A meta-study shows that public realm interventions can help reduce crime rates.
New research from the Futures Institute reveals a link between the design of the built environment and crime rates, showing a possible way to reduce the need for police officers through “preemptive streetscape improvements.”
As Gersh Kuntzman explains in Streetsblog USA, “Simple improvements to the built environment — such as the lowest-hanging fruit of bright street lights as well as traffic-calming strategies — play an outsized and underappreciated role in reducing the violence that is plaguing so many communities and can help alter the default solution of sending in more cops.”
A section of the report titled “Investments in Built Design & Community Infrastructure” highlights the public space interventions that can help reduce crime including street design, access to transit, green space, and street lighting. The report points to reduced access points to neighborhoods as one way to reduce crime (though some urbanists might bristle at the thought of cul-de-sacs as a crime prevention tool).
FULL STORY: Fighting Crime Without Cops: New Report Shows Key Role of Streetscape
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Using Old Oil and Gas Wells for Green Energy Storage
Penn State researchers have found that repurposing abandoned oil and gas wells for geothermal-assisted compressed-air energy storage can boost efficiency, reduce environmental risks, and support clean energy and job transitions.
Updating LA’s Tree Rules Could Bring More Shade to Underserved Neighborhoods
A new USC study finds that relaxing Los Angeles’ outdated tree planting guidelines could significantly expand urban tree canopy and reduce shade disparities in lower-income neighborhoods, though infrastructure investments are also needed.
California's Canal Solar Projects Aim to Conserve Resources and Expand Clean Energy
California’s Project Nexus has begun generating electricity from solar panels installed over irrigation canals, with researchers and state agencies exploring statewide expansion to conserve water and boost clean energy production.
HHS Staff Cuts Gut Energy Assistance Program
The full staff of a federal program that distributes heating and cooling assistance for low-income families was laid off, jeopardizing the program’s operations.
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