Black Lives Matter

Revisit Michael Ford’s #BlackLivesMatter Appeal to Planners
Michael Ford opened the 2022 National Planning Conference with an engaging keynote address that offered perspective and inspiration for a changed planning profession.

Seattle's Vision Zero Program Emphasizes Safe Systems Over Enforcement
Looking for traffic safety improvements while responding to 2020's Black Lives Matter protests, Seattle has spent much of the past two years implementing a Safe System approach to move closer to its Vision Zero goal to eliminate traffic fatalities.

New Book Interrogates Landscape Architecture Through The Lens Of Black Spaces
A collection of essays provides an insightful look at how Black voices and landscapes have been suppressed and erased in American public space and discourse.

White House Marks Juneteenth by Pushing for Zoning Reforms
On a holiday that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, the White House marked the occasion by discussion exclusionary zoning.

Equity and 'Righting Past Wrongs' to Start the 2021 National Planning Conference
The American Planning Association's 2021 National Planning Conference started streaming this morning, with an obvious focus on equity and the historical role of the planning profession in perpetuating systemic racism.

Oklahoma House Approves Protections for Drivers Who Hit Protestors
A heated debate and a party line vote in Oklahoma.

Pedestrian Safety Still Not a Priority in the United States
Dangerous by Design 2021 quantifies the transportation sector's ongoing neglect of the health and safety of people performing that basic human action of taking a walk.

Stories of Resilience From 2020
A year of intense challenges also offers a chance to break from the unsustainable, inequitable status quo.

Comprehensive Plan Update Stokes Controversy in D.C.
Complex political dynamics are mustering for a showdown over D.C.'s comprehensive plan.

Planning Trends to Watch in 2021
The nation is now tasked with the challenge of changing course in the middle of multiple, global crises. The necessity of finding a way to overcome the failures of the past and lay the groundwork for a new kind of future has never been more clear.

What's Abolitionist Housing Policy?
Abolition—as a mode of mobilization and social change directed at the criminal legal system and elsewhere—remains widely misunderstood.

The Planning Profession Needs More Black Women
If planners want to address the impacts of exclusionary planning, historical inequities, and policies that ignore the needs of women and minorities, they must address systemic inequities within the field itself.

Street Art Proves the Value of Public Space
Murals do more than bring joy to onlookers. Public art can also be a source of healing, a point of reflection, and a cause for conversation.

Valuing Black Lives and Black Cities
Andre M. Perry’s "Know Your Price: Valuing Black Lives and Property in America’s Black Cities" reveals the web of historical and contemporary socioeconomic barriers that maintain the racial wealth divide.

A New Guide to Black Voices on the City
Introducing a new interactive resource that presents the contributions of the Black community to a growing understanding of cities and the built environment.

The Freedom Georgia Initiative Buys 97 Acres to Build a New Black Community
Inspired by the killing of Ahmaud Arbery and a speech by rapper Killer Mike, a group of Black families is investing from the ground up in a new community that prioritizes the safety and financial empowerment of Black residents.

How Regional Planning Can Be Antiracist
Under new board president Rex Richardson, the Southern California Association of Governments—the country's largest MPO—has pledged to combat racism through regional planning, including equitable housing development.

How to Adopt Long-Term Anti-Racism Solutions as an Urbanist
Nic Esposito calls for an "anti-racist reframe" of urbanism to address the attitudes and policies that have perpetuated racist systems and upheld capitalism at all costs.

Policy Change That Could End the Disproportionate Targeting of Black Transit Riders
Having experienced improper detainment by transit police officers, National City Housing Advisory Committee Commissioner Marcus Bush calls for substantive change in transit fare enforcement systems.

Planners Call for Deep Police Reforms
A letter signed by over 600 planners calls on the American Planning Association to advocate for fundamental police reforms, in other words, to defund the police.
Pagination
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.
City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research