we spent many Thanksgivings when I was a child—at the 19 th Century house of an aunt and uncle. We always went for a walk—several walks—the older and younger ones together with...Read more
  • Form, not content, dictates the ‘smart’ city

    Traditional urbanism is the livable and sustainable alternative to what is being promised in breathtaking futuristic renderings of glass and steel structures.
    Lament: Those who learn from history are forced to live with those who do not. We suffer the consequences of the ignorant repeating known mistakes. Unspoken truths: Form has always been the primary interest of the architectural designer. Within the design professions, peer recognition is valued...Read more
  • The urban dimensions of climate change: Lessons for a New Urbanism

    Reining in sprawl is still the most important first step in transitioning to a more benign kind of settlement, and more responsible planning. Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is only one of many benefits—but it is a significant one.
    There is an intriguing paradox within the inventories of greenhouse gas emissions per capita—the emissions that each of us generates through our daily activities of moving, interacting, and consuming resources. Those who live in an average settlement in the United States consume and emit on average...Read more