• Louisville creek restoration funded, subject of CNU Legacy Project

    CNU Legacy Projects have addressed widely diverse urban issues, and Beargrass Creek in Louisville is more distinct than most. The 2019 project , led by Gresham Smith , looked at a neglected urban waterway and how its restoration could impact 14 diverse neighborhoods. Legacy Projects, intended to...Read more

  • Receiver places: Planning for climate migration

    Receiver places, a term coined by urbanists for communities likely to gain migrants as climate problems grow, refers to not just physical places but also a process of preparing for change. “ Managed retreat ” is a related term, the other side of the coin to a receiver place. “Managed” implies that...Read more

  • Ambitious plan to replace tree canopy lost to storm

    In just over an hour, Cedar Rapids lost more than half of its trees—the recently adopted plan has lessons for many cities.
    Cedar Rapids, Iowa, will plant 42,000 street and park trees and advise private landowners on how to replace a half million more to recover from a major August, 2020, derecho storm. The 10-year equitable tree recovery plan, ReLeaf Cedar Rapids , is a collaboration of the city, nonprofit Trees...Read more

  • What cities will receive climate migrants?

    A group of urbanists has compiled a list of “receiver cities and towns” from across the US, and identified principles for how communities can become more resilient to climate change.
    In new urbanists circles, there has been talk for years about “receiver cities”—places that are likely to gain migrants as climate change problems grow—but nobody has carefully defined what that means, until now. Place Initiative , an organization of young urbanists focusing on climate and equity,...Read more