• Pre-fab home of the future, descended from the log cabin

    An economically promising pre-fab dwelling, built from solid timber, was displayed on the National Mall this summer. An untrained crew put the accessory dwelling together in a few days.
    The house of the future may be descended from Abe Lincoln’s cabin. Solid timber construction has practical and economic advantages, especially relating to accessory dwelling units (ADUs), a popular form of housing being legalized in states and cities across the US. Andres Duany of DPZ CoDesign...Read more

  • Inspiring the future of livable places

    The IMCL Conference in Cortona, Italy, enabled urbanists from around the world to share effective tools and strategies, backed up by research findings, for the creation and preservation of livable cities.
    For hundreds of years, cloisters—enclosed gardens surrounded by covered walkways – have been the backdrop for study, contemplation, and exchanging great ideas. In Cortona, Italy, the cloister of the historic convent Sant’ Agostino served this purpose again, for the 61st International Making Cities...Read more

  • On Thanksgiving, it matters where you walk

    This holiday, experience the magic of a city or town. Let that become part of your family experience. It may change your life.
    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 generations together...Read more

  • ‘Vertical Evolution Cottage’ offers affordable variety

    A design for a North Carolina Habitat for Humanity chapter fits a range of infill locations with standardized production.
    In Brunswick County, North Carolina, the local Habitat for Humanity chapter builds houses on varied lot sizes, and it needs a flexible design that would fit into existing neighborhoods. The Vertical Evolution Cottage by Moser Design Group (MDG) won a merit award from the Urban Guild this year for a...Read more