Adam Nossiter, writing in today's NYT, reports that plans unveiled a year ago to redevelop New Orleans and begin to move out of the post-Hurricane Katrina morass show few signs of being realized.

Billed as the plan to end all plans, with Paris-like streetscape renderings and promises of parks, playgrounds… more

In Houston for the NCAA basketball tournament this weekend (where my University of Memphis Tigers rolled over their competition), I spent three days in a t-shirt.

Two of those days, I spent in U of M blue with the single word "Memphis" featured prominently on the front. Not only did that… more

Nice story in my hometown newspaper on just how hard it is for poor people in America and what a long step it is to transcend poverty.

We're in Houston for the NCAA Tourney and got an advance look at the city's new downtown centerpiece, Discovery Green.

The park, which opens April 13, is across the street from the Convention Center and the Hilton - Americas. Although it is still lined on two sides with surface… more

Pittsburgh Public Schools Superintendent Mark Roosevelt has taken on the simultaneous challenges of rebuilding the system's middle class student population and making real education progress with the system's 21,000 children from destitute families.

There's nothing easy about these challenges. Nothing. But if anyone is up to it, my bet would… more

With our rapidly changing societies, how can local governments keep up with the new challenges facing them?

A recent publication offers the case studies of the four winners of the Audit Commission and IDeA Competition - local governments who have found innovative ways to address particular issues, however small… more

Since the sub-prime mortgage collapse, the challenge has been to establish real data and useful information to gauge the extent and impact of this economic upheaval. A recent National League of Cities poll of more than 200 cities puts forward some indications on the impacts already being felt by cities… more

I can't think of anyone I'd rather have whispering in the ear of a presidential candidate about cities than Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer. It's good to know he's on the road with Barack Obama. Blumenauer has been chief Congressional advocate for livable cities.

This morning Richard Florida was labeling LaGuardia a "living hell," based mostly on its dismal design. (I would add its lack of easy train connections to Manhattan.)

The sad joke in Chicago is that if it snows, hundreds of flights are canceled at O'Hare. And this morning -- the… more

From the very fine David Report... French designer Ora-Ito and real estate entrepreneurs have teamed up with a new concept of luxury housing and resorts around the globe. The new brand is called LH&R-Luxury Houses & Resorts, a Paris based development-design joint venture that aims to be "the lifestylers… more

I've been carrying this around for days...From the Wall Street Journal 3.9.08: "More and more people are working part-time jobs for economic reasons, rather than by choice. That figure rose by 100,000 in February for the second month in a row... bringing it to 4.79 million, compared to 4.13 million… more

Suburban lawns are being replaced with crops.

According to the NYT, Edible Estates is "an ingeniously subversive landscaping manifesto [that] proposes that homeowners banish grassy vanity lawns and replace them with harvestable gardens. Since its inauguration on July 4, 2005, in Salina, Kan., the project has delawned yards and… more

While waiting to meet Culture of the Future founder Jody Turner for breakfast this morning, I flipped through the New York Times and found this item in a story by Paul Vitello on voters in the heart of Pennsylvania: "Peter Contacos, 42, the fourth generation of his family to… more

I am reading Bill Bishop's fabulous new book, "The Big Sort." Scheduled for release in May, the book documents the increasing geographic divisions among Americans of different political beliefs, values, religions and expectations. Like-minded people increasingly tend to live near like-minded people, thus amplifying the beliefs people hold. (It's… more

I often think about the things that make a city feel like home... the things that make you proud of your city. .. the things that draw you back even when a job takes you elsewhere.

Today was another example of the ability of sports to do that, certainly in… more

"I was going to bring my PSP but this is more fun." This is one response from a group of kids on a double-decker tour bus as it cruised downtown Chicago (in five-degree weather!). In a quest to find what local kids like best about the city, the Tribune took… more

In another example of the seismic shifts occurring in today’s economy, Sony BMG’s innovative marketing approach has tapped into new communication, distribution, and collaboration trends with enormous impact.

The article, Dancers in the Crowd Bring Back ‘Thriller’ tells that the corporation has engaged audiences of over 1 million to… more

The war in Iraq will ultimately cost U.S. taxpayers an astonishing $2 trillion, perhaps more. It didn't buy a weakened enemy as intended, so what would that money have bought for Americans?

Read Bob Herbert's column last week in the New York Times. And then re-read it.

How is America's Heartland faring in the age of globalization? Not very well, according to the evidence compiled by Richard Longworth in his new book, "Caught in the Middle."

What had been the nation's powerhouse of agriculture and industrial might began fading 40 years ago due to the integration of… more

Launched in the UK, The School of Everything aims to create a new bottom-up education system, making it easy for anyone to find a teacher (once the site is populated with willing teachers), advertise their teaching services and arrange a teaching session. The Young Foundation's Launchpad is mentoring… more

The AWEARNESS Blog, a product of fashion designer and retailer Kenneth Cole, provides daily updates under four socially-aware pillars of discussion: Social Rights, Well-Being, Political Landscape and Hard Times. The blog hopes to raise awareness around the issues that fall under these four areas in a dynamic and engaging… more

Endless Innovation writes, one reason for the vibrancy of American innovation is the proliferation of "third places" - places like the corner coffee lounge - where freelance workers and mobile digerati can meet, greet and socialize in an environment that is neither home nor office. Read more here.

The Endless City, a new book edited by the London School of Economics' Ricky Burdett and design curator Deyan Sudjic, aims to put urban expansion into perspective. The growth of cities, they argue, is not just a problem for local government agents or urban planners. Instead, urban growth is… more

Simon Anholt has announced his latest rankings of city brands. Topping the list is Sydney, Australia, followed by London, Paris, New York, Rome, Melbourne, Barcelona, Vancouver, Amsterdam and Montreal.

Simon based his rankings on a survey of 1000 international participants who answer a series of questions related to his City… more