Great Barrington, Massachusetts - a small, beautiful town along the banks of the Housatonic River in the Berkshire Hills - is employing an innovative, if strange, strategy to boost its local economy. They've created a parallel currency in the form of BerkShares, bills featuring W. E. B. DuBois and Norman… more

In a Washington Post op-edmore

Reading today's news on New York's hot housing market, I had to reflect again on the puzzling op-ed piece on "The Myth of Superstar Cities" last week in The Wall Street Journal.

To our knowledge, no source of data would tell you with any accuracy the number of college-educated… more

Tomorrow, car commuters to London will encounter a congestion pricing zone twice the size of the one they found Friday. While businesses and national campaigners complain, London's efforts to reduce traffic and pollution are working. Vehicles in the zone are down about 10 percent since the zone went into the… more

Two researchers at the University of Maryland are recommending that governments develop a social network for disasters. They call it 911.gov. It would allow residents to report disasters, request assistance from neighbors, and check for emergency updates and relief information.

In a major disaster, telephone operators are quickly overwhelmed. In the… more

With a recent Gallup poll finding that one-third of working adults are very or somewhat concerned about "losing a sense of purpose" in their lives after they retire, financial advisors are recommending that retiring boomers take up hobby jobs to keep themselves active. Retirees who report the highest level of… more

One of the best things about cities is that they liberate people from the burden of cars. But for those times when driving is absolutely necessary, a New York entrepreneur has developed an innovative solution to reduce the hassle of parking: an automated parking garage. The garage takes your car… more

Whether the world is round or flat, spikey or smooth, it seems that place continues to matter. The New York Times reports on the particular pull - and power - of Silicon Valley: "IN our celebrity-studded world, where we make a cult of genius and individual achievement, the mind… more

The following, from a speech by former Winnipeg Mayor Glenn Murray, provides a wonderful perspective on placemaking...

"Winnipeg started as a city that had a huge sense of possibilities. The first people who arrived there were trying to attract the railroad so they built grand railroad stations. They built beautiful Carnegie… more

Due to both the perceived value of New York's real estate market and the global demand it commands, many of the city's most expensive properties are the second (or third or fourth) residences of wealthy out-of-towners, some of whom rarely use them. The Wall Street Journal reports that, "Wealthy… more

Green enthusiasts are bringing the brown stuff into their homes. The New York Times reports that, "a new breed of environmentally conscious homeowners...are willing to forgo traditional floorings like hardwood, carpeting and concrete for the supposed benefits of earthen floors: a reduction in heating costs and environmental impact and,… more

“You can’t market yourself as bucolic" says J. Timothy Cloyd, president of Hendrix College in rural Conway, Arkansas, in a New York Times article describing the efforts of country colleges to become more city. "For decades, colleges like Hendrix in rural areas of the country embraced a pastoral… more

The McKinsey Quarterly has published the results of a survey of U.S. excecutives revealing that, "Almost half of US executives believe they and their peers should play a leadership role in publicly shaping debate and in efforts to address sociopolitical issues such as education, health care, and foreign policy,… more

The Sustainable Endowments Institute has released a College Sustainability Report Card that grades select institutions of higher education across the U.S. on seven categories: climate change and energy, green building, food and recycling, administration, endowment transparency, investment priorities, and shareholder engagement. Four institutions - Dartmouth College, more

The Center for an Urban Future released a report today detailing how, "Immigrant entrepreneurs have emerged as key engines of growth for cities from New York to Los Angeles—and with a little planning and support, they could provide an even bigger economic boost in the future." The report, entitled… more

In March's Dwell magazine, Jon Braeley, an "ex-architect who has lived in densely populated cities" and who now calls Miami home, writes about the community-building power that arts districts create. He relays that he frequently visits sites like youtube.com, where there's nonstop "community chatter," but that such sites… more

#11 in the HBR List: Breakthrough Ideas for 2007: "Innovation and Growth: Size Matters." Geoffrey West, the president of the Santa Fe Institute writes that, "Like the mathematical laws governing how organisms' metabolism, growth, evolution, and mortality depend on size, there are rules that appear to govern… more

USA Today featured New York's Pod Hotel in its Friday edition. I just stayed there this week while speaking to a class at Columbia University. The double room was very well imagined and outfitted. The one puzzle it took me some time to figure out was the bed. I'm only… more

If distance is dead, why do we continue to clog up the highways with rush hour commutes and still travel to meetings and conferences?

Writing for Slate, Financial Times columnist Tim Harford contends that "the same e-mail that allows you to maintain long-distance business relationships also creates demand for more… more

Chicago never misses a chance to celebrate. And the Bears' trip to the Super Bowl has the town decked out in blue and orange. See for yourself.

Media coverage of businesses and other urban institutions responding to the trend of families remaining in cities as they raise their children is seemingly neverending. In the latest installment, the New York Times reports that young daughters are now accompanying their mothers to domains formerly thought to be adult… more

Mayors across the country are making meaningful commitments to greening their cities. USA Today reports that cities are "joining the fight against global warming, taking actions designed not only to protect the environment but save money by boosting efficiency. As the USA comes off its warmest year on record,… more