The fifth World Planning Schools Congress this coming August, organized on the theme Planning a Global Village: Inclusion, Innovation, and Disruption, will step up cross-border movement of planning ideas and practices.

Planning educators will meet in Bali, Indonesia and virtually, August 29 - September 2, in what will be the fifth World Planning Schools Congress (WPSC). The Call for Submissions is now open with a deadline of February 28, as they seek involvement of teachers and researchers from universities around the globe.
Today's U.S. urban planning includes many practices that originated in diverse countries, including bus rapid transit (Brazil) and urban districts designed with the intention of periodic flooding (China). WPSC V is a rare opportunity to gather planning educators to exchange concepts and methods for planning from universities worldwide. The meeting, organized by the Association of Planning Schools of Indonesia (ASPI) for the Global Planning Education Association Network (GPEAN), involves eleven planning school associations and is expected to involve faculty from over 400 universities in more than 80 countries.
The Congress theme, Planning a Global Village: Inclusion, Innovation and Disruption, will be developed through 13 tracks ranging across the breadth of planning practice. Among the track chairs are U.S. scholars Casey Dawkins of the University of Maryland, College Park, Monica Haddad of Iowa State University, and Mi Shih of Rutgers University. Zorica Nedovic-Budic of the University of Illinois at Chicago is a member of the GPEAN Congress Steering Committee. Student opportunities connected to the Congress include a global doctoral colloquium, an international joint studio, and a student competition and exhibition.
U.N. Habitat Executive Director Maimunah Mohd. Sharif, University of Hong Kong professor Anthony Yeh, and Columbia University professor Saskia Sassen will be keynote speakers.
Calls for paper and session proposals to be selected competitively based on peer review are open until 28 February. Registration for the Congress will open 2 April.
FULL STORY: World Planning Schools Congress website

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss
The plan would reduce visitor accommodation by 25% resulting in 1,900 jobs lost.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Wind Energy on the Rise Despite Federal Policy Reversal
The Trump administration is revoking federal support for renewable energy, but demand for new projects continues unabated.

Passengers Flock to Caltrain After Electrification
The new electric trains are running faster and more reliably, leading to strong ridership growth on the Bay Area rail system.

Texas Churches Rally Behind ‘Yes in God’s Back Yard’ Legislation
Religious leaders want the state to reduce zoning regulations to streamline leasing church-owned land to housing developers.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
Smith Gee Studio
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service