Family-Friendly Neighborhoods

Group of five small children running on concrete outdoors on sunny day.

Planning Communities for Thriving Children

When it comes to children's health and economic success, current trends are dismal. New research identifies how to plan communities where children can thrive. The secret? Compact, mixed-income, multimodal neighborhoods.

February 17, 2025 - Todd Litman

Blue sign with white sillhouettes indicating parent and child crossing street.

Lessons in Child-Friendly Cities From Europe

How parklets, open streets, and green spaces make cities safer and friendlier for children and families.

November 20, 2024 - Streetsblog USA

Playground in courtyard of apartment building.

How Courtyard Apartments Make Cities More Family-Friendly

Apartment buildings with interior courtyards can offer safe, affordable, and functional spaces for urban households with children.

November 10, 2024 - Bloomberg CityLab

Norway Biker

Planning Communities for Children and Families

Child in the City asks “If you could see the city from an elevation of 95 cm, what would you do differently?” It provides a toolbox of specific policies and planning practices for creating more child-friendly communities.

March 9, 2021 - Child in the City: Planning Communities for Children & their Families

Ontario

New Report Plans Toronto at Kid Scale

Toronto has released draft urban design guidelines that put families with children at the center of the city.

June 2, 2017 - Next City

Transit Oriented Development

Smart Growth Policies for Urban Affordability and Fertility

The new International Housing Affordability Survey contains various errors and biases. The author even claims that compact housing reduces fertility. Really? Smart policies can create affordable and family-friendly housing.

February 10, 2016 - Todd Litman

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.